THE BIT. [CHAP. 



counteract the height of the hand, and the friction 

 will to a certain degree steady and counteract the 

 unequal bearing on the horse's mouth. A low smooth 

 hand is the only true martingale : this will never be 

 acquired as long as an implement is used which tends 

 to permit harsh, high handling with impunity to the 

 rider. 



The snaffle, even of a double bridle, should be sewed 

 to the bridle; it is safer for leading, and it is only 

 the curb bit which you wish to have the power of 

 changing. The reins should be thin and supple, they 

 will last the longer ^fqr it; for reins break from being 

 stiff and cracking, and suppleness of reins is essential 

 to delicacy of hand. 



As the collected paces of the parade are not in 

 vogue in England, a gentleman rarely has occasion 

 for his curb at all, except to train a horse for a 

 lady, or in the case where a 'commanding power is 

 required over a horse who, by bad or cruel handling, 

 has become a puller, or habitually restive, or whose 



