52 TttE MIND OF THE HORSE 



susceptibility to fear is a great drawback to the 

 usefulness of a liorse as he is ready to take fright 

 at everything. 



To incur as little fatigue as possible is a general 

 instinct, but laziness is particularly bad in a horse, 

 as it is a negation of its essential quality, which 

 is that of moving at the slightest instigation. 



The anger felt by some horses on the legs and 

 spurs being apj)lied is a great defect as it deprives 

 us of a ready and convenient means of guidance. 



There are strange and inconsistent horses just 

 as there are strange men who act in one way on 

 one day and ditferentlv on the morrow. This mav 

 be called a degree of insanity just as in man. The 

 morose, moody or melancholy liorse was in ill 

 repute with the cavaliers of the sixteenth century 

 as they thought him to be meditating attack and 

 rebellion. 



The horse may become bad owing to ill treat- 

 ment or because the man handling him gave 

 him opportunity for successful resistance and thus 

 tauglit him his own strength and the possibility of 

 his opposing man. Such a horse may have his dis- 



