HOW TO BENDER HOESES OBEDIENT. 269 



a demand, especially an unreasonable one, are almost 

 always the first causes of restiveness. Mankind in its 

 arrogance has thought fit to make the ass an emblem of 

 stupidity, and why ? Is it not because it seldom if ever 

 opposes anything more than passive resistance to the 

 tyranny of its oppressors ? it wants the strength and the 

 active courage that would enable it to act aggressively 

 and deserve the title of vicious enjoyed by its near 

 relative the zebra, whose indocility is not considered to 

 be stupidity. We doubt much whether the horse is really 

 more intelligent than the ass; it has greater strength 

 and agility, and a more active courage, which, if it knew 

 how to use, would enable it to set mankind at defiance 

 equally as well as the zebra ; and it argues a certain 

 amount of stupidity when so powerful an animal suffers 

 itself to be converted, as it often is, into the abject slave 

 of a miserable taskmaster. The intelligence of the 

 horse is, however, sufficient to enable it to find out very 

 soon whether its rider be or be not deficient in that 

 self-same quality, or in courage ; and in the former case, 

 the consciousness of superior strength encourages it to 

 use this "il se defend " that is to say, it sets the rider 

 at defiance and turns restive. 



There is another thing to be considered with regard 

 to the horse's character it lov. * to exercise its powers, 

 and it possesses a great spirit of emulation ; it likes- 

 variety of scene and amusement ; and under a rider 

 that understands how to indulge it in all this without 

 overtaxing its powers, will work willingly to the last 

 gasp, which is what entitles it to the name of a noble 

 and generous animal. Now, whilst over-exertion, when 

 unfit, will very frequently make horses refuse work ; on 

 the other hand, deficiency of exercise, and constantly 



