LI 



To prose for a paragraph on the technical part of the 

 case. You may skip this if you like ; it is technical, not 

 chatty. But if you will study it out it will repay you. 

 The gaits of the horse are : 



1. The simple walk, in which to the eye one hind-foot 

 moves out first, followed by the alternate fore-foot ; then 

 the other hind-foot followed by its alternate, not at exact- 

 ly equal intervals. If you listen to a walking-horse's hoof- 

 beats, you will find the four beats to be rather in sets of 

 twos. This gait varies from two and a half to four and a 

 half miles an hour, and gives a very slight forward and 

 back swaying to the saddle. 



2. The running- walk. The sequence of the steps in this 

 is the same as in the simple walk, but the horse has a 

 brisker, more elastic motion, and appears to put more life 

 into his gait ; each foot is put down and taken up quicker; 

 he will go up to five and a half or six miles an hour on it, 

 and the saddle has a slight up and down, but very easy, 

 feel to it. 



3. The amble, which is a slow pace, in which the feet 

 on the near side come down exactly together, followed 

 by those on the off side at equal intervals. The saddle 

 feels very easy, with a slight swaying motion from side to 

 side. 



4. The trot, in which the diagonal feet come down ex- 

 actly together i.e., the near fore and off hind, and the off 

 fore and near hind at equal intervals. When slow, this is 



