186 



MODERN HORSE MANAGEMENT 



[chap. 



where a domestic animal would be able to reach 

 the same. 



720. The Rev. M. J. Savage said: "If I were 

 a man of means and had a horse I liked, I would 

 turn him out to pasture in his old age (if he had 

 a natural tail), or put him in the hands of some- 

 one who I knew would treat him kindly, or put 

 him to a painless end myself. I would not turn 

 him over to end his days in suffering, cruelty 

 and neglect." 



I have often contrasted horses turned away 

 from a comfortable home to live a miserable life 

 with hawkers or rag-and-bone men with a 

 27-year-old horse belonging to Sir Henry Pellatt, 

 of Toronto, which is pensioned off for life. This 

 particular horse was the one ridden by King 

 George when in Canada in 1900. 



"Deo dante dedi" can be well applied here. 

 Brother Carthusians will join with me. 



721. 



The quality of mercy is not strain'd, 



It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven 



Upon the place beneath : it is twice bless'd, 



It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes : 



'Tis mightiest in the mightiest ; it becomes 



The throned monarch better than his crown. 



Shakespeare. 



The cost of unkindness was very aptly 

 recorded in the New York Record Herald : 

 "There is a wonderful system of government 

 that directs the affairs of human beings. If you 

 do a good act, a good act will be done you. If 

 you deal out an injustice, you will be afflicted 

 with like punishment. None can afford to be 

 unkind, for unkindness always returns, and in 

 a greater measure." [See Sec. 694, Chapter XIII.) 



722. 



A man of kindness to his beast Is kind, 

 But brutal actions show a brutal mind. 

 Remember, He Who made thee, made the brute, 

 Who gave thee speech and reason, formed him mute. 

 He can't complain, but God's all-seeing eyes 

 Behold thy cruelty and hear his cries ; 

 He was designed thy servant, not thy drudge ; 

 Remember, his Creator is thy Judge. 



The above lines were exhibited in a number 

 of the cab-stands in London, and, there is no 

 doubt, did a great deal of good. 



I love the boss from hoof to head : 



From head to hoof, and tail to mane. ' 

 I love the boss, as I have said, 



From head to hoof and back again. 

 I love my God the first of all, 



Then Him that perished on the Cross, 

 And next my wife, and then I fall ^<' 



Down on my knees and love my boss." "3 

 James Whitcomb Riley in " Our Dunib[^AnimaIs." 



723. " Now, I say that with cruelty and 



oppression, it is everybody's business to interfere 

 when they see it." — " Black Beauty." 



Knowledge alone does not make men better, 

 but kindness does. Knowledge confers power, 

 and kindness prevents its evil application, so 

 both must be inculcated. 



A well-known preacher a short while ago 

 said that the greatest gift was the gift of under- 

 standing others ; the gift of sympathy for others. 



By kind permission of Dr. Francis H. Rowley, 

 I am able to reproduce the original version of 

 the " Horse's Prayer," published by the Massa- 

 chusetts S.P.G.A., and posted up by law in all 

 the livery and Government stables in that State : 



724. " To thee, my master, I offer my prayer ; 

 feed me, water and care for me, and, when the 

 day's work is done, provide me with shelter, a 

 clean, dry bed, and a stall wide enough for me 

 to lie down in comfort. Always be kind to me, 

 talk to me, your voice often means as much to 

 me as the reins. Pet me sometimes, that I may 

 serve you the more gladly and learn to love you. 

 Do not jerk the reins nor whip me when going 

 up hill. Never strike, beat or kick me when I do 

 not understand what you want, but give me a 

 chance to understand you. Watch me, and if I 

 fail to do your bidding see if something is not 

 wrong with my harness or feet. 



"Do not check me, so that I cannot have the 

 free use of my neck and head. If you insist that 

 I wear blinkers, so that I cannot see behind me, 

 as it was intended I should, I pray you be careful 

 that they stand well out from my eyes. Do not 

 overload me or hitch me where water will drip 

 on me. Keep me well shod, examine my teeth 

 when I do not eat ; I may have an ulcerated 

 tooth. Do not tie my head in an unnatural 

 position, or take away my best defence against 

 flies and mosquitoes by cutting off my tail. I 

 cannot tell you when I am thirsty, so give me 

 clean cold water often. Save me by all means 

 in your power from that fatal disease, glanders. 

 I cannot tell you in words when I am sick, so 

 watch me that by signs you may know my con- 

 dition. Give me all possible shelter from the hot 

 sun, and put a blanket on me, not when I am 

 working, but when I am standing in the cold. 

 Never put a frosty bit in my mouth ; first warm 

 it by holding it in your hands. I try to carry 

 you and your burdens without a murmur, and 

 wait patiently for you long hours of the day or 

 night. Without the power to choose my shoes 

 or path, I sometimes fall on the hard pavements, 

 which I have often prayed might not be of wood, 

 but of such a nature as to give me a safe and 

 sure footing. Remember, I must be ready at any 

 moment to lose my life in your service. 



"And, finally, O my master, when my useful 

 strength is gone, do not turn me out to starve 

 or freeze, or sell me to some cruel owner to be 

 slowly starved to death ; but do thou, my master, 

 take my life in the kindest way, and your God 



