606 THE EXTERIOR OF THE HORSE. 



employed in Brittany and in Algeria. The movements of the members 

 of each lateral biped are associated by means of a cord attached above 

 the knee and the hock. This gelding does not exist in our day ; the 

 name remains simply to designate a castrated horse. 



According to De Curnieu, Napoleon I. preferred amblers in a cam- 

 paign for long and quick reconnoitrings. 



Painters and sculptors have sometimes represented the amble 

 instead of the walk, which is not extraordinary, considering the large 

 number of horses which employed the former instead of the latter. 

 As an example of this we may cite the equestrian statue of Louis 

 XII., placed at the entrance to the palace of Blois. 



Let us say, finally, that certain colts, at first anlblers, will at a 

 later period learn to trot. Reversely, some horses, primarily good 

 trotters, amble towards the decline of life, through fatigue and usage.^ 

 But this gait is not peculiar to the horse ; other animals, as the camel, 

 dromedary, and giraife, employ it naturally. We have also observed 

 it in exceptional cases in the ox and the dog [it is common in the dog]. 



A complete step of the amble has two equal, successive times, during 

 each of which the members of the same lateral biped are raised and 

 reach the ground simultaneously. Lecoq was therefore quite right in 

 comparing this succession and association of the members to the walk 

 of two men, one placed a certain distance behind the other.^ 



If we represent, says M. Marey,^ the movements of these two men 

 by placing above the notations of those of the anterior and below the 

 notations of those of the posterior, the following figure (Fig. 1 94) will 



Fig. 194. 



be obtained, in which the right feet correspond to the white lines and 

 the left to the gray. It is seen here that the ear can hear only two 

 beats to each step, the two members on the same side striking the soil 

 at the same instant. 



But is this gait marched or leaped f All authors are not in accord 

 ui)on this point. Most of them, however, maintain the first view, and 

 we coincide with them. There are exceptions; some amblers leave the 



1 H. Bouley, Nouveau dictionnaire de m6decine, de chirurgie, et d'hygi^ne viJt^rinaires 

 t. i. p. 402. 



* Lecoq, loc. cit., p. 416. 



' Marey, Machine animale, p. 148. 



