THE PRACTICAL HORSESHOER. 37 



ferable, as far as advantage of footing- to the horse are con- 

 cerned. The adhesion of iron toe calks is a material advan- 

 tage. He is not as liable to slip as when the calks are of 

 steel. I speak of roadwa^^s free from ice. The hardened 

 nature of steel deprives it of that propert}^ of friction which 

 soft iron has when coming in contact with stone pavements. 

 The slipping of a horse's shoe often strikes sparks upon the 

 pavement. Can such sudden slips be favorable to the horse's 

 limbs when heavily laden ? Steel is used in the light of 

 econom}^ but can it be said to be very beneficial to the 

 draught horse ? 



The shoeing of a horse, as seen b^^ a casual observer, ap- 

 pears to be something or nothing, as the case ma^^ be. Let 

 us inquire how the smith operates. He appears to be 

 sharpening something. Having tried the edge of the knife, 

 he is ready to go to work at the horse in waiting. He puts 

 his hand upon the horse and pats him, speaking kindly to 

 him. Kindness to a horse is good common-sense on the part 

 of either owner or smith. He raises the foot and places it 

 between his knees and cuts off seven nails. He appears to 

 be looking for something. Now it is found. It Avas the 

 eighth nail he was after. To leave it would have been dan- 

 gerous to the foot, consequentl}^ the smith was ver^^ eager 

 to find it. The shoe is now loosened at the heels and each 

 nail is removed separately. He makes a fulcrum bearing 

 on the shoe, instead of wrenching it off b^^ main force by 

 putting the pincers under it and pr^^ing violently against 

 the sole of the foot. This latter method is A'erv detri- 

 mental, especiaUy to a tender-footed horse. The hind shoes 

 are removed, the hoof leveled, and the sole merel}' cleaned 

 off. 



The front shoe is next fitted at a low degree of lieat in the 

 iron for the sake of convenience, as the metal is tougher 

 and also more pliable when slightly warm. As this does 

 not burn the hoof, no harm is done. The shoe is clipped in 



