292 



cylinder, three or four inclies in diameter, between yonr 

 legs, press your two knees together by crossing them, in 

 the position of a woman on a sidesaddle. Besides, when 

 a man clasps his horse, however firmly, it has a tendency 

 to raise the seat from the saddle. This is nol the case 

 with the sidesaddle seat : if a man wishes to use a lance 

 and ride at a ring, he will find that he has a firmer scat 

 with this kind of sidesaddle than with his own. There is 

 no danger in this side-pommel, since you cannot be thrown 

 on it, and it renders it next to impossible that the rider 

 should be thrown upon the other pommel. In case of a 

 horse leaping suddenly into the air and coming down on 

 all four feet, — technically, " hucMncj^^ — without the leaping- 

 horn there is nothing to prevent a lady from being thrown 

 up. But the leaping-horn holds down the left knee, and 

 makes it a fulcrum to keep the right knee down in its 

 proper place. If the horse in violent action throws him- 

 self suddenly to the left, the upper part of the rider's body 

 will tend downwards, to the right, and the lower limbs to 

 the left : nothing can prevent this but the support of the 

 leaping-horn. The fear of over-balancing to the right 

 causes many ladies to get into the bad habit of leaning 

 over their saddles to the left. This fear disappears when 

 the hunting-horn pommel is used. The leaping-horn is 

 also of great use with a hard puller, or in riding down a 

 steep place, for in either case it prevents the lady from 

 sliding forward. 



" But these advantages render the right-hand pommel 

 quite useless, a slight projection being all-sufficient (see 

 fig. 35) ; while this arrangement gives the habit and figure 

 a much better appearance. But every lady ought to be 

 measured for this part of the saddle, as the distance be- 

 tween the two pommels will depend partly on the length 

 of her legs. 



