278 THE PERFECT HORSE. 



foot and limb, and, undoubtedly, accommodates Nature. 

 I like to have my new shoes look at the toe like the 

 old ones. What Nature has rounded off man ought not 

 to make angular. As to the nails, five are enough ; and 

 these, if made of good material, can be of small size. 

 Two should be put on the inside, immediately back of 

 the toe, and three on the outside. This method of nail- 

 ing leaves the foot at liberty to enjoy its elasticity. 

 The nails should be turned out as quickly as possible. 

 The holes made by them should never be more than 

 half an inch up into the hoof There are several 

 reasons why a nail should not be driven high up. The 

 first is, the higher it goes, the less thickness of wall is 

 there to which to clinch it. The wall of the hoof, also, 

 has a grain as truly as wood. Now, every one knows 

 that a nail driven with the grain holds far less tena- 

 ciously than one driven across it ; and it is this bring- 

 ing-forth the point of the nail quickly which is com- 

 patible with its being driven across the grain of the 

 hoof A nail so driven holds on. Moreover, holes in 

 horny substances never grow up : they always grow 

 out or down. Now, the higher the hole that the nail 

 has made is located in the wall of the hoof, the longer, 

 of course, will the time be that is required to grow it 

 down or out. This is no trifling consideration in the 

 case where shoeing necessarily is frequent. Not only 

 so, the multiplicity of holes greatly weakens the wall of 

 the hoof, which, under our present faulty method of 

 shoeing, has to bear up nearly the entire weight of the 



