THE SUMMERING OF HUNTERS. 149 



Straw too is not fit for our present purpose, at least 

 it is not so good as tan. 



The feet should be attended to all the time, as if 

 the animal were doing his usual work ; indeed, it is 

 almost more necessary to attend to the feet during this 

 long rest in a loose box because the horn grows 

 faster, and is apt to disturb that equal bearing 

 surface we have so much insisted upon. The toes 

 get long and throw extra strain on the back sinews 

 when the animal walks. We cannot refrain from 

 telling a rather amusing story bearing on our last 

 observation. We were once sent for a long distance 

 (over a hundred miles) to see a young horse recently 

 purchased, whose owner was laughed at by his 

 friends for the high price he had given in purchase. 

 This banter caused him to take such a dislike 

 to the young horse that he put him into a loose 

 box and did not go near him at all for five 

 weeks. The horse was shoeless during this time, 

 and the toes grew long, of course. The 

 owner now had the horse brought out in a 

 bridle. " Hallo ! Stringhalt, by Jove ! take him in 

 John. Here is a nice thing. Bought the brute ; 

 done nothing with him but keep him quiet in loose 

 box ; first time bring him out, stringhalt. John ! 



send for ." We went and found the poor 



lame animal, for lame he was ; his toes were a 

 fearful length. Each time he set his feet down, his 

 hind feet especially — he picked them up as though 

 he were treading on hot bricks. This gave him a 

 peculiar appearance, not unlike stringhalt. He was 



