The Horse, as Comrade and Friend 



he is good again let your voice indicate your 

 satisfaction. After half a dozen times of this 

 kind of thing, it will surprise you how great 

 is the effect of your voice on the horse. If 

 you give all the indications through the reins, 

 he will look to the reins only for control ; if you 

 give most of your indications through your 

 voice he will be quick to attend to your voice 

 for control. Of course give him both, but 

 practise him mainly by the voice ; it is the 

 voice that stimulates his intelligence. 



It is the voice which gives him encourage- 

 ment in the face ot difficulty. Tlie more he 

 has attended to your voice for guidance and 

 control, the greater will be the effect ot its 

 encouragement in soothing his fears. You put 

 up your hand, as a warning to an approaching 

 motor, that you are on a young horse in train- 

 ing, but the odds are 10 to 1 that the motorist, 

 either from pure ignorance of the danger, or 

 often from callous indifference to anyone's 

 comfort but his own, will not take the faintest 

 notice of your appeal. It's a pretty severe 

 test for a young and nervous horse to meet one 

 of these road-hogs whizzing on to him ^vith a 

 cloud of dust behind, and he mil need aU the 

 encouragement you can give him. Speak to 

 him in the most endearing way, keep him at the 

 walk ; lean down and, with your left hand, 

 pat and scratch him on the neck, increasing 

 the pressure of the scratching as the car 



94 



