Manual of Equitation and Horse Training 23 



sibility of tlie horse. A distinction must be made between 

 the energetic attacks which must be employed to push the 

 horse forward, or to punish him when needed, and the 

 scratch of the spur which is one of the niceties of the aids. 



Action of the reins. — The reins, through the bits, act 

 on the horse's mouth. For effects to be exact, they must 

 remain adjusted and stretched during work; if they were 

 flapping, the indications of the hand would not reach the 

 horse, or if they did, they would arrive confused, or in the 

 form of brutal and awkward jerks. Contact is that gentle 

 agreement which should exist between the hand of the 

 rider and the mouth of the horse; with certain horses, es- 

 pecially young ones, contact is rather an equal and free 

 support; out of doors at the fast gaits, and principally in 

 the charge, contact may be transformed to a more or less 

 marked bearing. The hands, like the legs, may act, resist 

 or give way. The reins being adjusted, the hands act when 

 they increase the tension on the reins; they resist when 

 they are fixed in place ; they yield when they follow the 

 movement of the neck. It is very important to know^ when 

 they should act, resist, or yield in a proper case. The 

 actions of the hand should be progressive. The resisting 

 hand has a very powerful effect without irritating the 

 horse as a live force would do. Its effect is produced by 

 reason of its length of action; it should yield when the 

 horse yields. 



A hand which acts on the equilibrium or impulsion is 

 called an active hand; a passive hand is one which, while 

 preserving the contact, opposes neither the impulsion nor 

 the displacements of weight. 



The diversity and multiplicity of sensations and resis- 

 tances transmitted by the reins to the rider's hand show 

 how great may be the variety of actions of that hand. 



Among the numerous actions of the reins, those whose 

 simple and evident effects suffice to obtain all useful move- 

 ments in military equitation, must be determined and de- 

 fined. 



(a) The reins regulate the imj)ulsion. The two reins, 

 acting together should have the effect of slowing, stopping 

 or backing the horse. They are called direct reins. This 

 action should be produced by fixing the hands and closing 

 the fingers on the adjusted reins, the elbows and hands, 

 should move the least possible to the rear. 



