ON THE HACKNEY AND HUNTER. ICjl 



paces of the Horfe, which are walk, trot, 

 canter and gallop. The canter is a 

 natural pace (although many Horfes require 

 to be taught) as is obvious, from colts of a 

 few weeks old performing it in a handfome 

 manner. In former days, when factitious 

 principles of all kinds were in vogue, and were 

 held fo indifpenfible; and when the itudies 

 of men feemed to be directed to an inverfion 

 of the order of nature, in fo many refpefls; 

 they did not forget to fupplant her in the 

 motions of their Horfes, by forcing them into 

 artificial paces. Thus Markham, and the old 

 writers, defcribe pacing and racking, which 

 they took the pains to teach their Horfes by 

 cruel and dangerous methods. Thefe motions 

 were a kind of mixture, or confufion of the 

 natural paces, as may be conceived from the 

 mode in which they were taught, namely, by 

 forcing the Horfes to go with their legs tied. 

 Racking, it feems, was that irregular run, be- 

 tween a trot and a gallop, which we often at 

 this time oblerve a horfe to fall into, when 

 badly ridden, and of which many Horfes 

 acquire the habit. Pacing was not entirely 

 out of vogue in Brackens days, and I have 

 known one pacing-horle, within my own 

 memory, they called him a natural-padder ; but 

 his padding feemed to me to proceed either 

 from fome defect, or from bad riding. 



I mall 



