THE GAITS IN PARTICULAR. 525 



years opposed to the tendency which certain trainers have of training 

 their horses in this direction. According to M. Ephrem Houel/ it 

 should even be strictly proscribed on all the race-courses. We are in 

 accord with this opinion, and believe that, by the fatigue which it 

 occasions, it exposes the members to premature ruin. 



M. Lenoble du Teil has carefully studied the flying trot from the 

 instantaneous photographs of M. Muybridge, published in the journal 

 La Nature, in 1879. He has, at our request, formulated the trail and 

 the notation of this gait furnished by the American horse Abe Eding- 

 ton, moving at the rate of 11.90 m. per second. 



We have reproduced very accurately, in Figs. 214, 215, and 216, 

 three successive phases of the trot of this horse, to give an idea of the 

 attitude of the members and the very great length of the strides. 

 These figures wall explain themselves. 



The trail (Fig. 217) shows that the posterior imprints are situated 

 almost 2 metres in front of the corresponding anterior. This peculi- 

 arity is due to the distance of the projection. Here will be remarked, 

 besides, the relative smallness of the diagonal base, which at times does 

 not attain 1.20 m., — that is to say, three-quarters of the height of the 

 horse, as is observed in the ordinary trot. Hence there results less 

 stability and, in consequence, more precipitated movements and greater 

 velocity. 



The stride, measured between the successive imprints of the ante- 

 rior right foot, is 6.04 m. ; it occupied about half a second. That of the 

 posterior, measured from the left imprint, is a little longer ; it, indeed, 

 attains 6.23 m. 



'^^ AD. 



p \m 



Fig. 218.— Notation of the flying trot furnished by the horse Abe Edington. 

 (From instantaneous photographs of Muybridge.) 



The notation is also most interesting. The disassociation of the 

 diagonal beats is very evident (Fig. 218). The anterior member arrives 

 first on the ground. It follows from this that the body is first supported 

 by this member (1), then by a diagonal biped (2), finally by the poste- 



1 Ephrem Houel, Traits des courses au trot, p. 126, Paris, 1864. 



