152 THE SUMMERING OF HUNTERS. 



of practical joking goes on, which too often ends in 

 an ugly accident. The worse case of staking the 

 writer ever saw was from this cause. Four horses 

 were running in a pasture, and three of them, 

 irritated by the heat and the flies, set upon the 

 weakest and compelled him to leap into the next 

 pasture. In doing so he alighted on his shoulder 

 upon a stake and nearly severed his shoulder from 

 his body. Most farmers know how frequent staking 

 is in hot weather. It is mostly from the causes we 

 have mentioned. Any water the horse is likely to 

 get at in a field in summer, except under very 

 exceptional circumstances, ought to be properly 

 guarded, and instead of it, abundance of fresh water, 

 or what is much to be preferred, fresh cold w^ater 

 with oatmeal stirred in, given at short intervals. 

 Whilst on the subject of small cautions, we ought to 

 point out the dangers a horse is at this time exposed 

 to from small sharp projecting substances in door- 

 posts, &c. We have seen odd posts standing here 

 and there in a field, and old nails and crooks allowed 

 to remain projecting from them when the field has 

 contained some hundreds of pounds' worth of indi- 

 viduals fond of "larking" and rough play. Another 

 small caution : when a loose box is open for a horse 

 to run in and out from and to a field, the doorway 

 should be a great height, and wide enough to admit 

 two horses abreast, and ihe posts padded with straw 

 or straw strapped round them. This latter precau- 

 tion is extremely desirable, as horses frequently try 



