2O Horse and Man. 



must therefore, unless you wish to be con- 

 stantly jerked or twisted out of your seat, 

 learn to keep your waist pliant while you keep 

 your legs fixed. 



So long as your horse stands still, or only 

 moves at a walk, you will have no difficulty 

 in maintaining any position on his back which 

 you may choose to assume. You must, there- 

 fore, in order to acquire the knack of keeping 

 your balance, venture upon a trot or a canter. 

 For this purpose, place yourself in your 

 proper position and take a steady grasp of 

 your saddle. Let your reins hang quite 

 slack, and do not use your stirrups. Thus 

 prepared, let your assistant put your horse 

 into a gentle trot. Leave the management 

 of the animal entirely to him, and attend to 

 nothing but keeping your seat as firmly as 

 possible. 



The first difficulty to be mastered for this 

 purpose is that of keeping your waist hollow 

 and your shoulders back. It is a difficulty 

 to which you have no excuse for yielding, 

 because it is one which you can vanquish by 

 main force. When your horse is about to 

 strike a trot, resolve that nothing shall induce 



