)008 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Tart III. 



by making hli heeli swell, or his coal unthrifty; ami if nidi appearances occur, math him, and begin 

 in~ Kouringa, otherwise abstain from physicking until he i» in better health As he improves in condition, 

 Increase ins exercise, but not to such a degree as to make him suc.it. His food must now be the best 

 oats and beans, with wheaten it barley bread ; the beans and oats are to in- put into a bag, and beaten till 

 the hulls are all Off, ami then ivniinmnl clean; and the bread, instead of being chipped in the common 

 a ai , ia to have the CrUSl clean off! 



(5717. If Ike harm '"' >« tpodfleth and spirits when taken up for his month's preparation, cordials are 

 altogether unnecessary ; and the chief business will be to give bim good food, and so much exercise as 

 «ill keep him in wind, without over-sweating or fatiguing him. When he takes larger exercise after. 

 wards, towards the end of tin- month, it will be proper to have some horses in the place to run against 

 1 1 > in This will put him upon In- mettle, and the besting them will give him spirits. This, however, is 

 to lie cautiously observed, th.it he has nut all injurious, or in the language of jockeys, a bloody heat given 

 him lor ten days or a fortnight before the plate Is to be run for; and that the last heat that is given him 

 the day before the rice musl be in bis clothes : this will make him run with greatly more vigour when 

 Stripped for the race, and feeling the cold wind on every part In the second week, the horse should have 



the same food and re exercise: and in the last fortnight he must have dried oats, that have been hulled 



In beating; alter tin- jockeys wet them with the whites of eggs, beaten up, and then laid out in the sun to 

 dry ; and when as dry as before, the horse is to have them : this sort of food being considered by them as 

 very light of digestion, and very good tor the creature's wind. The beans in this time should be given 

 more sparingly and the bread should be made of three parts wheat and one part beans, or of wheat and 

 barlej in equal part-. If he should become costive under this course, he must then have bran. water to 

 drink, or Mime ale and whites of eggs beaten together; and keep hi.; body moist. In the last week all 

 mashing is to be omitted, and barley-water given him in its place ; and every day, till the day before the 

 race, he should have his till of hay ; then he must have it given him more sparingly, that he may hue 

 time to digest it ; and in the morning of the race-day, he must have a toast or two of white bread soaked 

 in ale, and the same just before he is led out of the field This is an excellent method, because the two 

 extremes of fulness and fasting are at this time to be equally avoided ; the one affecting his wind, and the 

 other occasioning a faintness that may mike him lose. After he has had his food, the litter is to be shook 

 up, and the stable kept quiet, that he may be disturbed by nothing till he is taken out to run. 



6718. In the choice of a rider for winning a race, it is necessary, as far as possible, to select one that is 

 not only expert and able, but honest He must have a very close seat, his knees being turned close to the 

 saddle skirts, and held firmly there ; and the toes turned inwards, so that the spurs may be turned out- 

 ward to the horse's belly ; his left hand governing the horse's mouth, and his right the whip. During the 

 \\ hole time of the race, he must take care to sit firm in the saddle, without waving or standing up in the 

 stirrups. Some jockeys fancy the last a becoming seat ; but it is certain, that all motions of this kind do 

 really incommode the horse. In spurring the horse, it is not to be done by sticking the calves of the legs 

 close to the horse's sides, as if it were intended to press the wind out of his body ; but, on the contrary, 

 the toes are to be turned a little outwards, that the heels being brought ill, the spurs may just be brought 

 to touch the sides. A sharp touch of this kind will be of more service toward the quickening of a horse's 

 pace, and will sooner draw blood than one of the common coarse kicks. The expert jockey will nevi r 

 spur his horse until there is great occasion and then he will avoid striking him under the fore bowels 

 between the shoulders and the girt; this is the tenderest part of a horse, and a touch there is to be 

 reserved for the greatest extremity. 



(>71fl. As In whipping the horse, it ought always to be done over the shoulder, on the near side, except 

 in very hard running, and on the point of victory ; then the horse is to be struck on the flank with a 

 strong jerk ; for the skin is the most tender of all there, and most sensible of the lash. When a horse is 

 whipped and spurred, and is at the top of his speed, if he clap his ears in his pole, or whisk his tail, it is 

 a proof that the jockey treats him hard, and then he ought to give him as much comfort as he can by 

 sawing the snaffle backwards and forwards in his mouth, and by that means forcing him to open his 

 mouth, which will give him wind, and be of great service. If there be any high wind stirring in the 

 time of riding, the artful jockey will let his adversary lead, holding hard behind him, till he sees an op. 

 portunity of giving a loose ; yet, in this case, he must keep so close behind, that the other horse may keep 

 the wind from bim ; and that he, sitting low, may at once shelter himself under him, and assist the 

 strength of the horse. If the wind happen to be in their back, the expert jockey is to keep directly 

 behind the adversary, that he may have all the advantage of the wind to blow his horse along, as it were, 

 and at the same time intercept it in regard to his adversary. 



67-0. When running on level smooth ground, the jockey is to beat his horse as much as the adversary will 

 give him leave, because the horse is naturally more inclined to spend himself on this ground ; on the con. 

 trary, on deep earths, he may have more liberty, as he will there spare himself. 



6721. In riding up lull the horse is always to be favoured, by bearing him hard, for fear of running him 

 out of wind ; but in running down hill, if the horse's feet and shoulders will bear it, and the rider 

 dares venture his neck, he may have a full loose. If the horse have the heels of the rest, the jockey must 

 always spare him a little, that he may have a reserve of strength to make a push at the last post 



67-i On the jockey's knoiving the nature of the horse that is to run against him, a great deal depends ; for 

 by managing accordingly, great advantages are to be obtained : thus, if the opposite horse is of a hot and 

 fiery disposition, the jockey is either to run just behind him, or cheek by joul with him, making a noise 

 with the whip, and by that means forcing him on faster than his rider would have him, and consequently, 

 spending him so much the sooner; or else keep him just before him, in such a slow gallop, that he may 

 either overreach, or by treading on the heels of the fore-horse, endanger tumbling over. Whatever be 

 the ground that the adversary's horse runs worst on, the cunning jockey is to ride the most violently over; 

 and by this means it will often happen, that in following he either stumbles or claps on the back sinews. 

 The several corrections of the hand, the whip, and the spur, are also to be observed in the adversary, and 

 in what manner he makes use of them : and when it is perceived bv anv of the svmptoms of holding down 

 rs, or whisking the tail, or stretching out the nose like a pig, that the horse is almost blown, the 

 business is to keep him onto this speed, and he will be soon thrown out or distanced. If the horse of the 

 opponent looks dull, it is a sign his strength fails him; and if his flanks beat much, it is a sign that his 

 Wind begins to fail him, and his strength will soon do so too. 



The after. management if a horse who has run includes the treatment between the heats, and the 

 treatment after the race is over. After everv heat for a plate, there must be drv straw, and drv clothes, 

 both linen and woollen, ready to rub him down all over, after taking oft' the sweat with what is called a 

 sweat. knife ; that is, a piece of an old sword-blade, or some such thing. After the horse has been well 

 rubbed, he should be chafed all over with cloths wetted in common water, till the time of starting again. 

 Vv hen it is certainly known that the horse is good at the bottom, and will stick at the mark, he should be 

 rid every heat to the best of his performance ; and the jockey is as much as possible to avoid riding at 

 any particular horse, or staving tor any, but to ride out the whole heat with the best speed he can. If 

 on the contrary, he has a fiery horse to ride, and one that is hard to manage, hard-mouthed, and difficult 

 to be held, he is to be started behind the rest of the horses with all imaginable coolness and gentleness • 

 and when he begins to ride at some command, then the jockey is to put up to the other horses; and if tliev 

 rule at their ease, and are hard held, they are to be drawn on faster ; and if it be perceived that their wind 

 begins to rake hot, and they want a sob, the business is to keep them up to that speed ; and when they are 

 all come within three quarters of a mile of the post, then is the time to push for it, and use the Utmost 

 speed in the creature's power. 



6724. When the raee is over, the horse is immediately to be clothed up and rode home ; and immediately 



