138 HORSE AND MAN. 



tion to Nature so much as in his dealing with the 

 horse's hoof. He cannot let it alone, but cuts, and 

 carves, and scoops, and rasps, and greases, and 

 blacks, and rends its fibres as if he were not guided 

 by reason, but by a series of 'happy thoughts' which 

 happened to occur to him, and were immediately 

 acted upon without the least reflection. 



For example, the Creator has taken the greatest 

 care to make the whole Hoof as light as possible. 

 ' Happy thought! ' says man. 'Let us hang a pound 

 or so on each hoof arid make the horse waste his 

 strength in lifting it.' 



He has made the Wall exceedingly strong. 'Happy 

 thought ! Let us weaken it by cutting it away, by 

 scooping grooves in it, and driving nails into it so as 

 to tear the fibres asunder.' 



He has made this wall nearly as hard as iron. 

 ' Happy thought ! Let us soften it by " stopping " 

 and similar devices.' 



The Creator has made the edge of the wall quite 

 sharp, so as to enable it to hitch upon the slightest 

 unevenness, and to aid it in ascending a hill. 

 Another happy thought ! ' Let us cut away the 

 sharp edge, and substitute a flat, smooth surface of 

 iron which can take no hold of slippery ground.' 



There is now before me a shoe taken from the 

 foot of a dray-horse. The flat iron surface is exactly 



