FIRST-HAND BITS OF STABLE LORE 



browband so narrow it cuts his ears, his blinkers 

 so close he cannot see, and producing uncomfort- 

 able heat about his eyes, his backstrap so short 

 that only his cramped condition prevents his 

 kicking the trap to pieces, his pad too narrow in 

 the tree, and his hame tugs gripping his shoulders ; 

 girthed so tightly that he wants to lie down (and 

 sometimes does). However, he has his rivets and 

 breastplate all right, and the judges receive the 

 plaudits they are conscious of deserving. Nor is 

 this an imaginary happening. You may see it at 

 pretty nearly every show you visit. 



The harness makers and carriage builders are 

 sadly hampered in their undertakings by the va- 

 garies of show ring judges in so illogically and 

 so constantly changing the standard ; for what is 

 O. K. one season is all wrong the next. It is 

 true that these industries frequently venture, upon 

 their own accord, into the realms of the fantastic 

 and the wonderful, and we all remember some of 

 the extraordinary contraptions which have been 

 thus evolved and put upon the market; harness 

 as hideous in detail as ensemble, vehicles telescop- 

 ing or expanding in all directions, and providing 

 everything from a baby carriage to an ambulance, 

 according to what springs were pushed, and what 



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