THE HORSE. 83 



properly and by degrees, the animal will not suffer. 

 But if horses newly purchased from the dealer's hands 

 are at once put to work without due consideration, 

 some severe disease often accrues, which, if it does not 

 kill them off, may render them cripples for life. When 

 this really occurs and it is by no means unfrequent, 

 the purchaser blames the vendor, who does not deserve it, 

 because, were he not to keep his horses in the finest 

 possible condition, he could not command a high price 

 for them. This accounts for the general complaint 

 of the difficulty in obtaining good hackneys. 



Hackneys. 



It is not, as many contend, that our horses are now 

 too high bred to make good hackneys ; on the contrary, 

 we never had a better class of horses for that purpose ; 

 but to make a good hackney is a work of time, and 

 during the process of training he must be ridden by 

 good horsemen who know what they are about. To 

 break him in well, you will subject him to many little 

 accidents ; and certain little things, the result of the 

 exercise, will be sure to make their appearance, which 

 will be construed to be the result of work. Over-fas- 

 tidious buyers will often be thus deceived, and reject a 

 well-trained hackney for a sleeker animal whose action 

 is not set. Therefore let it be noted as a fact that 

 until certain crotchets and fancied imperfections are 

 overlooked, and are no longer bugbears, we shall want 

 G 2 



