iv.] MECHANICAL AID OF THE RIDER. 55 



be consistent, the opponents of the theory which I have 

 laid down should act on this principle though I have 

 never known them go quite so far. Sed quis custodes 

 custodiet ipsos ? What is to prevent the tail from falling 

 forward with the body ? They indeed argue, " Surely if 

 you throw hack the weight of the shoulders over the croupe 

 of the horse, you relieve his fore-hand, and diminish the 

 chance of his falling." This is rather to propose a new 

 method of preventing a horse from falling, than to prove 

 the advantage of pulling at the mouth while he is falling ; 

 for if it is of any advantage to throw your weight back, 

 then the less you pull at the mouth the better, for the 

 more you pull, the less you are at liberty to throw the 

 weight back. But, in truth, it is of no advantage to throw 

 the weight back when the stumble is made. If a position 

 is previously taken up on the croupe of the horse, the 

 pressure will be less on the fore-hand than if you were 

 placed in a forward position. But during the time that 

 the position is in the act of being shifted, that is, during 

 the time that the horse is falling, the act of throwing your 



