TRAINING 117 



since whether at manoeuvres, or in single combat, the 

 horse must be able to work on a short base. 



The horse moves high in front and low behind 

 when, ridden by an inexperienced horseman, he carries 

 his head high either from choice or constraint, and as 

 in the preceding case, the muscles of the neck raise the 

 forelegs by their contraction ; whilst the hind legs, 

 placed far from the centre, are not able to engage 

 themselves, their movements will be jerky and the 

 spine will not have any flexibility. The horse will 

 consequently move with a considerable expense of 

 energy and discomfort in the loins and hind legs, 

 showing itself by all kinds of disorderly movements. 



Finally, the horse will have a low extended action 

 when he moves with the neck stretched out in a 

 horizontal position. The muscles of the neck will 

 then draw the forelegs forw^ard instead of upw^ards. 

 The hind legs, answering to the pressure of the rider's 

 legs, will be able to bring themselves well under the 

 body in consequence of the position of the neck, 

 which enables the spine to easily arch itself and then 

 spring back in the direction of the movement. 



This position will, therefore, be favourable to 

 speed, and all the efforts of the horse will tend to 

 produce the movement with the least fatigue, since 

 no energy is lost. It is, therefore, this position, 

 which the rider must try and make his horse take, 

 whenever he is working alone, or on a long base. 



Considered from the point of view of training, the 

 paces, which have already been taken advantage of 

 in the breaking, offer the following further uses. 



The free extended walk constitutes a rest to the 

 horse ; it is consequently the best reward the rider 

 can give him, to show his satisfaction after the good 



