432 HORSESHOEING 



were made with hinges to allow expansion, and heated quarrels took place 

 as to the position and direction which nails and nail-holes should take. 

 Each authority pledged himself to some special form of shoe or method 

 of applying it as the only one suitai)le for all feet. Few, if any, seemed 

 to grasp the fact that horses' feet differed widely in form and substance, 

 and that the best general principles depended largely for success upon 

 the careful performance of every detail. 



From 1830 to 1860 not much was written about horse-shoeing. 

 Farriers followed their own line, and rather looked askance at theories 

 and principles. The actual manual work was remarkably well done in 

 the large towns, but too much attention was given to the production 

 of the shoe, whilst the preparation of the foot was neglected save for 

 the neat and smart appearance shown by the whole operation. The 

 hoof was pared and rasped as though it were an inanimate block, with 

 the result that it was more fitted for a table ornament than a basis of 

 support for a horse travelling over rough roads. To the late Mr. Joseph 

 Gamgee belongs the chief credit of the more sensible methods adopted 

 to-day. From 1860 to 1870 he never ceased to write and teach that a 

 horse-shoe was wanted to protect a hoof from wear, that the hoof should 

 be left as strong as possible compatible with its proper proportions, and 

 that the fitting of a shoe to the foot should be exact, whilst every foot 

 should be treated according to its own special requirements. He was 

 ably seconded in his endeavours by Dr. G. Fleming and other veterinarians, 

 with the result that correct jDrinciples are now quite understood and 

 fairly widely adopted. During the last decade a new departure has been 

 made in some counties. The technical education committees have recog- 

 nized the importance of horse-shoeing as a craft, and an endeavour is 

 being made to improve the art by lectures and by practical demonstrations 

 with a travelling forge and an efficient instructor. Now that apprentice- 

 ship has fallen into desuetude, this practical instruction is the only way 

 in which many districts can offer facilities for young workmen to see the 

 best work and to have it explained to them. 



Few owners of horses appreciate the importance of the best shoeing, 

 which can only be done with time and care. Low-priced work means 

 low-priced labour, and tlie hurry necessary to obtain a living by it quite 

 prevents men from giving the attention to details which is essential to 

 good shoeing, even when knowledge of princij^les and manual skill exist. 

 The aim of this article is to afford owners of horses such information 

 as will enable them to know good from bad shoeing, or at any rate to 

 impress them with the fact that the art is an important and difficult one, 

 worth much more attention than it obtains. 



