238 GENERAL REMARKS ON HARNESS CH. XI 

 GENERAL REMARKS ON HARNESS 



As has been before remarked (p. 14), a coach is 

 a sporting vehicle, and the harness should be plain 

 and look serviceable. The illustrations which have 

 been given, are taken from a set of harness carefully 

 made as a standard pattern, and can be safely copied 

 for a drag-harness. 



The loops through which the loose points of the 

 various straps pass behind the buckles, are some- 

 times replaced by ' pipes' or continuous loops, but 

 there is more coaching style about the separate 

 loops. 



The winkers, the front (whether it has a chain on 

 it or not), the face drop, the outside of the collar, 

 the ornament on the martingale, and the top of the 

 pad are all made of patent leather ; * the rest of the 

 harness is made of plain, black leather, firm in 

 quality, but with a smooth, velvety surface, not 

 showing- minute cracks when bent over the finder. 

 The reins are of russet leather (usually called rein 

 leather), even in thickness and quality throughout 

 the whole length, and since such leather is difficult 

 to obtain, four-in-hand reins are necessarily expen- 

 sive. 



English russet leather, especially such as is used 

 for riding-bridles (usually called tallow-tanned), is 



* Patent leather is modern : in the first quarter of the 19th century 

 it was unknown. 



