58 AUTOBIOGRAPHY. 



PORT DEPOSIT, MD., August 31, 1870. 

 We, the undersigned, residents of this place and vicinity, 

 were induced to enter Prof. Pratt's class for instructions in 

 educating the horse. At first many of us doubted the supe- 

 riority of his system, especially from the low price he charges 

 for instructions, believing it impossible to learn so much in 

 a short space of time for so little money ; suffice it to say, 

 we went in and all were more than satisfied. Illustrative of 

 which we give a brief description of the "Biting Horse," 

 owned by Mr. Snyder, near this town. This horse is a brown 

 stallion, 15^ hands high, closely built, and an animal of great 

 endurance, for which he is highly valued by Mr. Snyder, who 

 purchased him of a farmer in New Jersey for a very low 

 price on account of his most pernicious habit of biting, the 

 horse having bitten out two ribs of the farmer and broken 

 the leg of the son. Whilst in possession of his present owner 

 he has bitten off the arm of his groom, who brought him 

 into the Professor's pavilion. We saw and conversed with 

 this groom. The horse had on a strong iron muzzle, a pine 

 stick was inserted in the mouth, which he seized with mad- 

 ness ; upon its removal he gritted his teeth most fiercely. In 

 twenty minutes or less, Prof. Pratt had the muzzle off, his 

 hand in the horse's mouth pulling out the tongue. In a few 

 minutes after he drove the same horse in the street without 

 holdbacks. When he said "whoa," the horse stopped. 

 When he said " go," the horse went. Thus proving to two 

 hundred that his system is no fraud, but of all others 

 "excelsior." 



