The Hand. 37 



his pace or his direction, and carefully keep 

 the play of your waist and that of your arms 

 independent of each other. 



When you can feel your horse's mouth 

 quite smoothly at a walk, you may begin to 

 regulate his pace. For this purpose you must 

 gently increase the pressure of your hands 

 when his mouth gives way, and gently di- 

 minish their yielding motion when it resists. 

 Do this at first with great caution and very 

 lightly, for fear you should get into the habit 

 of attempting to check him by a dead pull. 

 Persevere in thus taking at every step a little 

 more than you give, until the horse comes to 

 a halt. By degrees, as the knack becomes 

 more familiar to you, you may increase the 

 power of your alternate pulls, until you can 

 bring your horse in two or three paces from a 

 fast walk to a full stop. 



You may now proceed to the same practice 

 at a trot and a gallop. Begin by starting 

 your horse at a steady pace, and give all your 

 attention to feeling his mouth without at- 

 tempting to check or guide him. If he is 

 disposed to press forward, let your assistant 

 run beside you and regulate his pace. As 



