JIBBING. 265 



together ; except, perhaps, the unpleasant habit some animals 

 have of prancing, dancing about, and refusing to walk quietly 

 when mounted. We should here bear in mind that rearing 

 is often a form of jibbing ; that in all cases these two vices 

 are closely allied to each other ; and that the horse when 

 practising either of them, is too light in front. If the rider 

 tries in the usual way to urge on a restive animal, the horse 

 will probably back, kick, shoulder his man up against the 

 first convenient object, bite him if he can get in reach, rear 

 straight on end, or even throw himself down and roll. A 

 friend of mine who was a brilliant 'cross country rider, was 

 once riding a horse of this description. They got on all 

 right together until they came to a small watercourse, at 

 which the horse stopped and refused to proceed. My friend, 

 who was holding the reins loosely in his right hand, shook 

 them on the animal's neck as a hint to go on. In an instant 

 the brute whipped his head round, seized the rider's wrist 

 with his teeth, and dragged him off his back. The poor 

 fellow battled with the horse for several minutes, and dealt 

 him blow after blow about the muzzle and face with his left 

 hand ; but the horse kept shaking him like a terrier would a 

 rat, until at last when he let go, my friend's wrist was a mass 

 of pulp, and had of course to be amputated. I am glad to 

 add that this terrible accident did not shake the iron nerves 

 of the sufferer, Mr. Bertie Short, and that he subsequently 

 won many steeplechases in India, though he had to wear a 

 hook. He used to ride with double reins sewn together at 

 intervals, so as to form loops, each about four or five inches 

 long. He was thus able to shorten or lengthen his hold, 

 or to take both reins in his right, and use the whip in his left 

 hand. 



In first tackling the offender, supposing that he is not 

 also a rearer, we may sometimes succeed in bringing him 

 to reason by a few cuts of a whip or stick across his hind 



