82 THEORY OF MOUTHING. 



fore feet describe a smaller circle than the hind feet, and 

 consequently have an undue amount of weight thrown on 

 them. 



The fact of a horse turning his head round to one side 

 causes the position of his centre of gravity to be shifted 

 towards that side, the fore and hind leg of which will con- 

 sequently bear more weight than their respective fellows 

 under all ordinary conditions. We see this illustrated when 

 the horse is tied head and tail (vide Fig. 77), in which case 

 it is far more difficult for him to lift up either of the legs 

 of the side to which his head is turned, than either of the 

 corresponding limbs of the other side. In turning or 

 circling, this power of altering the position of the centre of 

 gravity is very useful to the horse for preserving his stability 

 by neutralising the effect of the centrifugal force generated 

 by the more or less circular motion. In this way, the head 

 and neck act as the balancing pole of the body. The applica- 

 tion of this principle is illustrated by curved portions of 

 railway lines, in which the outer rail is made higher than 

 the inner one, so as to tilt the centre of gravity of the train 

 inwards, as well as to offer a more effectual resistance to 

 the tendency the carriage might have of being carried off 

 the line. The track of circuses and even of running 

 grounds are banked up in a similar manner. The circus 

 rider, when standing on a pad or on the horse's back as the 

 animal canters round the track of the arena, leans inwards, 

 proportionately to the speed, with the object in question, 

 and so does his horse, as we may see if we observe the 

 animal closely. We may therefore conclude, apart from the 

 obvious reason that the horse should look where he is 

 going, that his head and neck should be in the direction in 

 which he is moving, whether he is turning, circling, or 

 travelling in a straight line. In fact, the animal, from the 

 muzzle to the end of the tail, should be bent more or less 



