458 CHAPTER 61. 



Action iiuibt l)f li^'lit, easy, free, and strdufht. Reject a liorse tliat 

 crosses his legs in walking or trotting. IIo will be unsafe. Freedom, 

 j)o\ver to move easily along, is the great point. 



A good walk is ahxoJutehj exsetitial. Reject a horse that does not walk 

 well ; he is never pleasant to ride. If a horse walks well, he will proba- 

 bly trot well ; but a horse may trot well without walking well. 



To ascertain whether the action is true and straight, stand behind the 

 horse as he walks and trots away from you. You cannot ascertain this 

 important point by standing on the side. 



Never omit to stand behind a horse as he walks away. 



A good sloping shoulder is an important item in a riding horse, but 

 bad action may co-exist with a good shoulder ; and, vice versa, good free 

 ai tion may co-exist with a somewhat straight shoulder, 



Reject a horse which is straight in the shoulder and long from the 

 point of the shoulder to the upper part of the forearm. This formation 

 jtlaces fore-legs too much under the horse, and makes him unsafe to ride. 



You may have a plain horse, even if all the above very apparent defects 

 are absent, Init you will, at least, have a serviceable one if in addition 

 found sound on veterinary examination. 



Having first of all kci)t clear of all absolute defects such as the above, 

 then select your horses for the presence of good, serviceable, and hand- 

 some points, and easy, free, graceful carriage. 



But, I repeat, berjin by rejection for any one positively had defect. 

 The greatest strength of a chain is limited by the strength of its weakest 

 link] 



In purchasing Horses, it is a great point not to lose time. If you see 

 any one radical defect, reject the Horse at once. The Dealer will, of 

 course, try and persuade you to do otherwise, and will call your attention 

 to some very good point or points in the really defective animal. 



Do not lose time. A dealer, if you arc a stranger to him, will probably 

 bring out and try and palm off on you his inferior horses. Rut if you 

 ai-e quick in seeing bad points, and at once reject defective animals, he 

 will soon find it necessary to show you his best horses. 



CHAPTER 61. 



THE LAW OF WAUHANTV. 



938. Uncertainty of the Law. 



The English law of Warranty is in a very unsettled and unsatisfactory 

 state. No man, who gives a warranty, is safe. The seeds of disease or 

 lameness may be legally traced back almost any length of time. On the 

 other hand, a bona fide purchaser even in cases of downright fraud often 

 finds the greatest difficulty in recovering his money from an unscrupulous 

 dealer. 



In almost eveiy case some Veterinary Surgeon may be found to give 

 his professional opinion that the cause of unsoundness maj^ have been ar\(] 



