LAYING DOWN THE FOOT, 157 



the pastern, instead of settling into its proper place 

 behind the perpendicular of the foot, knuckles over in 

 front." Now, in place of stating that, according to 

 the idea of the heel action, the mistake arises from ever 

 placing the toe on the ground till after the heel is de- 

 posited, he here states that it arises from putting down 

 the foot " too much on the toe," which indisputably 

 implies that he thought it ought to come a little on the 

 toe. This view is fully borne out by what he says 

 about settling the pastern in its place. On the old 

 idea of the toe or flat first, the pastern always requires 

 to settle back into its place ; but on the plan of the 

 heel first, the pastern is in its proper place before the 

 foot touches the ground, and requires no settling at all. 

 In short, it is as plain as possible Stonehenge knew 

 nothing of the heel action in 1855. As far as I am 

 concerned, however, it does not make the slightest dif- 

 ference what meaning could be taken out of the lan- 

 guage he then used, because my views were published 

 in the Londonderry Standard nearly eight years be- 

 fore his Rural Sports were written, and ten years 

 before Mr. Lupton's paper appeared. Hence my 

 claim for priority is incontrovertible, and my meaning, 

 as conveyed in the words quoted at the commencement 

 of this section, is beyond dispute. I republished the 

 same sentiments at the 88th and 89th pages of the first 

 edition of this work, in 1859 ; and again in the Edin- 



