338 THE HORSE AND HIS STRUCTURE. 



Who ever saw a horse champ and foam at the mouth 

 when at liberty ? Or who ever saw a horse free in a field 

 plant its fore and hind legs apart, curve its body back- 

 wards, and hold its head above its shoulders ? Yet this 

 is the attitude invariably assumed by "gagged" horses 

 when standing in the streets. In fact, they are trying 

 by pressure in front and behind, to contract the spine as 

 much as possible, and so to relieve the intolerable pres- 

 sure on the mouth. 



Not long before these lines were written, I engaged a 

 cab for the purpose of making a series of visits to a 

 suburb of London. 



I was struck with the fact that the driver never used 

 his whip, and yet that the horse went quite freely, 

 although the road had been recently "mended" by 

 spreading flints and other stones of irregular sizes over 

 it. On alighting, I told the driver that I had noticed 

 that the whip had not been used, and the man replied 

 that he had no whip, and never would use one. 



The return journey being all up-hill, I determined to 

 watch the man's mode of driving, and soon found that 

 even the use of the reins was merely nominal, the man 

 guiding the horse entirely by the voice. 



After going some little distance the driver dismounted, 

 and walked by the side of the horse. After a while, he 

 turned the cab to the side of the road, and walked alone 

 up the hill. 



When he had gone fifty or sixty yards, he called to 

 the horse, "Now, my lady, if you are quite rested, 



