224 THE HORSE. 



sional pat or kind word. The other horses will keep him moving, and in 

 his place ; and no great time will pass, sometimes not even the first day, 

 before he will begin to pull with the rest : then the load may be gradually 

 increased. 



The agricultural horse is wanted to ride as well as to draw. Let his 

 first lesson be given when he is in the team. Let his feeder, if possible, 

 be first put upon him : he will be too much hampered by his harness, and 

 by the other horses, to make much resistance ; and, in the majority of 

 cases, will quietly and at once submit. We need not repeat, that no whip 

 or spur should be used in giving the first lessons in riding. 



When he begins a little to understand his business, backing, the most 

 difficult part of^his work, maybe taught him ; first to back well without 

 anything behind him, then with a light cart, and afterwards with some 

 serious load ; and taking the greatest care not seriously to hurt the mouth. 

 If the first lessoii causes much soreness of the gums, the colt will not 

 readily submit to a second. If he has been rendered tractable before by 

 kind usage, time and patience will do all that can be wished here. Some 

 carters are in the habit of blinding the colt when teaching him to back : it 

 may be necessary with the restive and obstinate one, and should be used 

 only as a last resort. 



The colt having been thus partially broken-in, the necessity of implicit 

 obedience may be taught him, and that not by severity, but by firmness 

 and steadiness ; the voice will go a great way, but the whip or the spur 

 is sometimes indispensable — not so cruelly applied as to excite the animal 

 to resistance, but to convince him that we have the power to enforce 

 submission. Few, we would almost say, no horses, are naturally vicious. 

 It is cruel usage which has first provoked resistance; that resistance has 

 been followed by greater severity, and the stubbornness of the animal has 

 increased ; open warfare has ensued, in which the man seldom gained an 

 advantage, and the horse was frequently rendered unserviceable. Correc- 

 tion may, or must be used, to enforce implicit obedience after the education 

 has proceeded to a certain extent, but the early lessons should be inculcated 

 with kindness alone. Young colts are sometimes very perverse; many 

 days will occasionally pass before they will permit the bridle to be put on, 

 or the saddle to be worn ; one act of harshness will double or treble this 

 time. Patience and kindness will, after a while, prevail. On some morn- 

 ing, of better humour than usual, the bridle will be, put on, and the saddle 

 will be worn ; and this compliance being followed by kindness and soothing 

 on the part of the breaker, and no inconvenience or pain being suffered by 

 the animal, all resistance will be at an end. 



The same principles will apply to the breaking-in of the horse for the 

 road or the chase. The handling, and some portion of instruction, should 

 commence from the time of weaning. The future tractability of the horse 

 will much depend on this. At two years and a half, or three years, the 

 regular process of breaking-in should come on. If it be delayed until the 

 animal is four years okl, his strength and obstinacy will be more difficult 

 to overcome. We cannot much improve on the plan usually pursued by 

 the breaker, except that there should be much more kindness and pa- 

 tience, and far less harshness and cruelty, than these persons are accus- 

 tomed to exhibit, and a great deal more attention to the form and natural 

 action of the horse. A headstall is put on the colt, and a cavesson (or 

 apparatus to confine and pinch the nose) affixed to it, with long reins. 

 He is first accustomed to the rein, then led round a ring on soft ground, 

 and at length mounted and taught his paces. Next to preserving the 

 temper and docility of the horse, there is nothing of so much importance 



