290 MILITARY RIDING. 



escorts ; tent-pegging and all kinds of sport ; and so good 

 are our cavalry horses that it rarely happens that an animal 

 refuses to do anything in this way that may be required 

 of him. 



Training Recruits. The majority of men who join the 

 army have never ridden before in their lives, so it is necessary 

 at the beginning to give them quiet horses and short lessons in 

 order that they may gain confidence as they go on, and not 

 contract slovenly habits. Before a recruit is put on a horse at 

 all, his muscles are brought into good riding condition by a 

 three months' course of gymnastic instruction and preliminary 

 work on a dummy horse ; for it is just as necessary to get a 

 recruit into condition and fitted for the work he has to do, as 

 it is to train the "green" remount to carry its rider quietly 

 and collectedly. As a rule the recruit begins his riding 

 on a numnah, and is afterwards given a saddle without 

 stirrups and a snaffle-bridle with a single rein. He is taught 

 to hold a rein in each hand between the third and fourth 

 fingers, with thumbs closed on the reins, and to sit evenly in 

 his seat. The instructor should impress upon his pupils the 

 importance of keeping a light and equal bearing on the 

 horse's mouth, and not to depend on the reins for support. A 

 course of riding without reins will help them to understand 

 this best, and will prove to them that the horse will go much 

 more comfortably and give them an easier ride if his mouth 

 is not interfered with. Constant practice in riding without 

 stirrups is also excellent, as it teaches the recruit the art of 

 balancing the body and gives him a strong seat. He should 

 not be allowed to cling on with the calf of the leg, and it 

 should be explained to him that the use of the lower part of 

 the leg, which will be taught him later, is for the application 

 of the aids, and that its wrong employment at this stage will, 

 if persisted in, preclude him from ever becoming a good 

 active rider. 



