THE FEET. 43 



foot as hollow as the hind ones; then you will 

 not be far off the proper form. 



White feet are considered objectionable ; but 

 recollect, a white foot, properly formed and 

 shaped, is far superior to a black one badly 

 formed, and that white hind feet are not of much 

 consequence. 



Examine attentively the warmth of the feet ; 

 but this must be done early in the morning-, by 

 eight o'clock, before the horse has been exer- 

 cised, to be of any avail. If one is warm whilst 

 the others are cool, there has been a strain of 

 the coffin-joint, or there is something else wrong 

 internally; but the lameness, in some of these 

 cases, is often so very slight, that you will not 

 discover it till after one or two ridings. 



You should observe also, whilst eating grass 

 in his loose stall, if he places one foot stretched 

 out before the other: if he stands decidedly in 

 this position, one foot too much under the body, 

 and the other pointed out nearly a yard in front, 

 you may suspect there is something wrong, either 

 a recent hurt, or, more probably, some old-stand- 

 ing tenderness. A dealer in England will pre- 

 vent your seeing this, by not placing such a horse 

 in a loose stall; but in India it is generally 

 boldly exhibited ; and I once heard the cause 

 equally as boldly accounted for. The buyer asked. 



