THE TROTTING-HORSE OF AMERICA. 401 



on purpose, but this is not in a process of teaching him to 

 break well. It is at a pinch, when he sees that the horse is 

 becoming lifeless and dull in action, and beginning to dwell 

 in his stroke. A good lively break at such a time will often 

 revive the horse amazingly, and therefore it ought to be 

 forthwith put in practice. There are two ways of doing this. 

 If the horse is a quick one, hit him with the whip across 

 the buttocks, and, as you do so, let go of his head. He will 

 break with a good forward bound j and, as you will have 

 made him break at your own time, you will be all ready to 

 catch him. The other method is by a sudden snatch on one 

 rein, which will throw him out of his stride and break him. 

 The former of these two methods is to be preferred where 

 the horse can be broken by the cut with the whip, and the 

 accompanying let-go ; but though this breaking up on pur- 

 pose is sometimes useful, and even necessary in a tight place, 

 beware of doing it often. If you practise in this way on 

 your horse to learn how to do it yourself, and see how nicely 

 you can break him up and catch him, you will teach him to 

 break as a habit, and confirm him in it. Many good horses 

 have thus been spoiled. 



There is another thing of which you should beware, and 

 it is a thing that is often done : when your horse breaks, 

 do not go under him with the whip. If you do so, the horse 

 will become scared, and will not know what to do. This 

 uncertainty, and the fear of the whip, will keep him all the 

 time in danger of a break. He is afraid: expecting the 

 whip, expecting to break, having no knowledge of what his 

 driver wants him to do, and no confidence in any settled and 

 understood purpose in him as a driver, what can the horse 

 be expected to do ? Confidence between the trotting-horse 

 and his driver is of the utmost importance : it is all in all. 

 Some men inspire it readily, so that a horse will take hold 

 and do all he knows the first time the man drives him. 

 For another man the same horse will not trot a yard. Tho 

 truth is, that the horse is a very knowing, sagacious creature, 



