THE PACES. 277 



it is less easy to the ricler and to the liorse tlian a well- 

 gathered canter ; and it is for both of tliem an artificial 

 gait, and both will need much practice before they will be 

 able to |)erform it gracefull}'. On the part of the horse, 

 there is too frequently a tendency to bear heavily on the 

 bit, and to trot with a low, reaching step. This always 

 canses a contraction of the neck and jaw, and usually an 

 irregular motion of the hind parts, which is far from being 

 either easy or elegant. No matter how fast the trot may 

 be, the animal should always preserve his lightness and 

 freedom of action, maintaining a perfect suppleness and a 

 uniformity in his step. 



Military men, and the riders of the French school, prac- 

 tice what the English very properly term riding 'hard,' or 

 sitting close to the saddle, while the English and very 

 many American riders rise in the stirrup at each step of 

 the. horse. The latter is certainly the most easy for both 

 horse and rider. This opinion is sustained by Nimrod, 

 who writes as follows: "It is indeed to the disuse of this 

 practice in France, and other parts of the continent, where 

 rising in the stirrups is never resorted to, even on the 

 hardest trotting horses, that is to be attributed the rare 

 occurrence of persons riding any distance, at a quick rate, 

 for pleasure. To this peculiar system in our horseman- 

 ship are we indebted, also, for our rapid style of posting, 

 as without it post-boys could not endure the fatigue the 

 action of a horse creates, especially in hot weather, over a 

 fifteen miles stage, at the rate of ten or tw^elve miles an 

 hour, without a moment's intermission ; whereas, by means 

 of it, he performs the task with comparative ease and com- 

 fort. The objection to it on the part of foreigners lies in 

 the fancied inelegance of the motion, which we consider 

 not worthy of an argument ; but of this we are certain, that 

 what is called 'riding hard,' tliat is, not rising in the stir- 



