158 THE HORSE 



horse would prefer to have him "post," and he should 

 do so when any distance is to be covered. 



For long distances the walk and the trot are the 

 proper gaits, and the rate, for most horses, should not 

 exceed five or six miles an hour. An occasional canter 

 up a slight hill is allowable because it brings into play 

 different muscles, and is therefore in a way restful to 

 the horse; but the canter is a much more fatiguing gait 

 than the trot, partly because in this gait the horse at 

 times has only one foot on the ground, and still more 

 because at every step he is obliged to lift his own 

 weight, and the weight of the rider, considerably higher 

 than he is obliged to lift them at the trot — in other 

 words, he does so much more work. The pace and the 

 amble are also fatiguing gaits and should be used very 

 little, if at all, on long journeys. 



Of course it is a great relief to the horse for the 

 driver to dismount occasionally and walk, especially 

 going up hill, and still more going down hill. In 

 descending a hill, the weight of the rider presses unduly 

 on the fore legs and feet of the horse, and the rider 

 should prevent this as far as possible by leaning back- 

 ward in the saddle. 



The great thing is to ride the horse all the time — 

 not simply to stay on his back, but to ride him, sitting 

 lightly but tensely in the saddle, feeling his mouth 

 gently, sympathizing with him at every step, and in- 

 dulging him with a walk or a rest, accordingly as you 

 feel that he needs it. To ride carelessly or to loll in the 

 saddle is to fatigue the horse; and to sit sideways, as 

 men sometimes do to rest their tired muscles, is an act 



