CONSTRUCTION OF CURBS. 83 



bitted in a Chifney, goes all right in, say, a Ward Union 

 curb, we may put the blame as a rule, not on the principle of 

 the Chifney, but on the excessive length of the lower ends of 

 its cheeks, which, speaking generally, should not be longer than 

 three inches. Particular care should be taken that the curb- 

 chain does not hurt the animal's jaw ; because more strain is 

 thrown on the curb-chain by a Chifney bit than by any other 

 kind of curb. 



Agreeably to the foregoing principles, I have drawn Fig. 94, 

 to show a properly constructed curb for a horse with an 

 ordinary-sized mouth. The measurements are given in 

 inches. 1 he Ward Union bit fulfils the correct conditions 

 so nearly, that an intending purchaser will generally find 

 that it will meet his requirements. 



9. Devices to keep the mouth " lively " include the sliding 

 mouth-piece (Figs. 50 and 51), the mouth-piece which revolves 

 through an angle of 45 (Figs. 63 and 64), a mouth-piece 

 with three or four links of chain hung from the port (Figs. 

 63 and 64), and one with rollers, like a Hanoverian Pelham. 

 My experience is that these devices are of no practical use, 

 except perhaps for hacking. 



The curb which has a sliding mouth-piece is not right in 

 principle ; because if it is placed so low as to be in correct 

 position (p. 103), when the reins are drawn tightly, the mouth- 

 piece will knock against the tushes when the reins are kept 

 slack. A horse will often play with this mouth-piece when 

 the curb reins are loose, in which case its presence may aid 

 in keeping the mouth " lively." But when the curb reins are 

 taken up, the mouth-piece will act in the same way as that of 

 any other curb, and will have no up and down play. This 

 bit, nevertheless, suits some horses better than an ordinary 

 curb ; seemingly because the upper ends of the cheeks are 

 usually shorter, and consequently more correct in length, than 

 those of the other, the upper ends of the cheeks of which 



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