200 THE IIOKSE-KEEPER S GUIDE. 



the nose-hand of the head stall. In lifting his lip, if ll)*i 

 incision teeth shut close, even, and are pcrpendiculai, he is 

 yonng. As he grows older, tliey project forward in ahci- 

 izontal direction, and the upper and under edges do nol 

 meet with evenness, the u})})er projecting over the undei 

 teeth. The hunger his teeth are, the gums being dry and 

 slnunk from them, the more advanced he is in age. 



This appearance of his teeth cannot be altered by the 

 arts of the dealer. In youth, the teeth are flattened at 

 front and rear, and long from side to side ; at eight years 

 old they are oval ; as age advances, they become round, 

 and in extreme old age triangular, yellow, and incrusted, 

 and the tusks become blunt. 



If there are any marks of extraordinary wear in the 

 central teeth, there is rea.son to suspect crib-l)iting, and in 

 old cribbers the outer edi^e of the front teeth are worn 

 away, and little pieces are sometimes broken off by the at- 

 trition against the manger ; if such is the case, look to the 

 neck for marks of the " crib-biting strap." 



Dishonest dealers attempt to disguise age by reproducing 

 the mark in the corner teeth by means of a hot iron or 

 caustic — the fraud is easily detected by a horseman, as it 

 is usually over done, and the marks do not correspond with 

 the length, shape, and duration of the teeth, and the " bi- 

 shopped" horse is usually loth to have his mouth meddled 

 with. 



Having attentively looked over the horse as he stands, 

 and discovered nothing objectionable to the eye, it is pru- 

 dent to see him thi-ough his paces before proceeding to as- 

 certain, by careful examination, what defects, blemishes, 

 &c. which may have a tendeuvzy to produce unsoundness, 

 he is afflicted with ; as the action of a horse, when closely 

 observpd^ guides us to his defective points. 



He should be first walked, and then trotted, without any 

 whip near him, slowly down the ride, allowing the animal 

 to have the whole of the halter to himself; his head will 

 then be entirely unconstrained, and any iiTegularities in 

 his actioimre easily detected. 



The action should be scrutinized most attentively imme 

 diately he steps off, as defects are then most visible, for, not 

 unfrequently, lameness disappears after a few moments' ex- 

 ercise. 



Should one of the fore feet be much affected, it will be 



