232 QUALITIES OF A GOOD SHOOTING HORSE. 



active upon his legs ; it is also certainly desirable that 

 an animal should be possessed of a considerable amount 

 of speed, as well as endurance, qualities which may 

 prove of the greatest possible value in emergencies, 

 as for instance in the pursuit of dangerous game, or 

 where hostile natives may be encountered. 



Messrs. Nicholls and Eglington, in their recent book 

 on South African sporting, have some good observa- 

 tions about shooting horses, which we shall give a 

 summary of: 



" Speed and endurance (these gentlemen say) are of course 

 necessary, but if unaccompanied by proper training, are in 

 themselves alone of very little value. Novices are as a rule 

 quite satisfied if a horse will stand still on a shot being fired 

 from its back ; but it is a matter of far greater importance to 

 possess an animal that will permit its rider, when dismounted 

 and standing by its head, to let off repeated shots, without 

 attempting to run away, or he may from sheer nervousness, 

 just at the critical moment when its rider is about pulling 

 the trigger, tug on the bridle, and destroy the aim. With a 

 little patience, and at the cost of a few rounds of blank am- 

 munition, most horses ought in a short time to be taught to 

 stand fire steadily ; but even in the most difficult cases this 

 can be accomplished by tying the head by the rein to the 

 stirrup iron, and if on firing an attempt at bolting be made, 

 the animal will be compelled to run in a narrow circle, a 

 proceeding of which it will rapidly tire, and ultimately stand 

 perfectly still."* 



Hardly less essential than standing fire, is that the 

 horse should be perfectly quiet to mount; a horse that 

 begins to caper about when game is on the move, and 

 his rider requires to mount quickly and be off, is a 



* The Sportsman in South Africa, by A. Nicholls and William 

 Eglington, 1892, pp. 19 and 20. 



