IN SEARCH OF A HOPwSE. 201 



pilfering of the master's oats ; yet even on this point 

 a little personal attention will prove a better secu- 

 rity than is commonly supposed. It is necessary to 

 ascertain in the first instance whether the horse is a 

 good feeder or not ; and this is easily done by ob- 

 serving him two or three times ; if he does not feed 

 well, he will not consume more than three feeds 

 a-day, and this will enable us, by a little calculation, 

 to judge whether the corn bill is larger than neces- 

 sary : if he feeds well, four feeds is a fair allowance ; 

 but I am sorry to say, that in far the larger number 

 of livery stables, the bait during the day must be 

 reckoned for nothing. The corn should be given as 

 nearly as possible at regular intervals, and never 

 more than a quartern at a time. Horses will often 

 eat up a double feed with apparent appetite, but 

 they rarely digest it : the oats should be old, clean, 

 and above all, free from any musty smell. It is not 

 easy to an unpractised eye to judge of their quality 

 by a single sample ; but by comparison of different 

 samples in the chandler's shop, the appearance of 

 good oats soon becomes familiar. 



It will save a considerable waste to have the oats 

 bruised in a mill : the cost of one is only five or six 

 18 



