PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION. 



I OFFER this work to the favourable consideration of the public, as 

 an attempt to describe a reasoned-out system of horse-breaking, 

 which I have found, by practical experience, to be easy of execution, 

 rapid in its effects, and requiring the possession of no exceptional 

 strength, activity, pluck, or horsemanship by the operator, who, to 

 become expert in it, will, as a rule, need only practice. It is in 

 accordance with our English and Irish ideas on the subject ; for it 

 aims at teaching the horse " manners," and giving him a snaffle- 

 bridle mouth; so that he will "go up to the bridle," and "bend" 

 himself in thorough obedience to rein and leg. 



As a personal explanation, I may mention that after having spent 

 many years racing and training in India, during which time I prac- 

 tised the ordinary methods of breaking, I returned to England, 

 where I learned the use of the standing martingale and long driving 

 reins, as applied specially to jumpers, from Mr. John Hubert Moore, 

 who was the cleverest " maker " of steeplechasers Ireland ever knew. 

 He, I may remark, obtained these methods, in his youth, from an 

 old Irish breaker, named Fallen, who was born more than a century 

 ago. I had also valuable instruction in " horse-taming " from Pro- 

 fessor Sample. Having read an account of MM. Raabe and 

 Lunel's htppolasso, as a means of control for veterinary operations, I 

 conceived, with happy results, the idea of utilising this ingenious 

 contrivance in breaking. I also learned, about the same time, how 

 to baiter a loose horse without running any danger of being kicked, 

 or bitten. 



Having thus acquired a fair amount of information, on what has 

 always been to me a favourite subject, I naturally wished to put it 

 into practice. 



As I knew, judging from my former ignorance, how much men in 

 India stood in need of instruction in horse-breaking, I determined 

 to return to that country with the object of teaching this art ; so as 

 to acquire the experience I needed, and to " pay my expenses " at 

 the same time. 1 am glad to say that I was successful in both re- 

 spects. During a two years' tour, I held classes in all the principal 

 stations of the Empire from Trichinopoly to Peshawur, and from 

 Quetta to Mandalay and, having met a very large number of vicious 



