486 



THE MODERN SYSTEM 



be known by tiie peculiar wheezing he is ad- 

 dicted to, when put to sudden or long con- 

 tinued exertion : the latter makes a roaring 

 noise under similar circumstances ; and either 

 may be made to display itself, by the pur- 

 chaser ffivinff him a smart cut, or even feign- 

 ing to do so, with his whip. 



In another part of our work, we have spoken 

 at length on the age of the Horse from his 

 teeth ; and those rules should now be applied. 

 Great care should be taken to see that there 

 is no enlargement of the glands, and that the 

 nostrils are free from any foetid smell ; as 

 under such circumstances, that most terrible 

 of all diseases, glanders, may be apprehended. 



We cannot leave this subject without ad- 

 verting concisely to the animal's limbs : If, 

 in passing our hand down his legs, we find 

 any unnatural protuberance or puffiness, or if 

 in feeling first one leg and then the other, we 

 discover any difference between them, disease 

 more or less is present ; he may not be lame, 

 but he is not clean upon his legs. Splents, 

 windgalls, and ringbones, may be present 

 without occasioning lameness ; but they are 

 all unnatural, are considered blemishes, and 

 are all to be regarded with a suspicious eye, 

 as either denoting past hard work, or betoken- 

 ing future CA'ils. On the same principle, a 

 Horse may have a spavin, and be only stiff 

 from it at starting, or he may have a curb, or 

 a thorough-pin, and be perfectly sound; but 

 these are still blemisiies, and as such, detract 

 from the intrinsic value of the animal. 



The Horse is next trotted in hand, or rode ; 

 during which the first look-out will be to dis- 

 cover whether he bends his knees sufficiently, 

 and goes clear of both hind and fore-legs ; 

 whether he goes wide enough behind, and 

 whether his feet stand straight. His reining 



may be then observed, to see in what state be 

 carries his head, whether he appears light in 

 hand, or otherwise. Should he thrust out his 

 head, he will go heavy in hand. The mode 

 in which he is shod should be well observed, 

 to guard against those knavish tricks which 

 are too often played in that respect ; or lo 

 forget the exquisite barbarity known to be 

 practised by miscreants upon a Horse lame of 

 one foot, by driving a nail or peg into the 

 other, so that by the force of whip and spur, 

 the Horse going alike with both, may mo- 

 mentarily assume the appearance of sound- 

 ness. A second-hand Horse, or one which 

 has been a considerable time in work, may be 

 warranted sound, but care should be used to 

 observe whether he knuckles with bent knees, 

 or has any other impending cause of unsound- 

 ness. Horses which appear stale and dingy 

 in their coats, with perhaps a mixture of grey 

 hairs ; and a Horse, low in flesh and dull, 

 with his coat dead, may be suspected of rot- 

 tenness. We should not object to buying a 

 Horse, merely because he was low in con- 

 dition ; the appearance of such a Horse, with 

 those described above, will be readily per- 

 ceived; and a Horse merely suffering from 

 not having had a kind and generous master, 

 ought not to prove an impediment to his 

 again having one. Indeed, we have often felt 

 great pleasure in restoring a Horse who has 

 suffered from neglect and poor keep, to good 

 condition. There have been many Horses 

 restored even from the knackers. We were 

 shown one, a beautiful pie-balled Horse, 

 which had been sent to a knacker's, in Friar 

 Street, and whose owner has since refused 

 seventy pounds for him. 



A naturally vicious Horse will shew it in the 

 leering and designing glances from his 



