122 METHOD OF HORSEMANSHIP. 



After having defined what I call the pro- 

 per backing (reculer), I ought to explain 

 what I understand by backing so as to 

 avoid the bit (T acculemeoit) . This move- 

 ment is too painful to the horse, too un- 

 graceful, and too much opposed to the right 

 development of his mechanism, not to have 

 struck any one who has occupied himself at 

 all with horsemanship. We force a horse 

 backwards in this way, whenever we crowd 

 his forces and weight too much upon his 

 hind parts; by so doing we destroy his 

 equilibrium, and render grace, measure, and 

 correctness impossible. Lightness, always 

 lightness! this is the basis, the touchstone 

 of all beautiful execution. With this, all 

 is easy, for the horse as well as the rider. 

 That being the case, it is understood that 

 the difficulty of horsemanship does not con- 

 sist in the direction to give the horse, but 

 in the position to make him assume — a posi- 



