50 HACKS AND HUNTERS 



brilliant. The illustrations facing pages 36 and 86 are 

 of thoroughbred hacks, and one can readily see that 

 their knee action is quite sufficient. 



When it comes to the canter I think few riding men 

 or women will hesitate to agree that in this gait, above 

 all others, the thoroughbred so far excels as to be in a 

 class by himself. Comparatively easy though the 

 canter of a perfectly trained Kentucky horse may be, 

 it is always secondary to his trot, whereas in the thor- 

 oughbred exactly the reverse is the case. In the latter, 

 though his trot is also usually smooth and easy to 

 rise to, it is less perfect than his canter, and herein 

 lies the crux of the whole matter. 



Do you want to ride for exercise, to shake your liver, 

 or reduce your avoirdupois? If you do, by all means 

 ride the Kentucky horse, for his hard snappy trot will 

 be best suited to your need. On the contrary, if you 

 wish to ride purely for the joy of the ride, for comfort 

 and relaxation and pleasure, then choose the thorough- 

 bred. Thus, by a curious trick of fate the very 

 animal, once famed in his five-gaited form for easy 

 paces, in his three-gaited form is ranged, in the present 

 controversy between exercise and comfort, on the side 

 of exercise. 



For the Englishman there is no argument at all as 

 to which gait is preferable. Even if the thoroughbred 

 had a very poor trot instead of a moderately good one, 

 he would still prefer him above all other breeds, if only 

 because of his canter. The English may have been 

 the first to practise rising to the trot to any extent, 

 and they still undoubtedly appreciate the virtue of a 

 trot ; nevertheless, when out hacking for pleasure they 

 seldom, if ever, use any other gait but a canter. They 

 don't want to exercise when hacking; they get their 



