INCLINATION OF THE STALLS. 83 



dition will eventually speak for him ; and a pound 

 or two in money goes but a little way in veterinary 

 surgeons' bills. And in this way many pounds are 

 spent under the idea of saving as many shillings. 



All who have written on the structure ot 

 stables, or at least all who understand the subject, 

 agree that for a horse's comfort the stall should be 

 nearly flat. Dealers have them very much raised 

 in front, to show off the horses ; livery-stable 

 keepers to make any wet run immediately back, 

 to save straw ; the old flint-paved stalls were so 

 made, for otherwise the centre of the bed would 

 be a regular cesspool. Nothing but a great declen- 

 sion could enable the wet to meander its way 

 backwards. A gutter or drain behind the horses 

 is an unsightly thing, and, were horses only to 

 inhabit the stable, it would be unnecessary ; but, 

 as mares also stand there, it cannot be dispensed 

 with. 



I consider the best way to arrange the floor of 

 a stall is as follows : The iron of the grate in 

 the centre should be 10 inches square, made of 

 good hammered iron (and not cast). It should be 

 a full half-inch thick, and its extreme edge, or 

 border, much deeper, so as to give it a firm hold 

 in its oak frame. From wanting this precaution 

 they are apt to get out of place, as is sometimes 

 seen with the round iron coal-cellar covers on the 

 foot pavement in London. The stall floor should 

 G 2 



