INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER. 21 



and in condemning the mean flavery of autho- 

 rity and prejudice, yet we eafily difcover, that 

 he too, has his referves in favour of particular 

 opinions, which are not all beholding to reafon 

 for their fupport. He was fo enamoured with 

 the manege, and the fyflem of regulating the 

 progreflive motions of the Horfe by art (a 

 practice in which he no doubt excelled) that 

 he fuppofed all the defects of Horfes arofe 

 merely for want of proper training; which, 

 in his ideas, would not only prevent reflivenefs, 

 {tumbling, going too wide before or behind, 

 and the defeel ufually arifing from a cock- 

 throppled neck, but even jadifhnefs and enter- 

 fering. Slighting thofe divifions, or modes 

 of progrefhons, which nature herfelf hath pre- 

 ferred to the Horfe, and which, for that reafon 

 (with the leave of Michael Baret, and all other 

 riding-maflersj muft be the bed, he efteemed 

 no faddle-horfe perfeel which had not been 

 taught an artificial pace; without even ex- 

 cepting running horfes, which he fuppofed by 

 fuch means, might all be rendered flout and 

 tough, whatfoever nature might have pre- 

 vioufly decreed in their ftamina or conforma- 

 tion. I wonder indeed he did not open an 

 academy to teach human cattle to amble. 



This author affures us, with a gravity befit- 

 ting the fubjecl;, that Horfes, as well as men, 

 were originally created perfeel ; but that the 



c 3 former 



