159 



TIME REQUIRED TO TRAIN. 



A horse in good hands is deemed capable of 

 proving his utmost speed in five, or, if taken from 

 grass and no exercise, in seven months : many for 

 the Bombay turf, fresh from the Bomb Proof, are 

 brought to the post in three months ; but so short 

 a period is not sufficient, unless they have been in 

 strong and regular exercise for some time pre- 

 vious. Others, again, which have been laid up 

 to fatten and get a decent external appearance, 

 are in this state (only half way to condition) put 

 into training exercise, in the hope of bringing out 

 their full powers in as brief a space, by dint of 

 sweating and galloping :* these, like the former, 

 are almost sure to get thrown over in some way 

 or other, for should their legs prove of that solid 

 texture to stand this hasty training, it is more 

 than their bodies will — they " fly to pieces." The 

 sudden high feeding on grain is also apt to make 

 them foul, or they grow stale, and, if there has 

 been any taint in the pedigree, perhaps sulky into 

 the bargain;! besides, a three-part bred Arab, 



* See the note under " Sweating." 



t A good caste Arab will sometimes sulk too ; the General, 

 of 1839 and 40, for instance; but then the cause, whatever it 

 may be, seldom arises from strong training. The misfortune 



