340 The Book of the Horse. 



THE LADYS REINS. 



When a lady has acquired a seat in the saddle, she may properly commence her instruction 

 in the art of guiding the horse by the bridle. On this most important part of the subject 

 the instructions will be the same as those addressed to men in Chapter XIII. ; but as the 

 conventional mode of holding the reins in one hand is quite useless except where the horse 

 is perfectly obedient under all circumstances, no matter how excited, repetition may be 

 excused. 



The finished horsewoman on the finished horse rides like the figure at page 341, but 

 a long course of study has to be pursued before "a double first-class degree" of excellence 

 is attained. 



The ladies should use double bridles, with curb, snaffle, and a Cavesson martingale, 

 except when they propose to leap, when the martingale must either be taken off or lengthened. 

 In the case of a lady pupil, the curb rein should be shortened, either by knotting or an ar- 

 rangement of buckles, so that it will lie on the neck or over the right-hand pommel. One 

 rein is enough to commence with, and that the snaffle ; because a frightened beginner is very 

 apt to make dangerous use of the curb rein, especially if the horse is what he ought to be 

 — high-couraged. 



Lessons on equitation given on dull slugs are like lessons in dancing without music. 



The snaffle reins must be held in both hands at equal lengths. This is more important 

 in teaching women than in teaching men, because it is an additional inducement to sit 

 square. 



In using one pair of reins it is not of much consequence how they are held, so long 

 as the arms are kept near the side, the wrists turned rather in, the left hand as low as the 

 knee will admit without resting on it, and the right hand about on a level with the third 

 pommel. 



The pupil is to be taught — contrary to cavalry practice and "The Book of Aids" — that 

 when she wants her horse to go to the right she must pull the right rein, when she wants 

 to go to the left the left rein ; but these actions must be performed smoothly, moving the arms 

 as little as possible, with the wrists — only in fast paces are the fore-arms to move from the 

 elbows, " giving and taking." 



When both reins are used, the object is to guide and hold the horse with the snaffle 

 bit, tlie reins of that bit being the tighter of tlic two ; the curb reins being used to collect 

 and restrain, except on parade occasions, when the curb only is used. To explain the exact 

 arrangement of these two reins would take up a great many words, even with explanatory 

 woodcuts, while the whole mystery of placing them relatively between the fingers may be 

 learned in a few minutes from personal instruction. It is the object of this chapter rather 

 to lay down general principles than minute details. For an example of a fine seat, the reins 

 held in both hands, the curb the lightest (the horse being on parade action), nothing can be 

 finer than the portrait of Mrs. Reynolds on the Earl of Pembroke's horse, given in the coloured 

 plate, the same horse on which the same artist painted the Empress of the French in a similar 

 attitude. 



The manipulation of the reins, when once explained, may be practised at home by attach- 

 ing reins to an elastic band, fastened to something about the height of a horse's head. In 

 the same way, mounting may be practised on a convenient chest of drawers. 



Mrs. Stilling Clarke gives the following five positions of the reins as held in both hands. 



