THE ABUSE OF THE SPUR. 63 



came along as hard as he could drive." But, if you 

 were to visit him in the stable, you would probably find 

 his flanks untouched, and would, I am sure, be pleased 

 rather than disappointed at the discovery. Happily, 

 not one man in ten knows how to spur a horse, and the 

 tenth is often the most unwilling to administer so severe 

 a punishment. 



Ladies, however, are not so merciful. Perhaps be- 

 cause they have but one, they use this stimulant liber- 

 ally, and without compunction. From their seat, and 

 shortness of stirrup, every kick tells home. Concealed 

 under a riding-habit, these vigorous applications are 

 unsuspected by lookers-on ; and the unwary wonder 

 why, in the streets of London or the Park, a ladies' 

 horse always appears to go in a lighter and livelier form 

 than that of her male companion. " It's a woman's 

 hand," says the admiring pedestrian. "Not a bit 

 of it," answers the cynic who knows ; " it's a woman's 

 heel." 



But, however sparing you may be of the spurs in 

 lane or bridle-road, you are tempted to ply them far 

 too freely in the anxiety and excitement of the hunting- 

 field. Have you ever noticed the appearance of a 

 white horse at the conclusion of some merry gallop 

 over a strongly fenced country ? The pure conspicuous 



