ILLUSTRATED GUIDE. 107 



either to dismount and lead the horse, or to keep him 

 "alive " by the use of the whip or spar. Humanity, tak- 

 ing a middle course by riding quietly, is sure to lick the 

 dust, and the plan should never be attempted. But there 

 are many kinds of careless stumbling ; one arises from the 

 toe touching, although well thrown over; but the knee- 

 action being low, the foot is not cleared. This is not a 

 very dangerous kind, and is generally recovered from. 

 The next is from the foot being put down too far back, 

 and too much on the toe, so that the pastern, instead of 

 settling into its proper place behind the perpendicular of 

 the foot, "knuckles over " in front, and so causes the leg 

 to lose its power of sustaining the weight. Then the 

 horse does not generally fall unless the other leg follows 

 suit ; but it is a very unpleasant accident, and if a horse 

 is liable to it he is never to be considered safe. Such an- 

 imals are very deceptive to the young and inexperienced, 

 because they generally lift their knees high, and lead to 

 the supposition that they are safe and good goers. But 

 if they are watched they will be seen to put their feet 

 down behind a perpendicular line, drawn from, the front 

 of their knees ; and when that is the case the kind of 

 stumbling here alluded to is always to be expected. 

 There is also the stumbling from putting the foot on a 

 rolling stone, which gives way at the moment of bearing 

 the weight, and thus throws the horse off his balance, so 

 as to occasion him to make a mistake with the other leg, 

 which will be greater or less according to his good or bad 

 action. Lastly, there is a stumbling resulting from ten- 

 der soles or frogs, in which the feet being placed upon a 

 sharp stone, so much pain is occasioned that the knee is 

 allowed to give way, and the same effect is produced as in 



