131 THE PRACTICAL HORSE KEEPER. 



Having carefully adjusted the reins in his hands the left 

 hand holding them, the right hand assisting and holding them 

 just so tight that bending of the wrists will guide, restrain, or 

 stop the horse, the mouth of the animal should be felt, the 

 amount of feeling depending on the kind of mouth and the bit 

 the horse wears. The horse should be trained not to move 

 until a few seconds after the driver is seated, and then he 

 should walk for at least a few yards before going into a more 

 rapid pace. Nothing, perhaps, is so injurious to limbs and feet 

 as starting suddenly from a stand-still into a fast trot, and a 

 large percentage of the foot-lameness of carriage horses is due 

 to this cause. With nervous horses this precaution is more 

 particularly necessary, as if set off hurriedly they are nearly 

 always made unsteady and troublesome at the start, and even 

 when standing. 



" The rationale of driving may be compared to steering a 

 boat. There must be no pulling and hauling, first on one side 

 and then on the other ; the slightest movement will be felt (on 

 a well-broken, well-bitted horse) and anticipated just as much 

 pressure as is needful to keep the head straight ; this pressure 

 on either rein is, or should be, very slight." No more pressure 

 should be put on the reins than is required to guide, check, or 

 halt the horse, and the reins should only be used for this pur- 

 pose the animal being kept in remembrance that he is to obey 

 the rein. If he will stand the whip (held always in the right 

 hand), a slight touch on the right or left shoulder will make him 

 obey the right or left rein, if he does not respond to it at once. 



But the whip should ever be used sparingly, and only to 

 awaken the horse's attention ; rarely used to punish, and then 

 only when punishment is really required. The abuse of this 

 instrument is often really terrible, and deserves the severest 

 reprobation. Often horses are cruelly slashed with it for no 

 reason whatever, save that the driver is in a bad temper, is 

 drunk, desires to " show off," is naturally brutal, or imagines it 



