LIGHT HORSE. 205 



months at a slow pace, and expect them to be equally 

 aufait as fast ones. Horses will always pull more or 

 less when galloping in line, but if the men have often 

 galloped them independently they will be accustomed to 

 their peculiar styles and tricks of pulling ; and though 

 many old cavalry officers would condemn the permission 

 to gallop as likely to produce wildness and unsteadiness 

 in the ranks, I am persuaded that it would have the 

 contrary effect. The men and horses would know each 

 other better, and that alone would be a grand point 

 gained. Of course all galloping would have to be done 

 under very careful supervision ; but so has every other 

 part of a soldier's duty. Also, as for jumping, horses 

 who are clever at small cramped fences are not so likely 

 to fall at grips as others who are not, and every dragoon 

 knows what fearful falls are to be had at narrow ditches ; 

 indeed, the narrowest of them. This is partly attributable 

 to the weight carried by the horse, but chiefly to his 

 being unaccustomed to collect himself suddenly on 

 coming to an unexpected thing of this kind. From the 

 nature of their training, which sets troop horses so much 

 on their haunches they make clever hunters with less 

 time and trouble than any other horses, and yet, for want 

 of the little extra teaching required, they are usually the 

 clumsiest brutes out. It is only fair to the horse who 

 has just tumbled into a two -foot drain to consider that 

 the rider, being as unaccustomed as his horse to crossing 

 anything but a level plain, most likely was guilty of every 

 practical blunder that the situation admitted of. The man 

 would benefit as much as the horse by a course of steady 

 galloping and jumping. Can anyone be called a horse- 

 man who cannot ride at speed ? And a dragoon ought 

 to use his weapons at speed too. Post practice, as done 



