THE WALK, TEOT, GALLOP, ETC. 63 



tion of first the one and then the other spur, as the 

 opposite fore-leg of the horse is raised to step off. In 

 this way, it may be developed into the Spanish trot of 

 the manege. 



In the trot, the rider should sit erect, with the shoul- 

 ders thrown back, and the thighs close to the saddle. If 

 the rider rises to the trot, the constant shifting of the 

 weight will greatly interfere with the equilibrium of the 

 mass, but it is not necessary that the horse should get 

 out of hand or be permitted to bear upon the bit. The 

 rider should take no support from the bit, but should 

 hold his hand so that it will be independent of the mo- 

 tion he allows his body to make. To rise in the trot, the 

 rider will make use of the knees to secure the seat and 

 allow his body, slightly sustained by the stirrups, to be 

 thrown up by the motion of the horse, letting his weight 

 sink back into the saddle in time to take the next impe- 

 tus of the gait. The shoulders should be held easy, but 

 in rest ; and the legs should hang straight down from 

 the knee, and must not be permitted to work along the 

 sides of the horse. 



In the gallop, which is a succession of leaps, the rider 

 will lean slightly back, so that the buttocks will be car- 

 ried well under him, and hold the body without stiffness. 

 The positions of the body must, however, always conform 

 to the action of the horse, and to the direction in which 

 he goes ; and practice must show what, and how great, 

 these changes should be. In the gallop, the horse must 

 be true, to insure his balance and safe-footing. To be 

 true in the gallop, the fore and corresponding hind-leg 

 will be in the lead of that side to which the horse is 



