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HOR 



HOR 



thus be ridden with a horse going 

 before him. till he learn the use of 

 the bit, and will stop., or go for- 

 ward, at the pleasure of the rider, 

 and without the apphcation of 

 much force. Being exercised in 

 this manner a few times, and treat- 

 ed with all possible gentleness, 

 tht re will be no more occasior) for 

 leading him. He will go well of 

 hiinseli ; and be thoroughly bro- 

 ken, without so much as giving him 

 one blow, and without danger or 

 fatigue, to the horse or his rider. 

 And. what is much to be regarded, 

 the horse's spirits will be preserv- 

 ed, though he be sufficiently tam- 

 ed. In teaching a horse to draw, 

 gentienessmust be used. He should 

 be tried first in company with oth- 

 er horses, whether in carting or 

 ploughing ; and the drought should 

 not be so heavy as to fret him or 

 put him to great exertion till ho has 

 learned to draw steadily. After 

 this he may be put to draw light 

 loads by himself. Lastly he may 

 be put to a pleasure carriage, but 

 coupled with another rather than 

 alone, and to a sleigh rather than a 

 chaise. 



It may be taken for a general 

 rule, that the gait which is easiest 

 to a horse, will be the easiest to 

 his rider. For jaded horses,it has 

 always been observed, are apt to 

 go hard, and to tire their riders. 



The feeding of horses, as I con- 

 ceive, has not been sufficiently at- 

 tended to in this country ; which 

 is, doubtless, one reason why they 

 are in general so mean and despi- 

 cable. Too many keep horses 

 who cannot well afford to feed 

 them. They should neither run 



upon the roads and commons, nor 

 in pastures that are filled with wild 

 and water grasses. They love a 

 dry pasture, not too much shaded, 

 and short grasses of the best kinds. 

 Clover and white honey-suckle, 

 both green and dry, are excellent 

 food tor them. It nourishes them 

 well, and prevents costiveness, 

 which is very hurtful to them. — 

 The best of clover hay will keep 

 them as well as most other kinds 

 of hay with oats. 



To fit a horse for a journey he 

 should not be suffered to grow too 

 fat and gross. He should for some 

 time be kept in the stable rather 

 than in the pasture, and fed mostly 

 with hay and provender : But ra- 

 ther sparingly if he incline to be 

 fat. He should have exercise daily 

 to harden his flesh, and keep him 

 in the habit of travelling. He should 

 be shod some days before he be- 

 gins ajourney, that the shoes may 

 be well settled to his feet, and the 

 nails a little rusted at the points, 

 that they may hold the faster. And 

 the pads of the saddle should be 

 well fitted to his back, so as to fill 

 the hollows, and bear equally on 

 every part. And while he is on 

 the journey, he should be stabled 

 every night. It is destructive to 

 expose a horse to the dampness and 

 cold of the night after severe exer- 

 cise. But it would be best, if nei- 

 ther horses, nor any of our cattle, 

 were wholly confined to dry meat 

 in winter. Horses indicate this, 

 by their eating snow with their hay. 

 Set a basket of snow within reach 

 of a horse, when he is at his man- 

 ger, and he will take a mouthful 

 from each alternately. Of alljui- 



