SWEATING CRAVING HORSES. 283 



with another very essential qualification, viz. to 

 understand the brief manner, on various occa- 

 sions, in which the groom, in a language rather 

 peculiar to himself, gives his orders as to what 

 pace he is to rate any class of horses in their 

 work. Now, as this boy is very steady, and can 

 ride well, he is, of course, of the greatest utility 

 to the groom ; and, as we shall frequently have 

 to make mention of him, that we may do so in 

 as few words as possible, we will call him Thomas, 

 or, more familiarly, Tom. To this boy, or some 

 other such one, or to the head lad, if the latter 

 is sufficiently light, the groom will have, under a 

 variety of circumstances, as he proceeds in the 

 training of the horses, to give his orders. To 

 give the reader a small specimen of our boy Tom 

 coming into use, we will introduce a training 

 groom giving to him the necessary orders as to 

 how the six horses already clothed up are to go 

 over the sweating ground. " Tom, you must 

 mind what you are about this morning with these 

 horses ; it is their first sweat this season, and they 

 are very lusty, and there is a good deal of foot- 

 hold in the ground ; be sure to take them steadily 

 along, do not attempt to go any thing like half 

 speed; just go as fast the whole of the way with 

 your own horse as will bring the other horses into 



