tioii, to ask himself seriously the question, what sort 

 of a horse he wants ? It is a curious, though an 

 undoubted truth, that not one man in fifty ever 

 thinks of taking this ordinary precaution. Of 

 course, I do not include professed sportsmen, 

 whether in the field or on the turf : they generally 

 " understand their business," and set to work ac- 

 cordingly ; but there are some hundreds, perhaps 

 thousands, who at the approach of summer must 

 needs buy a horse, and, like myself, consider it 

 much the same thing as buying a boot-jack ! 



To answer this question properly, there are many 

 points to be considered : the first essential is for a 

 man to inform himself honestly, whether he is a 

 good or a bad rider. Sir Walter Scott, with his 

 usual knowledge of human nature, justly remarks 

 that there are few men under twenty who would 

 not feel more ashamed of an imputation against 

 their horsemanship than their morality. The age 

 might be greatly extended; yet I believe that there 

 is not one man in a hundred who can acquire a 

 good seat on horseback, if he has not been accus- 

 tomed to the saddle from boyhood. The riding- 

 school may correct a few faults, but it will never 

 make an adult pupil a perfect master of his horse. 

 If a man does not possess this advantage, he cannot 



