THE FKAMEWOBK OF THE HOUSE. 27 



good in its way, whilst the other is, to say the least, 

 of very questionable utility under any circumstances. 

 The manege or school rider educates his horse to bear 

 an increased proportion of the weight on its hind legs, 

 these latter being brought forward under the animal 

 with bent hocks ; but his object not being speed and 

 it is well known that manege-training diminishes speed, 

 for which reason, precisely, English riders scoff at the 

 haute ecole, somewhat unadvisedly perhaps the manege- 

 rider is perfectly justified in acting as he does in order 

 to attain other objects. It is, moreover, important to 

 remark, that if a horse's hind quarters be not sufficiently 

 strong and pliable to enable them to endure the increased 

 demand for bearing without annihilating their pro- 

 pelling power, such a horse will be incapable of high 

 training in this sense. 



The English hussar-horse in Plate VII. is precisely 

 in this position, and having poor hind quarters, incapable 

 of sustaining the weight thrown on them even with 

 perpendicular hocks, much less with his legs bent under 

 him like a school-horse, he is compelled to stretch them 

 out like the props x l x 1 in fig. 1, and is therefore, even 

 in the state of rest, more than halfway to the utmost 

 reach of his stride ; for the whole concern must roll 

 over if he attempted, in galloping, to bring up these legs 

 to the hoof -marks of the fore legs. There can be no 

 question, therefore, but that weighting in this manner 

 diminishes speed. * 



Before going on to the second question, one word 

 more about the fore legs, which are, as has been said, 



* There is a justification for this kind of riding when the fore legs 

 are groggy and the hind ones still good ; and this expedient is often 

 adopted, especially by that class of riders who sit far back and still 

 manage to ruin their horses' fore legs, of which more anon. 



