EIDINQ.] 



THE HOESE, AND 



[riding. 



quarters, meeting the ground, gain a new im- 

 pulse by their rebound ; the haunches are again 

 thrown in to take their share in the support, 

 and, also, to give their impelling power to the 

 mass." 



The simplest of all the paces of the horse is 

 the full gallop. " Simple as it is, however," 

 says the same eminent veterinary surgeon, 

 "it cannot, in any instance, be commenced 

 ■without the intervention of the slower gallop, 

 in which one of the hinder legs is first 

 advanced to establish a new centre ; for it 

 would require too great an eff'ort to raise the 

 fore parts at once from a state of rest by 

 means of tlie loins, and to throw them for- 

 wards at the first action to a considerable dis- 

 tance by means of the hauuches and thighs. 

 The fact is well known to jockeys and other 

 sporting characters, and they often derive 

 profit from the circumstance, by wagering 

 with the unwary, that no horse shall be found 

 to gallop one hundred yards while a man runs 

 fifty, provided each start together ; in which 

 case so much time is lost in acquiring the due 

 momentum, that the man has often won ; make 

 but the race for one hundred and fifty yards, 

 and the horse would beat ; for now the im- 

 petus being acquired, he arrives at sufiicieut 

 momentum to overtake his antagonist. In the 

 extended gallop, the fore parts, when raised, 

 are forced forward by the alternate flexions and 

 extensions of the angles of the hinder parts ; 

 and as both of the fore and both of the hind 

 legs, in the racing gallop, become opposed to 

 the ground in succession at the same moment 

 — that is, as the two fore feet at once beat the 

 ground togetlier, and then the two hind, so it 

 is evident that the gallop, if full, is nothing 

 more than a repetition of leaps. Quickly as 

 these leaps are repeated, yet the surface of 

 ground passed over at each of them must 

 necessarily be great to accomplish the pace at 

 which the good racer goes. Hambletonian, in 

 his match against Diamond, is said to have 

 covered eighty-three-and-a-half feet of ground 

 in a second ; and by the calculations of M. 

 St. Bel, Eclipse covered eighty-five feet of 

 ground in the same time, when at the top of 

 his speed. Every turf amateur must have re- 

 marked the horizontal position of the body in 

 the racer at the momentous struggle. Every 

 departure from a rectilinear form of the body 

 150 



would detract from the rapidity of its flight, 

 and, therefore, even the head and neck are 

 carried so as to fall within the line of the 

 trunk. As a compensation, however, for the 

 loss of the power sustained, the limbs are 

 most extensively flexed, that the circles they 

 form may be more extended." 



On any critical occasion, whether arising 

 from embarrassment on the road, or from un- 

 quietness in the horse, the reins may be taken 

 separately in each hand ; and this is mucti 

 practised both in riding and driving. Ii 

 obviously increases the power of the ridei 

 over his animal, and is useful in cases of start- 

 ing and shying, or in any attempt to turn 

 round, in plunging, kicking, or rearing. In 

 the latter case, common sense will inform the 

 rider, that he must lean forward with slack 

 reins, or he may pull the horse o'/er ; certainly 

 one of the most dangerous accidents among 

 the many which appertain to equestrian art. 

 Whilst leaning forward, he should apply his 

 spurs sharply to the sides of the horse — a 

 punishment which will cure him of this vice, 

 granting it is curable. 



In the opposite habit of kicking out behind, 

 which some animals have the knack of doing 

 very high, with jerks not very comfortable to 

 the rider's back-bone, the precisely opposite 

 course is to be adopted, to avoid a somersault 

 over the shoulders of the horse. The rule 

 now is — sit back, sit fast, pull hard, holding the 

 head of the animal as high as possible, and 

 spurring with force at every interval of kicking. 

 Having the opportunity also, use the whip 

 eftectually on the thigh, the belly, and, if 

 necessary, on the jaws. In a confirmed case 

 of vice, nothing skort of intimidation and 

 absolute conquest will succeed. Such severity, 

 indeed, instead of a cure, may sometimes pro- 

 duce desperation ; and when patience and 

 mild measures will succeed, they are infinitely 

 preferable. We would always recommend 

 that spurs be worn. With a restive horse 

 they are indispensable; and in the case of 

 being placed between two objects, one of 

 which alarms him, and the other dangerous 

 for him to come in contact with, the spur on 

 the dangerous side is of unspeakable use, as 

 constituting the principal dependence in aid 

 of the hand of the rider to keep the horse in 

 his safe and r^roper place. 



