PALLIATIVE TEEATMENT. 235 



tirely unmanageable in this respect. The special point of 

 this horse's peculiarity was in his obstinacy of resistance. 

 When he once found he could resist his foot's being taken 

 up, he would afterward fight at every attempt to take it 

 up, kicking back, and striking the ground with all the force 

 of a sledge hammer. 



I depended upon the Second and Third Methods for 

 the subjection of this case, which required a little more than 

 half an hour to effect his entire submission. I told the 

 owner, who was a good horseman, that he ought to be able 

 to make him stand to be shod by the aid of the War Bridle, 

 as the horse, after being treated by me, had remained per- 

 fectly gentle up to this time. 



Said he, "I tried it, and failed ; I would like to see you 

 do it." Upon trial, though I used the cord to the utmost 

 limit of its power, I was barely able to make him stand to 

 be shod, — a point not at all difficult by the regular subject- 

 ive treatment. It was, in fact, a very common occurrence 

 for me to find old scholars, and others who had indirectly 

 learned, and become practiced in, the use of some special 

 method of control long practiced and taught by me, claim- 

 ing to be able to control any living horse by it, whether 

 balky, a kicker, or bad to shoe, etc. 



Shoers who had used the War Bridle with success were 

 the most common. In proof of their ability to do this, ref_ 

 erence would be made to some special case which they had 

 easily shod that had before proved unmanageable. This 

 success would inspire such confidence in the method that 

 they would honestly think themselves able to control any 

 horse, however bad he might be. 



I will refer to an incident in point : When in Buffalo, 

 N. Y., in 1869, where I had been detained for some time 

 on business, a well known veterinary surgeon, Dr. Wm. 

 Somerville^ 27 Erie street, informed me that there was a 



