BUCK-JUMPING. 263 



head is very apt to cause the rider to be pulled more or less 

 forward on to his neck, by means of the reins, and that the 

 shock of the impact of the fore legs with the ground and 

 the violent cant of the loins, will in such a case generally 

 complete the disconnection. The regular buck-jumper will 

 buck forwards, to one side or the other, until he dis- 

 lodges his rider. Or, not content with this, he may go 

 on until he breaks the girths, gets through the saddle, or tires 

 himself out. When he succeeds in breaking the girths, 

 he usually does so by getting the saddle on to his neck during 

 his convulsive movements; and then, when he throws up his 

 head, something must go. No matter how strong a seat a 

 man may have, he will be almost certain to part company 

 with his mount, if in the first instance he makes the mistake 

 of hanging on by the reins. I can say from experience that 

 when a horse bucks, the rider suddenly becomes aware that 

 there is nothing in front of the pommel of the saddle except 

 a sheer precipice, and feels himself jerked forward without 

 having anything to hold on to. In the Colonies, a horse 

 is said to " pig-jump," when he bucks only forward ; but if 

 he supplements that movement by the still more discon- 

 certing action of bucking to one side or the other, or in a 

 circular direction, he can fairly claim the distinction of 

 being a clever buck-jumper. 



Most buck-jumpers are perfectly quiet to mount ; but 

 the moment they feel the rider's weight in the saddle, they 

 will try all they know to get him off. Others will not buck 

 unless they are very fresh, or under some unusual excitement, 

 which animals are, as a rule, more playful than vicious, 

 though such norse-play may be very discomforting. An 

 Australian steeplechase mare with which I won some 

 races, always bucked with me (but never at other times), 

 if I happened, when riding her, to take a paper of any sort 

 in my hand. The instant she heard the crackling sound 



