350 ON BREAKING RACING COLTS. 



less difficulty and danger in travelling them. Unless 

 this is done, they are very troublesome in passing carts 

 and carriages on the road ; and in struggling when 

 frightened, they may get loose and injure themselves. 

 Whenever they travel, having been only temporarily 

 broke, they should be led in cavesons with boots on 

 tlieir fore legs. If they have a long way to travel, 

 tliey should also be provided with boots for their hind 

 legs. 



To shew the necessity of handling or temporarily 

 breaking young ones before they are permitted to 

 travel, J will relate an occurrence which happened to 

 some yearlings that were travelling from the stables in 

 Gloucestershire, belonging to Mr. Cook, to some others 

 in his occupation, adjacent to Maidenhead Thicket. 

 It was the spring of the year, that Mr. Cook had or- 

 dered these race-horses, accompanied by the head lad 

 and two boys (I was one of them), to be sent to the 

 Maidenhead stables ; and to travel with us, were four 

 unbroken racing yearlings, led in halters by four coun- 

 trymen, hired for the purpose, the whole being put 

 under the care of the head lad, who was strictly 

 charged to be careful of them. The first two days of 

 our journey, the colts, as might be expected, were 

 troublesome, and often alarmed by the different objects 

 they met on the road ; but as none of them got loose, 

 the head lad gave himself very little concern about 

 them, and we were often a long way in front with our 

 horses, and no doubt we were some way forward 

 when the circumstance happened which I am about to 



