236 PUKCHASTNG AT THE HAMMEK. 



but of course a dealer does not show such animals 

 to his customers, unless especially asked for. 



Concerning the purchase of horses of other qualifi- 

 cations, I need say but little, since such egregious 

 blunders cannot be made if a gentleman knows the 

 outline, general character, and size of horse he requires. 

 For it can matter little if the carriage horse or 

 charger be a hunter in make, blood, and action ; but 

 it is of considerable importance if the hunter should 

 prove a carriage horse or charger. I will, therefore, 

 merely add that the better plan is to purchase each 

 description of horse from those who deal specially in 

 that class of animal, and not to attempt to buy a hunter 

 from a dealer in hacks and harness horses, nor vice 

 versa. 



Many gentlemen make a practice of purchasing at 

 auctions, and frequently succeed in becoming possessed 

 of a good animal at a low figure, but still more fre- 

 quently in becoming possessed of ill-tempered and un- 

 sound horses. 



As a general rule, it is never safe to purchase a horse 

 at the hammer, unless he comes up in a bona fide stud, 

 or unless you know something about him ; and even 

 then it is a dangerous experiment unless you are a 

 good judge. For there are very few horses indeed that 

 cannot make a fair show, both as to action and sound- 

 ness, after having had the usual amount of preparation 

 for sale, in the very limited trial to which they can be 

 subjected in so small a space of ground. 



There is another method of purchasing horses, which 



