280 THE HORSE 



would be less liable to cold than he who has the wet one on. So with the 

 horse. As long as his winter coat can be kept dry he is protected by it, and 

 the slow worker, who is not made to pull such heavy weight as to sweat 

 him, will be all the better for its protection, but the moment the pace is 

 sufficiently accelerated to warm the skin the sweat pours forth, and is kept 

 up in-doors by the matted mass of moist hair with which the horse is covered. 

 In former days I have had horses wet for weeks together, from the impossi- 

 bility of getting them dry in the intervals of their work. They would break 

 out afresh when apparently cool, and by no possible means could they be 

 thoroughly dried. This of course wasted their flesh to a frightful extent, 

 but on clipping them it was soon put on again, showing the great advantage 

 of the plan. A chronic cough almost always accompanies this state of 

 constant sweat, and it will be lucky for the owner of a horse so treated if 

 it does not become acute and put an end to the miserable existence of the 

 poor ill-treated brute. The case is not always fairly put, as for instance by 

 Stewart in his Stable Economy, at page 120, where he says, "A long coat 

 takes up a deal of moisture, and is difficult to diy ; but whether wet or 

 dry it affi^rds some defence to the skin, which is laid bare to every breath of 

 air when deprived of its natural covering. Every one must know from 

 himself whether clothing and a wet skin, or no clothing and a wet skin, is 

 the most disagreeable and dangerous. It is true that clipping saves the 

 groom a great deal of labour. He can dry the horse in half the time, and 

 with less than half of the exertion which a long coat requires ; but it makes 

 his attention and activity more necessary, for the horse is almost sure to 

 catch cold, if not dried immediately. When well clothed with hair he is 

 in less danger, and not so much dependent on the cai^e of his groom." 

 Now, I maintain that this passage is full of fallacies and misstatements. 

 The comparison is not between wet clothing and a wet skin, and no clothing 

 and a wet skin ; but, as I have before observed, between a wet long coat 

 and a dry short one. The clipping removes the tendency to sweat, or if 

 this secretion is poured out it ceases directly the exercise which produced 

 it is stopped. But taking Mr. Stewart on his own terms, who has not 

 experienced the relief which is afforded by taking off wet gloves and 

 exposing the naked hands to the same amount of wind and cold ? This is 

 exactly the case as he puts it, and tells directly against his argument ; but 

 it is scarcely worth while to discuss the subject at any length, for I know no 

 horseman of experience in the present day who does not advocate the use 

 of the clipping machine or the lamp, whenever the winter coat is much 

 longer than that of summer. That horses are occasionally to be met with 

 which show little or no change in the autumn I know full well ; but these 

 are the exceptions to the rule, being few and far between. The vast majority 

 would have their hair from one to two inches long if left in its natural 

 state, and they would then be wholly unfit for the uses to which they 

 are put. We may therefore consider that it is admitted to be the best 

 plan to shorten the coat in the autumn, and all I have to do is to discuss 

 the best modes of effecting the purpose, with a view to decide whether 

 clipping or singeing is to be preferred. 



Clipping in the old days of scissors and comb was a most laborious art 

 and well paid, the " artists " being in great request and often commanding 

 large fees. When the gas singeing lamp was introduced the professional 



