USEFUL EECIPE 267 



by means of the reins, and thereby hanging his whole 

 dead weight on the horse's mouth, to the entire de- 

 struction of all that is good, safe, or pleasant, about 

 the animal." And in another place he says : " Horses 

 should be turned loose somewhere, or walked about 

 every day, when they do not work, particularly after 

 hard exercise : swelled legs, physic, &c, will be saved 

 by these means, and many distempers avoided." He 

 also observes, that " it is a matter of the greatest conse- 

 quence, though few attend to it, to feed horses accord- 

 ing to their work. When the work is hard, food should 

 be in plenty ; when it is otherwise, the food should be 

 diminished immediately — the hay particularly." 



I have no doubt that the noble author is perfectly 

 right in these observations : I am also of opinion, that 

 a handful or two of clean wheaten straw, chopped 

 small, and mixed with their corn, would be of great 

 service to your horses, provided that you have interest 

 enough with your groom to prevail on him to give it 

 them. 



Such of my horses as are physicked at grass, have 

 two doses given them when they are turned out, and 

 three more before they are taken up. Grass-physic is 

 of so mild a kind, that you will not find this quantity 

 too much ; nor have I ever known an accident happen 

 from it, although it has been given in very indifferent 

 weather. I should tell you, that my horses are always 

 taken in the first night after their physic, though the 

 printed directions, I believe, do not require it. Such 

 horses as are full of humours should be physicked at 

 house, since they may require stronger doses than 



