GAITS. 



21 



of the gallop may thus be obtained, and a very great 

 distance can be covered. The English call that gait 

 the flying trot, in which the trails are unequal and the 

 trot becomes broken up (fig. 7). 



An error frequently committed is in the representation 

 of the period of appui in a short trot, when desirous 

 of showing a horse at a walk. The statue of Henry 

 IV. on the Pont Neuf affords an example. 



I will indicate a very simple experiment for 

 ascertaining the positions of feet in calm gaits. Fig. 8 

 represents a horse, A, trotting, at the appui and B, 

 another walking on the diagonal appui. 



The horse, upon the appui of the trot, (d,f, fig. 8, 

 A), shows, to an observer stationed behind him, feet 

 diagonally opposed on the right, (a,d), lifting themselves 

 at the same time and having, at the support, similar 

 movements, which betray themselves to the eye by the 

 parallelism of the 

 two hoofs, which 

 are seen to be 

 vertically to- 

 gether. Whilst, 

 at the walk 

 (B, fig. 8), the 

 diagonally op- 

 posed hind-foot 

 beingalways one 

 period late, when 

 the vertical hoof 

 of the fore foot 

 is seen at the 



support, that of the hind-foot still at the elevation, makes, 

 with the toe of the former, half a right angle, and when 

 this latter hoof becomes vertical (g), the forefoot (c), 

 lowers the heel in order to reach the ground obliquely. 

 As seen in fig. 8, the hoof (c) of the white horse at a 

 walk is oblique, whilst that of its neighbour (a) is vertical. 



Although the verification of the displacement of the 

 members of a horse at a walk are difficult to state 

 with precision at the first glance, I believe the 

 attainment of this aim may be reached by the means 

 about to be explained. 



Fig. 8. 



