210 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



more evenly and rapidly than they otherwise could. To what 

 extent this reliance upon the driver is a mere useless habit, it 

 is difTicult to decide ; still it should be recollected that even tlie 

 galloping racer requires to be " held together " by his jockey 

 rider, and the trotter at high speed certainly needs it much 

 more from the peculiar character of his gait. 



Although three minute trotters are now so numerous, it is 

 only about forty years since a match against time was made 

 with a wager of one thousand dollars, that no horse could be 

 produced which could trot a mile in tlu'ce minutes. A Massa- 

 chusetts horse, called Boston Blue won the money and the 

 honor in 1818. 



SHOEING. 



It is unnecessary here to describe minutely the structure of 

 the horse's foot or to give complete directions for fitting and 

 fastening on a shoe. Nevertheless, since injury to the feet, 

 whether from neglect or bad treatment, is ruinous to the horse, 

 it seems desirable to make a few suggestions upon this very 

 important matter. 



Mr. William Miles, in his excellent essay on this subject, 

 republished and distributed gratuitously by the Massachusetts 

 Society lor the Promotion of Agriculture, gives the following 

 reasons why his horses always had good feet: " First, they arc 

 all shod with few nails, so placed in the shoe as to permit the 

 foot to expand every time they move ; secondly, they all live in 

 boxes instead of stalls, and can move whenever they please ; 

 thirdly, they have two hours daily walking exercise, when they 

 are not at Avork ; and fourthly, they are never tied in the 

 stable," To these four he should have added the following : 

 fifthly, their feet are never washed when they come in from 

 work, but are nicely cleaned with the pick and brush ; sixthly, 

 they are never allowed to become dry and hard, but are stopped 

 with cow-dung every night, and covered for a few hours every 

 morning with a wet swab or piece of thick felt buckled around 

 the foot ; and finally, they are smeared every morning with a 

 preparation formed by melting together lard, honey, tar, bees- 

 wax and glycerine. 



The essential points to be regarded in shoeing a horse are 

 few and simple. In the first place, the foot should be pared 



