SCHOOL RIDING. 283 



be done, the knees have to be kept a little away from the 

 flaps of the saddle, with the result that their strength of 

 grip is considerably diminished. As the maintenance of 

 this delicate touch is impossible under conditions of rough 

 work in the open, and as its strain on the attention and 

 muscles of the horse would be unduly severe, to say nothing 

 of the loss of grip ; this method of riding is applicable only 

 to the manege, the circus, the parade ground, and on special 

 occasions, such as those of single combat between cavalry- 

 men, when the maximum amount of control over the 

 horse is required. As I have before said, school work, 

 from a breaking point of view, is a means, but not an end. 

 That being the case, we should allow the horse to resume 

 his natural attitude or gait (permitting him to ''stand at 

 ease " or " march at ease ") after performing any of his 

 school tasks, none of which should be prolonged to such an 

 extent as to tire him. I shall consider, in Chapter X., the 

 relations of school, breaking to military riding. 



In order that the school horse may be maintained 

 absolutely under the control of his rider, we should avoid 

 giving him set tasks of an unvaried nature ; we should not 

 commence, stop, or alter the work at particular places ; and 

 we should not allow him to act for himself, without receiving 

 a signal from his rider, so that he may not become roittine. 

 As a case in point, we should on no account, when teaching 

 a horse to strike off correctly in the canter, always begin 

 at one spot, whether on a circle or in a straight line ; for 

 if we do so, the animal will look out for his arrival at that 

 point, to start off of his own accord, and thus, by taking 

 the initiative, to deprive us of command over him. We 



