178 HUNTING 



in plenty of short breathing gallops. It is objected 

 that such exercise is liable to cause the horse to break 

 into a canter when in harness, and doubtless it has 

 this tendency, especially with a careless driver. But 

 one must not expect perfection in a general utility 

 horse, and if he is to be sound in wind, he must have 

 galloping exercise, if it is only for ten minutes or a 

 quarter of an hour at a time. 



Whether or not it is advisable to teach a carriage- 

 horse to jump at home in cold blood is a matter of 

 opinion. We do not think that it is necessary, and the 

 extra work may give a horse a distaste for jumping. 

 From the nature of their work, carriage-horses are 

 less nervous than hunters, and therefore have more 

 confidence when they are first called upon to jump 

 in the hunting-field. Very often their fault is an 

 excess of confidence, as the following experience 

 shows. 



We were staying in a country house where our host 

 was short of hunters, but offered to mount us on a 

 trapper, which, to his knowledge, had never jumped as 

 much as a twig in its life, though it had been occasion- 

 ally used as a hack. We accepted the offer, as, at all 

 events, we should be able to see hounds, even if we 

 should not be able to follow them. As luck would 

 have it, a fox was afoot at the first covert that we 

 drew, and hounds went away immediately at a pace 

 which showed that there was a burning scent. Our 

 trapper was not to be denied, so we went at the first 

 fence with great misgivings as to how we should reach 

 the other side, if at all. Our trapper had no idea of 



