THE MILITARY SEAT. 97 



campaign of 1866, although the cavalry did an immense 

 deal of work; and this can only be attributed to a 

 better seat and method of riding than the French, for 

 the dead weight is absolutely greater. * 



If anything is to be made of cavalry in future wars, 

 the burden of the horses must be diminished. The most 

 obvious way is by lessening the dead weight ; but why 

 should not smaller men be selected ? After all, what is 

 really necessary is, that the soldier should be tall enough 

 to mount with ease and to clean his horse. Anything 

 beyond that is superfluous. 



Let us compare with the above, in order to show how 

 far a "hunting-seat" method is applicable to cavalry 

 purposes, some English standards of weight for flat- 

 racing and steeplechasing, taken at random from the 

 newspapers. For five-year-olds we find 10 st. 12 lb., or 

 152 lb., for half a mile flat, and 12 st., or 168 lb., for 

 aged horses. For five-year olds, lOst. 12 lb. = 152., and 

 for six-year-olds, 11 st. 4 lb. = 158 lb. for two miles' 

 steeplechase. For five-year-olds, list. 71b. = 161 lb., 

 and for an aged mare, 12 st. = 168 lb., for a three-mile 

 hunters' stakes steeplechase. These are, we believe, 

 fair samples ; but the horses that carry these weights 

 do it once for all : they are the best of their kind perhaps 

 in the world, and are trained and fed in a way quite 

 beyond the reach of cavalry. The immediate object, 

 too, is to take the most out of the individual horse for 

 the moment ; in fact, all the conditions are different. 



And as to the seat, the hunting rider can adjust his 

 weight as he pleases ; he may vary his position in the 

 saddle, which constitutes the whole of the dead weight, 



* There were only too many sore backs, both in 1866 and 1870, 

 in the Prussian cavalry. 



