70 HACKS AND HUNTERS 



when jumping. (See illustration facing page 70.) 

 Horses who drag their knees or chance their jumps by 

 flinging themselves over them haphazard are very dan- 

 gerous to ride, for some day they are sure to come to 

 grief. Many horses who twist themselves over their 

 jumps are clever, but are usually uncomfortable for a 

 woman to ride. A horse should always land over his 

 jumps "galloping," i. e., in his stride, and ready to go on 

 rather than all bunched like a cat on four feet, or with 

 his hind feet hitting the ground first. He should, on 

 being turned at a jump, prick his ears, quicken his 

 pace and jump it without undue excitement and be 

 easy to pull up. Animals who require an acre lot in 

 which to stop are a nuisance as well as dangerous to 

 ride. In a fast country the perfect hunter should be 

 able to gallop down over his jumps at a good pace, 

 and then turn about in a trappy spot or narrow lane 

 and be able to take a short stride, and almost from a 

 standstill pop over a fence or wall. 



More than this, the bona-fide hunter must, in gal- 

 loping over uneven ground, be quick to avoid a stone 

 or a rabbit-hole in his stride. Without this the best 

 jumping in the world would get you nowhere in a 

 rough country, for your horse will give you a fall on 

 the flat, which is usually a far nastier tumble than a 

 toss over a fence, owing to the fact that neither horse 

 nor rider are prepared for any such eventuality and 

 are going very fast. 



This brings us again around to the fact that intelli- 

 gence and a good disposition are the sine qua non of 

 the perfect hunter. Above all, if he is to be a woman's 

 mount, he should be temperate, yet keen to go; he 

 must not pull an ounce, nor yet require whip or 

 spur; he must be light-hearted enough to jump when 



