ILLUSTRATED GUIDE. 105 



latter is adopted. In sitting down, the feet may be either 

 resting on the ball of the toe, as in other paces, or with 

 the stirrup " home " to the boot, as is common in all field 

 riding. The body is thrown easily and slightly back, the 

 knees take firm hold, the rider being careful not to grip so 

 tight as to distress the horse, which fault I have known 

 very muscular men often commit. The hands should be 

 low with sufficient pull at the mouth to restrain him but 

 not to annoy and make him "fight"; and if he is inclined 

 to get his head down too much, or the reverse, they must 

 be raised or lowered accordingly; when standing in the 

 stirrups is to be practised, the weight is thrown upon them, 

 steadying it with the "knees, which should keep firm hold 

 of the saddle flaps. The seat of the body is carried well 

 back, while at the same time the loin is thrown forward ; 

 but by this combined action the weight is not hanging 

 over the shoulder of the horse, as it would be and often is 

 when the breech is raised from the saddle and brought 

 almost over the pommel, with the eyes of the rider look- 

 ing down his horse's forehead, or very nearly so. If a 

 jocky with a good seat is watched, it will be seen that hig 

 leg does not descend straight from the knee, but that it is 

 slightly thrown back from the line, and consequently that 

 his centre of gravity is behind it, so that he can, by stiffen- 

 ing the joint, carry his body as far behind it as his stir- 

 rup is, without ceasing to stand in it. This seat cannot be 

 long maintained without fatigue to the rider, and it is 

 only adopted in racing or in short gallops over hard 

 ground, or a steep hill or any kind of ground calculated to. 

 tire a horse. The varieties of the gallop are, the hand- 

 gallop, the three-quarter gallop, and full gallop, which is 

 capable of still further extension in the "racing set-to." 



