66 HORSES 



and a leather foot, is both neat and comfortable for 

 summer use, but it appears to have gone out of 

 fashion lately. However hot the weather may be, 

 do not be led into the mistake of wearing thin 

 breeches, as they will not stand the chafing of the 

 saddle, and your ow^n skin will suffer at the same 

 time. If it happens you get unexpectedly the 

 opportunity of a ride and have no riding breeches, 

 a small strap below the knee will convert your 

 ordinary trousers into very satisfactory substitutes. 

 The action of a horse has the effect of making 

 trousers work up, and unless there is something 

 to keep them in place, you will soon have exposed 

 to view a wide expanse of bare leg. The old- 

 fashioned strap beneath the foot kept the trousers 

 in place, but did not prevent chafing at the knees. 



These hints given here on the subject of costume 

 can be of no practical use to those with ample 

 means at their command, as they have only to put 

 themselves unreservedly in the hands of the best 

 bootmakers and tailors to be turned out in correct 

 style. The poor man or his son may perhaps be 

 able to glean some information which will save 

 his pocket and help him to avoid glaring errors. 



The taste of the individual may be allowed some 

 latitude in the selection of a costume for an ordi- 

 nary ride, but in the hunting field custom has 

 ordained that certain articles shall be worn, and 

 to depart from these unwritten rules is to make 

 yourself unpleasantly conspicuous. A gentleman 

 owes it to himself to be ever clean, neat, and tidy, 



