Should the motion be wrong and not in proper rhythm, and 

 the animal is forced to adopt by the use of mechanical appli- 

 ances any other line of action, without the faulty articulation 

 being corrected, he will do so at the cost of injury to some parts 

 of the motor power, just as sure as it is true that the sun "do rise 

 and set." 



In my younger days the perfectly-proper foot for all horses 

 was one that on its surface lay would make an almost perfect 

 circle, barring the break at the heel. It was claimed by such 

 people as Goodenough, the inventor of the shoe bearing his 

 name, that the foot should be as broad as it was long. At the 

 time he came on the carpet, about 30 years ago, high heels and 

 short toes were in vogue as the general rule for the front feet 

 for the light-harness horse. Yes, in fact, for all horses that were 

 shod. Goodenough— and I knew him intimately— was the first 

 man at that time, 30 years ago, who called my attention to horse- 

 shoeing for my own horses. 



His whole system consisted in cutting down the heels to get 

 "frog pressure." He knew nothing about the proper proportion- 

 ing of the foot. He also knew absolutely nothing about what 

 was a fair proportion of depth for the front of the foot, as com- 

 pared with the depth of the hind part of it. and that was why 

 many horses became lame after wearing the shoe that he 

 invented. The fault was not with the shoe, for that has its 

 merits, but it was this constant hacking away at the heels and 

 leaving the front of the feet all out of proportion as to depth and 

 length. 



I speak of this, as it leads up to the practice now in vogue. 

 Almost all drivers and trainers have the feet of their trotting 

 horses too long and too deep in the front of the foot, in propor- 

 tion to the height or depth, whichever term may seem to best 

 convey the idea intended, at the heels. This is one of the most 

 frequent causes of unbalanced gaits. The low-heel trouble is 

 more frequently to be seen on the hind than on the fore feet, 

 and is one of the causes of crooked, cow-hocked legs, which 

 produce curbs, spavins, etc. Then on this unbalanced foot is 

 placed that most nonsensical and absurd thing, it is not worthy 

 to be called shoe, the long outside winged heel for the hind feet, 

 longer than the foot and running away off to the outside like a 

 sled runner. This contrivance, coupled with the unbalanced foot 

 on which it is placed, has made more lame horses behind than 

 most any and all other contrivances that the genius of man has 

 yet devised. 



Why put on such a thing? What is it for? Why put this wing 

 on the shoe? There is no foot where it is put. It supports (?) 

 nothing; it is only in the way and gives the animal an unnatural 

 tread and an uncomfortable one. Why put iron in such a useless 

 abundance where there is no foot? Don't do it. There are feet 

 and feet. The old-fashioned round foot spoken of was a weak 

 one. Many times, yes, quite frequently, it would be found upon 

 examination of the bottom of the foot that the wall had separ- 

 ated from the sole. Widening the foot out this way caused the 



walls to spread apart away from their proper position as a means 



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