APPLYING THE SHOE. 89 



seen, very materially lessens the time and labor required 

 in the ordinary method ; indeed, nothing can be simpler 

 than the conservative principle of shoeing, and this sim- 

 plicity can be effectively carried into practice with one- 

 half the instruction and toil required for the popular 

 mode. 



Other methods of shoeing have been devised from time 

 to time, and may be briefly referred to here. 



To diminish the weight and permit a portion of the pos- 

 terior part of the foot to come in direct contact with the 

 ground along with the frog, a three-quarter shoe is often 

 applied — the portion of iron extending from the inside 

 quarter to the point of the heel being cut off, and the shoe 

 at this part thinned a little. The horn left unprotected is 

 never interfered with. This is an excellent shoe for sad- 

 dle and carriage, and even draught horses, which may be 

 employed on the worst roads while wearing it. For feet 

 that have suffered very much from the effects of rasping, 

 and paring, and which are liable to have bruised heels (or 

 corns), its use is attended with the greatest benefit. 



The same may be said of " tips " or half-shoes. An 

 unreasonable prejudice appears to exist against the use of 

 these light, short plates ; but, if they are applied in appro- 

 priate cases, there can be no doubt whatever that they 

 are entitled to a far larger share of attention than they 

 have yet received. Their very limited employment hith- 

 erto may have arisen from the imperfect manner in which 

 they have been used. They protect those parts of the 

 wall most exposed to damage by wear, extending around 

 the toe and reaching no farther than the quarters ; while 

 the heels and frog, when left unpared and unrasped, are 

 strong enough to meet all demands made upon them, at 

 the same time they are not deprived of their physiological 

 functions. 



In addition to these considerations, the diminution in 



