THE-:- HORSE 



Swimming. — All horses are able to swim 

 after a fashion. A horse that swims badly 

 will probably only succeed in keeping his 

 head above the water for a few minutes, pro- 

 vided there is no weight on his back; while a 

 horse that is a really good swimmer can nego- 

 tiate a current in which no man could live. 

 Such a horse can swim several miles with ease 

 and keep his head above water as long as his 

 strength lasts. 



In crossing a river of considerable volume 

 and swift current, in circumstances that jus- 

 tify a reasonable doubt that the horse will 

 be the victor, unless every assistance is given 

 him by the rider, the best way when starting 

 to swim is for the rider to dismount on the 

 near side, holding the reins, and guiding the 

 direction of the horse with his left hand, 

 while holding on to the pommel of the saddle 

 with his right. The weight of the rider will 

 be carried by the water, and in this way will 

 not act as an extra burden to the horse and 

 impede his action. Care must be taken, if 

 the current is strong and the river has to be 

 crossed, to keep the horse's head upstream 

 at an angle of approximately forty-five de- 

 grees, because a horse carried head-first 

 downstream by a swift current will have 

 great difficulty in ever fronting the current 

 from that position. 



When a dangerous crossing is to be made, 



40 



