26o THE COMPLETE HORSEMAN 



to be commended for it. Unfortunately many 

 of them give it up all too soon. Even if a man 

 is a fairly good horseman he must have a con- 

 siderable amount of practice before he is able 

 to meet the man who devotes his life to show 

 riding with anything like an equal chance. By 

 which is meant that there are countless little 

 things, insignificant in themselves, which enable 

 the showyard horseman to place his horse before 

 the judges to the very best advantage. But the 

 more important of these will come by constant 

 practice and painstaking and I would not have 

 the novice too easily discouraged. Indeed he may 

 take heart of grace for in all probability he is as 

 good or perhaps a better man to hounds than his 

 rival of the show ring. 



And though perhaps he may never equal that 

 rival in the show ring there is no reason why he 

 should despair of being able to ride a horse well 

 enough to do him full justice, and that is all that 

 is required. There is plenty of time for a man to 

 learn to ride well without neglecting those more 

 serious duties which increase upon us as we ad- 

 vance in years. An ' infinite capacity for taking 

 pains ' will make a more than merely capable 

 horseman of most young men provided they are 

 keen enough. 



In setting a horse up for the judges to examine 

 there is a great art. Many men, especially 

 hackney grooms, stretch them out as far as they 

 can get their legs placed. Their legs, indeed, 

 instead of being under them, are outside them. 



