THE SHOE. 63 



therefore be at once dispensed with, and a narrow shoe, 

 made of the very best and toughest iron, adapted for 

 travelling on slippery roads, and for aiding foot and limb, 

 and sufficient to withstand wear for four or five weeks, is 

 all that is required. We will therefore conclude that the 

 upper or foot surface should be the whole width of the 

 shoe, and plane — not bevelled — for we have seen that the 

 sole was destined, particularly at its junction with the 

 wall in front, to sustain weight. We also know that it is 

 advantageous to the whole foot and limb to allow the sole 

 as wide and general a bearing as possible ; so that one 

 part may relieve the other — the sole coming to the aid of 

 the wall, and the frog interposing to share the fatigue im- 

 posed upon both, as well as to relieve the strain on the 

 hinder parts of the foot, flexor tendons and limb, and keep 

 a firm grasp of the ground by its elastic and adhesive 

 properties. 



The shoe applied to the foot, then, should have its 

 hoof surface flat, in order that it may sustain the wall and 

 as much of this strong portion of the sole as its width 

 permits. This is contrary to the usual practice, which 

 only allows the wall to rest on a narrow surface, and 

 bevels off the remainder of the shoe to prevent contact 

 with the sole. Many years' experience of this plane foot- 

 surfaced shoe in various regions of the globe, and on feet 

 of every kind and quality, have proved the soundness of 

 this view. The foot is brought as near to a state of na- 

 ture when the greater part of its plantar surface supports 

 the weight of the body, as man can hope to achieve while 

 submitting the horse to an artificial existence. 



A light thin shoe is always preferable to a heavy thick 

 one ; as the narrowness of the metal insures a good foot- 

 hold — in this respect imitating the wall — while its thin- 

 ness brings the sole, frog, and bars in closer approxima- 

 tion to the ground. 





