EARLY HABITS INFLUENTIAL THROUGH LIFE. 195 



in mi, avoid him, but a tame deer is as tame as any 

 other pet ; arid so will mares arid colts be if properly 

 treated. Even supposing there was an inherent vicious 

 propensity born with a colt, by beginning thus early 

 with him it would in most cases be eradicated ; if not, 

 it would to a certainty be most materially softened. 



This is beginning to educate horses : instead of which 

 we let them contract bad habits, and then trust to the 

 breaker to get rid of them. I hate the term breaking 

 as applied to horses : treat them properly from the first, 

 they will then only want practice to teach them how 

 to carry us, but will want no breaking. We never 

 begin teaching or educating colts half soon enough. 

 The yearling should be an old horse in point of 

 docility and confidence in man. I fear most of us 

 who tread the thorny path of life get weary of the way 

 long before we have completed our allotted journey ; 

 but it would be cruel to damp the youthful traveller's 

 hope by telling him, what he will after find, that the 

 soft and balmy morning of his setting out is but too 

 often the prelude to the coming storm. Thus horses, I 

 fear, have generally reason enough to dread man in their 

 progress through life ; but there can be no reason to 

 teach or allow them to dread us from their birth, this 

 dread to be further increased by the general usage of 

 them. It may be said, that, however wild the colt 

 may be, work will tame him, and if he gets vicious or 

 troublesome propensities, punishment and consequent 

 fear may prevent his practising them. To a certain 

 degree this would probably be the case ; but if the 

 inclination remains, some unguarded moment on our 

 part will afford the opportunity of showing the ruling 

 passion, and fatal will probably be its effect. But 

 suppose we do make an animal submissive through 



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