GIRLS ON HORSEBACK 21 



ers who ride well themselves, but that 

 is a very different matter from impart- 

 ing the benefit of their knowledge and 

 experience to others. With the best in- 

 tentions in the world, they may fail to 

 make their pupils show much skill in 

 the saddle. Skill, and the power of 

 creating it in the pupil, is an unusual 

 combination. 



If a young girl is to ride, she should 

 be put in the saddle and not permitted 



to touch the reins. Her hands 

 Balance 



may rest in her lap, and the horse 

 should be led at a walk, while the teach- 

 er shows her the position she must try 

 to keep, and tells her what she must do 

 when the pace is increased. As she be- 

 comes used to the situation, and under- 

 stands the instructions, the horse may 

 be urged into a slow trot, she being made 

 to sit close, without, at first, any attempt 

 at rising. Then a quiet canter may be 



