THE LADIES' HORSE 125 



ladies generally choose the cleanest, and therefore the hardest part of the 

 road, and ride the faster there, because they can do so without splashing 

 their habits. In wind also there should be no defect, as a gallop is not 

 avoided whenever turf is at hand, and sometimes when this is not to be 

 obtained, it is taken on harder ground. The mouth of a lady's horse should 

 be light and level, and the neck so easily bent that there is not the slightest 

 tendency to throw the head up, even when the hands are so high as they 

 necessarily must be from the nature of the lady's seat. There is a popular 

 idea that a horse does not pull as much with a lady as with a gentleman, 

 which is very erroneous. The hands of most men are bad enough, but for 

 one good pair of female hands there are a dozen possessed by men, and this 

 is irrespective of the greater number of riders among the male sex, but 

 calculated in proportion, that is to say, the percentage of good hands is, 

 far greater among men than among women. Of course we do not see the 

 same severe hanging on the bit displayed by ladies, because they have 

 neither the same weight nor the same strength as their brothers, fathers, 

 or husbands ; but as far as they can, they spoil their horses' mouths, with 

 some few occasional exceptions. From the nature of the lady's seat, the 

 hands cannot be held low over the withers, and if the horse's mouth 

 absolutely requires the hands to be kept down below the level of the knee, 

 they must be divided, and a rein taken in each. This generally gives an 

 inelegant seat, but a year or two ago it was the fashion, and wherever it 

 could be adopted it was : in order to maintain an upright position of the 

 body, the hands must be brought almost back to the hips, and no shifting 

 of the rein from one to the other can be effected Avithout raising them 

 above the knee. It follows, therefore, that the lady's position causes great 

 difficulty in the management of an awkward mouth, and that, therefore, a 

 very perfect one should be chosen for her use. In addition to good legs, 

 length of body and neck, and a perfect mouth, the ladies' horse should be 

 of a fine temper, and not too laz}^, or he will need the spur ; nor too hot, 

 or he will get beyond her control. In height he should be between 15 

 and 16 hands, less than the former being objectionable on account of 

 the splashes on the habit which is caused by too low a horse, and a greater 

 height being generally attended with a rough and therefore unpleasant 

 action. The walk and canter are the absolutely essential paces, but a 

 good and even trot should, if possible, be supei-added, for the sake of giving 

 useful exercise to the rider, and at the same time saving the legs of her 

 horse, which are tried far less in this pace on hard roads than in the 

 canter. 



COBS, GALLOWAYS, AND PONIES 



The Cob is merely a thick and strongly-made hack about 14 hands 

 in height, and suited to carry from 15 to 20 stone. All the points 

 are therefore such as are required in the ordinary hack, but they must be 

 strong in proportion to the weight to be carried. The 20-stone cob is 

 in fact a compact and active little cart-horse, with cannon-bones as large as 

 in that variety, and generally with the same tendency to throw out bony 

 growths. In those up to less weight more breeding may be displayed, but 



