60 THE HORSE AND HIS EIDER. 



wards only fairly ridden, lie will probably require no 

 other instruction. If, however, as but too often is the 

 case, on arriving at water that can be jumped favourably 

 at a particular place, a young horse is obliged to wait for 

 his turn, and during that awful pause sees some hunters 

 refuse, and others splash in and flounder, he naturally 

 combines together theory and practice, and accordingly, 

 when called upon, refuses to do what he has always in- 

 stinctively considered to be wrong; and as, generally 

 speaking, it is impossible at that moment to force him, 

 the run is lost. 



Under this state of the case, the master of the culprit 

 on some fine non-hunting day, armed with spurs and a 

 cut-whip, should conduct him to any ugly-looking little 

 ditch, not above half a dozen feet broad (for it is the 

 quality and not the quantity of the shining element that 

 creates his fear), and then, carefully abstaining to excite 

 his courage, ride him at it very slowly and timidly, on 

 purpose to ensure his refusing it, which, of course, he is 

 quite certain to do. After once again leading him into 

 this trap, a duel, perfectly harmless to the biped, must 

 be fought. It may last ten minutes, a quarter, half an 

 hour, or possibly two hours ; but, sooner or later, the 

 little misunderstanding is certain to end in the rebel all 

 of a sudden doing willingly, and then repeating five or 

 six times, what, after all, was nothing at all for him 



