SEAT WHEN FINISHING. 103 



knees, and draw his feet well back, so that the weight, 

 at each stroke of the horse's hind legs, may not 

 come with a jerk on the stirrups, which would cause 

 it, by reaction, to be thrown to the rear, and would 

 thus increase the work the horse has to do. The hands 

 and arms should yield to the extension of the horse's 

 neck at each stride, without, however, slackening the 

 reins in the slightest. The rider should avoid the un- 

 sightly trick of working his hands in a circle round and 

 round ; they ought, on the contrary, to give and take 

 in the direction the horse is going, and ought to have 

 no side motion. The hands should be brought within 

 four or five inches of each other, and should be kept 

 low, say — not more than six inches above the withers. 



The rider having assumed this position, should con- 

 form to the movements of the horse, so that the weight 

 may impede him as little as possible (see p. 185). The 

 seat and thighs of the rider should appear as if they 

 were glued to the saddle, while there ought not to be 

 the slightest approach to any bumping up and down. 

 Whether the jockey can, or cannot, relieve the horse 

 of weight, by giving a forward impulse to his body 

 when the hind legs are on the ground, is a question 

 which does not concern us here, nor is it one of practical 



