RIDING 105 



horse, and the saddle-crutch and their 

 knee, to get their hands down as low 

 as a man. There is always the greatest 

 difficulty in getting ladies to keep their 

 shoulders square at first, but the real 

 secret of this is in fixing the foot and 

 stirrup properly. The stirrup should be 

 placed near the toes, only halfway home 

 under the instep, the heel slightly down, 

 and the stirrup tight enough to make 

 the knee as near as possible touch the 

 crutch; then by raising the heel when 

 jumping, or the horse bucking, it fixes 

 the leg in a tight vice under the crutch, 

 and your lady rider takes far more 

 bucking off than a man. If the foot is 

 right home in the stirrup, and the leather 

 a shade too loose, all fixity disappears, 

 the right shoulder goes forward, and the 

 victim of bad teaching twists sideways. 

 Captain Hayes has all these things 



