TiESISTANCES OF THE RIDING HORSE 145 



ol' the ranks. They should be made to work for some 

 time by themselves, and l)c put into ^rood eondition, 

 as fat makes the nerves less sensitive ; the rider being 

 told to sit as still as possible. 



But in most cases the fault arises from the horse, 

 owing to fear of the hand, not daring to take from the 

 bit the support whieh assists the free extended paces. 

 The instructor should, in this case, change the rider 

 whose aids are too severe, and make the horse extend 

 his neck several times, in order to give him confidence 

 in the hand, and to carry his weight on to his shoulders. 

 These first results obtained, one relaxes him by long, 

 slow trots, on bending courses, circles, and figures of 

 eight in order to gradually get him used to the aids. 



Horses which pull. — Being at the walk, stop him 

 with an upAvard action on one rein ; when he yields, 

 let him straighten himself, and restart the w'alk. 

 Repeat this lesson first at the slow trot and then at the 

 ordinary trot. In this way one succeeds in overcoming 

 the stiffness of the horse that i^ulls, by forcing him to 

 bend himself, and engage his hind legs. 



Work at the slow trot, on volts, serpentines, and 

 diagonal lines, stops and half-stops, constitute an 

 excellent exercise for a horse w^hich is on his shoulders 

 and leans on the hand. 



Horses which open their mouths or pass their tongues 

 over the bit. — For the first, make use of a noseband, or 

 of a strap, tied either above or below the corner of the 

 mouth. In the case of those which get their tongues 

 over the bit, use a noseband and a bit with a pallet 

 made of leather or indiarubber, or tie the tongue down 

 with a strap. 



