216 FIRST LESSONS IN RIDING. 



to be light in front when going forward, he should be 

 light behind when reining back. Therefore, the rider 

 should lean forward. Also, she should feel the reins 

 alternately, turning the horse's head towards the fore 

 leg which is more advanced than the other fore leg. 

 When she takes a steady pull with her right rein and 

 finds that the horse draws back his off-fore, she should 

 slacken the right rein and take a similar steady pull 

 with the left rein to induce him to bring back his near 

 fore, and so on. During this alternate feeling of the 

 reins she should keep her hands as low as practicable, 

 so that the horse may lower his head and put weight 

 on his forehand, and consequently facilitate the move- 

 ments of his hind legs. For each step the lady should 

 use the words of command, "rein back," in a decided 

 tone of voice, supposing of course that the animal has 

 been taught the meaning of this verbal order. How- 

 ever well a lady may carry out these directions, she 

 may not effect her purpose with precision, because the 

 side pulls of the respective reins will prompt the horse, 

 if he has not had previous training, to bring round his 

 hind quarters in the opposite direction. The rider 

 can- prevent him doing this to the right by pressure of 

 the whip on his off-flank ; but owing to the necessary 

 shortness of her stirrup, she will not be able to prevent 

 him from swinging his hind quarters round to the left. 

 Here, the fact of a man having a leg on each side of 

 his horse and fairly long stirrups, makes him far more 

 capable of reining back a horse properly, than a lady 

 seated on one side of the animal. A man obtains 



