OF FARRIERY. 



15 



his department, in the first style of condition 

 and cleanliness ; and this ambition is the grand 

 stimulus to cleanliness and industry, for he 

 labours to outdo his competitors. With these 

 natural qualifications there are practicable 

 acquirements, which, with attention and ob- 

 servation, and an apt capacity, may be easily 

 attained. 



CONDITION OF THE HORSE. 



The grand and principal aim of a groom is 

 to put his Horses in what is called condition : 

 Jet us, therefore, consider what is condition. 

 The word condition is variously applied to the 

 Horse, though widely different from what is 

 here implied : for instance, we say, a Horse is 

 in condition for sale; that implies he is in flesh, 

 his legs clean and fresh, his coat decently fine, 

 and perfectly sound ; a Horse may be all this, 

 but not in condition for work. Another Horse 

 is said to be in good working condition ; such 

 might be said of a post-horse, that is bare of 

 flesh, his joints enlarged, and his legs puffed 

 with windgalls, yet this Horse is capable of 

 doing much work ; and his being worked more 

 than was requisite to keep him in condition, 

 1ms put him out of condition. 



Condition, therefore, without an expletive, 

 implies that perfect state of body and limbs, in 

 which the whole system is the most vigorous, 

 and capable of great exertion, if required ; and 

 this cannot be obtained or kept, without strictly 

 adhering to three things, viz , proper food, 

 proper grooming, and proper exercise ; neither 

 of these must be omitted, or injudiciously ad- 

 ministered ; for, like medicine, properly ad- 

 ministered, it does good, but is capable of 

 doing much injury, if profusely taken or mis- 

 applied. Wine, in moderation, cheers the 

 spirits and invigorates the body of man, but 



taken to excess, debilitates and weakens the 

 constitution. 



FEEDING OF HORSES. 



The food of the Horse, only consisting of hay, 

 a little clover, oats, and, on some occasions, a 

 few beans, and his drink only water, may be 

 thought of such simple and inoffensive quali- 

 ties, that only withholding them from the Horse 

 would do him injury ; but quality and quantity, 

 proportioned to his habit of body or constitution, 

 must be attended to. If the quality is bad, 

 it will make him foul, and will not afford 

 the nutriment that clean wholesome food 

 yields : if you feed too plentifully for the work 

 or exercise the Horse has, you will make him 

 what is termed too fleshy and gross, and, pro- 

 bably, what is termed in horse langtiage, fly to 

 pieces ; that is, he will become languid and 

 dull, from the circulation of the blood being 

 retarded, his stomach overcharged, and want 

 of digestion, in all probability fever ensues, tlie 

 grease, and subjects him to breakings out in 

 the legs and those places most remote from the 

 heart, where a free circulation of the blood is 

 prevented. Again, if you disproportion your 

 feed, by giving him too much hay, this will 

 cause him to drink freely, and make him run 

 to belly ; blowing him out with this descrip- 

 tion of food which affords the least nutriment; 

 a Horse thus fed cannot endure much labour, 

 and his wind becomes distressed. 



Hay is the natural food for the Horse, but 

 not sufliciently strengthening for Horses to work 

 upon now-a-days ; therefore, a Horse to be kept 

 in condition, must be fed sparingly of hay, and 

 that of the very best quality. 



To ascertain the quantity of hay a Horse 

 should have, depends much on his size, his 

 constitution, the nature of his work, &c.. &c. 



