180 HOW THE HORSE LEARNS 



den if excited by aids for going and held back by 

 the hand. 



I have described how circus masters teach their 

 tricks in order to show how the horse learns but 

 horses meant for ordinary use ought never to be 

 taught tricks as it only spoils them and this is 

 particularly true of what is called the Spanish 

 walk and the school jumps. 



In the sixteenth century school jumps were 

 much in vogue and all knights were anxious to sho>\ 

 their skill in making their horses do them for the 

 sake of being admired by the ladies who sat in the 

 balcony as it was then the custom. 



Olaudio Corte a nobleman of Pavia, who was 

 some time in the service of Queen Elizabeth, ju- 

 diciously noted that school jumps had no practical 

 utility, damaged horses and were not to be tauglit 

 to horses intended for military use as they might 

 mistake the aids of hand and sj^urs given to make 

 them run and believe themselves requested to make 

 school jumps with the consequence of the rider 

 being easily killed by the enemy. 



In the eighteenth century Nicolo Rosselmini a 



