ROAD HORSES. 13]. 



this usually happens not from overdriving, but from 

 allowing them to get cold, from watering them when 

 they are hot, from feeding them when they are tired 

 and from general neglect. A tired roadster seldom 

 gets a bed as deep and soft as he ought to have. The 

 famous Jlr. Splan remarks upon this point as follows : 

 " What horses want is plenty of fresh air, to be com- 

 fortably clothed, and to have a good bed at all times. 

 No matter how well you feed or care for a man, if you 

 put him in a bad bed at night he will be very apt to 

 find fault in the morning, and I think it is the same 

 with a horse." The feet of a road horse also need at- 

 tention, and his shoes are all-important. Most country 

 blacksmiths do their work like butchers, paring and 

 burning the foot to fit the shoe, instead of adapting 

 the iron to the hoof. Still, within a radius of five or 

 ten miles it is usually possible to discover a single 

 good workman in this regard, and the traveller can get 

 upon his track by inquiring of horsy men in the vicin- 

 ity. Every village in New England contains at least 

 one enthusiastic person who is raising colts with the 

 confident expectation of turning out a #20,000 trotter 

 Tins man will know who is the good blacksmith of 

 the neighborhood. 



A word or two maybe permitted here concerning 

 the harness of a road or driving horse. With a lio-ht 

 carriage, and where the country is level, breeching can 

 be dispensed with, and a well made horse commonly 

 looks better without it. Blinders, again, or winkers, 

 are usually superfluous. An intelligent horse once 

 accustomed to an open bridle is apt to shy less thus 

 harnessed, for he can look about more freely. Besides 

 in the case of a skittish horse, it is an advantage for the' 



