70 DRIVING AS I FOUND IT. 



necessary that the hay selected to be cut be of good 

 quality and clean. It is not advisable to use the baled 

 hay, as it is generally dusty. Horses of weal: digeslion or 

 defective teeth will improve on this kind of feeding, 

 especially if the oats are bruised. 



The mixture of chaff with the oats prevents it from 

 being too rapidly devoured and a portion of it swallowed 

 whole, and therefore the stomach is not too much loaded. 

 It is on the food that contains the most nutriment that 

 the chief digestive power should be exerted. Yet, on the 

 whole, a great deal of time is gained by this mode of 

 feeding and more is left for rest. When a horse comes 

 in wearied or tired it takes, after he has eaten his grain, 

 two or three hours to clear his hay rack. On the system 

 of manger feed, the chaff being already cut into small 

 pieces and the corn and oats biuised, he is able fully to 

 satisfy his appetite in an hour. But if the hay-rack is 

 full the greedy horse will be eating all night instead of 

 taking rest. When the time for the morning feed ar- 

 rives his stomach will be already filled, and he will be 

 less capable of work, from the want of sleep and from 

 the long continued distension uf the stomach rending it 

 impossible for his food to be properly digested. Two 

 additional hours will therefore be devoted to rest. This 

 is a circumstance deserving of much consideration even 

 in the private stable, and of immense consequence to the 



