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with a horse, unless he is a thoroughly reh'able 

 jumper. 



No horse should ever be ridden at a wire fence. 

 He may not see the wire and he would simply go 

 over it heels over head, or he might entangle his legs 

 in the wire and break them in his frantic struggles to 

 free himself. Only a fool will ride a horse at wire. 

 Barbed wire should always be given a wide berth, in- 

 deed, it may appropriately be termed the primary 

 curse of the hunting field. 



THE INFLUENCE OF A NERVOUS RIDER. 



The reason of a great number of accidents is 

 largely due to a decided absence of nerve force on the 

 part of the rider. For example, if a good jumping 

 colt is ridden to a fence by a nervous rider in the 

 majority of trials he may refuse even though he is 

 whipped and spurred to it. The colt feels his rider's 

 seat in the saddle, the uncertain pressure of his legs, 

 the infirm touch of his hand on the rein — in short, his 

 whole bearing on the colt is one the reverse to inspire 

 him with confidence. There is no sympathy between 

 them, and in such hands the colt wilf rarely jump, 

 or, if he does he is almost sure to make some 

 mistake, and from no other cause than his rider's 

 nervousness. On the other hand, put a good horse- 

 man with a firm nerve upon his back and he will fly 

 over the same fence with perfect ease and safety. 



