The Use of the Exglish Ass. 169 



The ass appears to have been subjected to the use of man long before the horse. The female 

 was preferred for riding, in consequence of her superior docility, and as a dairy animal was of 

 special value to nomadic tribes. 



Even at the present day native Egyptians prefer the quiet ass — which neither rears, plunges, nor 

 shies, and keeps a steady pace, quite fast enough under a tropical sun — to the more high-couraged 

 horse, except on occasions of parade. In fact, in the East the horse is chiefly valued as a charger for 

 war purposes ; the ass is the hack for daily use where the much-enduring camel is not employed. 

 A wealthy Copt will give as much as ^^'200 for a white ass of good stature and easy paces. 



In England a good donkey is invaluable for family use, to enable the young son of the house 

 to teach himself to ride, to draw a clothes-basket carriage with a curate's too numerous family, 

 to harness to a cart of appropriate size — in fact, as a humble servant of all work ; not expensive 

 to purchase or to feed, not requiring the services of an accomplished groom, and not liable to any 

 worse vice than obstinacy. With a well-trained donkey you are safe from any of those sudden 

 ebullitions of excitement which sometimes bring the soberest ponies to grief. The vicious New 

 Forest horse-fly either spares the donkey, or fails to penetrate its thick hide with the poisonous 

 sting which often drives well-behaved horses, if strangers to the count}', to madness. 



E.Kcept as a question of safety from accidents, the donkey is not a good steed for a boy to 

 commence his career on as a horseman ; it has not riding shoulders, and does not afford a proper 

 seat for a saddle. The riders of donkey-races sit on the hind-quarters. Anatomically considered, 

 the ass is e:;sentially a beast for the pack-saddle. The ass has also a mouth so callous to the bit 

 as to lead boy equestrians into very bad habits when they advance in dignity, and have to deal 

 with the exquisitely tender mouths of horses. All donkey-riders not packed in Oriental saddles 

 must hold on by the bridle, a habit fatal to good horsemanship. 



As to what may be done with donkeys in harness, the best examples may be seen daily in the 

 streets of London, amongst costcrmonger hawkers of fruit, fish, and x-egetables. As a body the 

 costers are by no means the brutes their appearance and language would convey — at least, in 

 the treatment of their donkeys. The pace at which the costers' asses travel, the distances they 

 complete in a day with a well-balanced load on their clever "go-carts," and the sleek appearance of 

 the animals, prove that in the main they are well treated — often better treated than the costers' 

 wives — and they must be well fed. The owner of a very fast donkey, on the Brighton road, in 

 answer to an inquiry as to how he fed him, replied, "Like a race-hoss." 



In all classes of society great affection for dogs, donkeys, and other lower animals is not 

 unfrequently displayed by persons who are, to say the least, hard in their dealings with human 

 beings. 



The costcrmonger lives as familiarly with his donkey as the Arab of the tent with his horse ; 

 he lives in the same room with him, where the health authorities do not object. He gets his living 

 out of him, and seldom ill-treats hin^ in his sober moments. If you watch a costcrmonger in 

 the streets, you often see the harnessed donkey following his master like a dog, which he would 

 not do if he was afraid of him. 



In England we do not pay much attention to the varieties of the ass, because we have a better 

 breed of ponies than any other country; but there is one, generally of a dark colour, with finer 

 limbs, more active and swift than the ordinary grey drudge, which is to be preferred for riding 

 and light harness. I have seen the two small sons of a gentleman in the North of England 

 following the hounds on their black donkeys, creeping through and over most difficult places' 

 and even achieving very respectable leaps. 



Some enthusiasts have recommended that family donkeys should be groomed and fed 

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