CHAPTEE HI. 



HINTS ABOUT SCHOOLING HUNTEES. 



" It is from judicious management when young that 

 much of the horse's superiority may be expected, and 

 it is by preparing him by degrees for whatever work 

 he may be required to perform that facilitates his 

 maturity, and brings him eventually to the utmost 

 state of perfection to which he is capable of being 

 brought." Such were the words of " Cecil " ; but the 

 methods of preparation for the hunter are so multi- 

 farious, and opinions differ to such a degree, that we 

 approach our present task with no small amount of 

 trepidation. One might as well lay down a fixed 

 rule for parents, telling them how to bring up their 

 sons and daughters, as lay down a fixed rule for 

 schooling the young hunter. Individual young horses 

 differ as much as individual boys or girls. We 

 can only give certain hints and inculcate certain 

 principles, amongst which will not be found that of 

 " Spare the whip, spoil the hunter." 



Now the schooling of hunters is a subject which 

 must be of paramount importance to every hunting 

 man, though we have already stated that the novice 



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