DURING THE WINTER MONTHS. 75 



treatment of horses' feet, and the shoeing of them, 

 can be known well only by such men as have 

 become familiar with horses, from their being 

 brought up with them very early in life, and 

 having, in due time, qualified themselves by 

 attentive study at the Veterinary College, 

 where they have had the opportunity, as well as 

 the inclination, industriously to employ them- 

 selves in practising in the right sort of school, 

 so as to obtain a good ground-work, or thorough 

 knowledge, on the subject of all such matters as 

 concern not only the treatment of horses' feet 

 and shoeing, but also the treatment of the various 

 diseases to which horses are subject, either local 

 or constitutional. But to return to the groom. 



Now, it is not to be expected that this 

 man can possibly be well acquainted with all the 

 minute practical matters we have been making 

 mention of. In truth, a training-groom's atten- 

 tion is principally absorbed in considering the 

 constitutional health of the horse; the object the 

 groom is looking forward to, is to have the horse 

 hearty, with a sufficient portion of flesh on him, 

 and cool and clean on his legs, by the time he is 

 wanted to be again taken into training in the 

 spring; the groom, perhaps, never once think- 

 ing, that, as the horse's frogs were sound when 



