LEARNING TO RIDE. 25 



a rigid hold on the reins, which causes him to be 

 pulled forward, by the horse advancing his head, at 

 the moment his hind quarters make their stroke at 

 each stride ; while he naturally falls back again into 

 his saddle, when the horse bends his neck and draws 

 his hind quarters under him. 



Every horseman should endeavour to acquire the 

 possession of "good hands," which term is used to 

 express the happy knack of using the reins so as to 

 restrain the horse by delicate manipulation, and not by 

 mere hauling at his mouth. Unless one has a suffi- 

 ciently strong seat to enable one to be independent of 

 the reins for remaining in the saddle, and have an 

 unruffled temper and abundance of patience, it is im- 

 possible to have ''good hands." Respecting this subject, 

 see page 81. 



Riding. 

 Learning to ride. — It is not at all imperative for a 

 person to commence early in life in order to become a 

 good horseman. Some of the straightest riders I have 

 known, never mounted a horse before they were twenty- 

 two or twenty-three. I must, however, admit that even 

 they did not possess that extraordinary strength of 



