ON THE ROAD. 35 



has nothing to pull ; then, when once he is started, you will 

 probably be able to turn him, and induce him to go in the 

 direction you require. I believe there is absolutely no cure for 

 jibbing. With some, an inexhaustible supply of patience may 

 result in victory ; but, generally speaking, the case is hopeless, 

 and if you cannot get anyone to buy the brute, make him a 

 present to the man who bores you with the stalest stories, or 

 poisons you with an unsound claret when you dine with him. 



Rearing in its worst form, i.e., when a horse goes so far 

 up and so straight as to frequently fall backwards, is the vice, 

 par excellence, to be attended with fatal results. There is 

 little or no diflSculty in sitting a rearer — the danger is in his 

 losing his balance. Before he is up straight enough for this, 

 slip off, and then, if he comes back (and falls clear of you), 

 so much the better ; it will probably give him a wholesome 

 dread of trying it again. Generally speaking, the vice is met 

 with in young horses, who only act out of play and " calfish- 

 ness." So long as he confines himself to the modified form 

 of rearing, a martingale and snaffle bridle (a curb is always 

 an incentive to this habit) will do all that is necessary to 

 make him go pleasantly. Hitting a horse between the ears, 

 or breaking a bottle of water there by that means, is, to my 

 mind, much prettier to read about in a three-volume novel 

 than to see put into practice. Comparatively few riders, more- 

 over, are in the habit of carrying water bottles about them, 

 I should fancy. 



Lying Down is, fortunately, not of frequent occurrence with 

 English-bred horses. When it is tried, you suddenly become 

 aware of a fore leg dropping ; then, without a moment's delay, 

 let the spurs in again and again, if necessary. This will 

 usually suffice to keep him on his legs. 



Shying, pure and simple, is mere nervousness, which should 

 be treated with the utmost gentleness and patience. But how 

 seldom do we see it thus dealt with ? Ninety-nine out of a 

 hundred men administer a severe cut with the whip imme- 

 diately a horse shies ; and what is the consequence ? The very 

 next time the animal sees anything frightening, not only does 

 he shy at it, but, remembering the whip, swerves suddenly 

 away from where he naturally expects it again, thus intensi- 

 fying the mischief tenfold. Anything more illogical it would 

 be hard to conceive. The true secret for the cure of this 

 trick is to affect not to notice it, persevere to get the horse 



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