what is commonly known as the heel-cap shoe, 

 illustrated on another page. It is a very easy 

 shoe to make. After the shoe is fitted in the 

 regular manner, the shoer heats the heels and 

 turning the ground surface of the shoe down 

 on the edge of the anvil draws the heels out flat 

 and very thin, and forms them like a half- 

 thimble over the point of the horn, leaving 

 them about a half-inch long. The shoe, of 

 course, must be exactly the length of the foot 

 so that these thimbles, or caps, will fit closely 

 up along the horn at the extreme heel of the 

 foot, where they are tapped down snug so 

 that it will be impossible for a horse to grab 

 it ofit*. This style of shoe is especially good 

 when the roads are muddy and you do not care 

 to put on quarter-boots. It can be made plain, 

 or in bar or calk shoes. 



CHAPTER IV. 



Knee-Hitting, Scalping, Etc, 



Gallons of ink have been splashed on the 

 subject of knee-hitting, scalping, shin-hitting, 

 and hitting on up to the hocks. Almost every- 

 one has heard of the horse that ''wore every- 

 thing but ear-boots." The. bad-gaited trotters 

 are not as numerous now as they were years 

 ago. We are breeding them better and more 

 attention is given to their early education, 

 shoeing, bitting, etc., than in former years. 



Always keep in mind what has been said 

 about soreness in front — both tendon and foot 

 trouble — and if the horse has been going clean 

 and suddenly develops into a scalper or speedy- 



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