144 SADDLERY. 



SADDLE-CLOTHS 



Are generally made of felt, and their primary object is to pre- 

 vent the panel from soaking up sweat and becoming thereby 

 soiled and more or less spoiled. The term numdah, which 

 is applied to felt saddle-cloths, is derived from a Hindustani 

 word that signifies " felt." A saddle-cloth should be as 

 thin as efficiency in serving its purpose will allow it to be, 

 so that it may give as little " play " as possible to the saddle. 

 Although in all possible cases, the fitting of the saddle 

 should be limited to the adjustment of the shape of the 

 tree and to regulating the amount of stuffing in the panel ; 

 the use of a thick numdah with an improperly shaped or 

 deficiently stuffed saddle, is often a valuable make-shift 

 when necessity gives no other choice. The use of an ordinary 

 saddle-cloth is accompanied by the slight disadvantage, that 

 the middle line of the back which is covered by the saddle, 

 is, by the fact of the numdah resting on it, deprived of the 

 benefit of air circulating along it. An attempt to remedy 

 this objection is sometimes made by cutting a longitudinal 

 piece out of the centre of the saddle-cloth. Here, the cure 

 is worse than the complaint ; because injurious pressure will 

 be exerted by the edges of the aperture thus made, especially 

 if the edges be bound with tape, to preserve them from 

 fraying out. 



Saddle-cloths made of one thickness of leather, admirably 

 answer the purpose of saving the panel from injury ; but 

 for hunting and other long continued work, they have the 

 objection of retaining perspiration, instead of soaking it up, 

 as felt ones would do. It is a good plan, before using a new 

 leather saddle-cloth, to rub into it a little cod-liver oil, which 

 will keep it soft for a long time. 



