AVORKIXG OFF FLESH. 245 



that it takes some time to know each one. Some are 

 hearty eaters with appetites that nothing will affect^ 

 and these of course take more woi'k than the more 

 delicate kind. I do not believe in getting flesh off a 

 horse with sweat-blankets and hoods. Work it off in 

 the natural vrsiV. After you have got your horse into 

 pretty good driving shape, with a fair share of flesh of 

 the hard variety, he should be given as great a proj^or 

 tion of his work in fast brushes as possible. After 3^ou 

 have driven him until he is shaped up to take fast work 

 without distress, you have got to a point beyond which 

 I can give little more instruction than I have already 

 given. The principle of the work for colts and mature 

 horses is the same essentially. It differs only in degree. 

 To prepare a green horse for work needs only a little 

 average horse-sense — plenty of exercise, careful groom- 

 ing and judicious feeding. Some men act on the prin- 

 ciple that a horse must be as poor as a scare-crow 

 before he is in condition, and some will even resort to 

 physic to get flesh off. That is an erroneous idea, and 

 the use of physic is simply unpardonable as long as a 

 horse is well. It weakens and reduces a horse, which 

 you do not want to do. The object is to keep him 

 strong, but to work off superfluous flesh to get him in 

 as nearly perfect healthy athletic condition as possible. 

 Strength, vigor and energy do not stay by many horses 

 whose ribs can be counted far off. After a horse a}> 

 proaches maturity' he lays on internal fat, as all animals 

 do, and in that condition strong, fast exercise distresses 

 him, his wind being "thick" and "short." All race- 

 horse men will tell vou that some horses "run bis:" 

 and others "run fine" — that is, that some are at their 



