58 DRIVING. 



half-a-crown a day more extraordinary expenses, every day he 

 shall travel on the road and set up at an inn, the said C. Hodges 

 finding the horses on such journey at his own charges ; And in 

 case the coachman runs away with his livery, or loses his cloak, 

 hammerclothes, seat covers, the seats in the coach, or toppings of 

 the same, the said C. Hodges shall and will be answerable for and 

 make good the same ; all the which premisses being performed 



on the part and behalf of the said C. Hodges, the said J. B 



does promise and agree to pay the said Hodges the sum of one 

 hundred pounds of lawful British money, c. &c. 



After the state-coach horse in order of value comes the 

 more usual pair of high-stepping carriage-horses, of which any 

 number may be seen between Hyde Park Corner and Grosvenor 

 Gate on a fine afternoon in the season. They need not be 

 more than 15.3, should have good, though not extravagant, 

 action, and match well both in colour, shape, and size. If 

 required to horse a phaeton they should of course be lighter, 

 and show more breeding ; instead of the high up and down 

 action of the carriage-horse, they should rather have forward 

 action, step and go well together, carrying their heads in the 

 same way, and the owner should not be afraid to show as 

 much of his animals as possible, by having his harness light 

 and but little of it. 



The most useful of harness horses is that which is commonly 

 described as 'a good trapper,' standing from 15 to 15.3 high, 

 free and fast, suitable for a light phaeton, gig, or one of the 

 many two-wheeled carriages described under different fancy 

 names by the makers, and will fetch from sixty to eighty guineas 

 at auction. 



We have more than once referred to bigb action, such as is 

 often seen in the West End of London, and the presence of 

 which in a horse induces the dealer to ask a high price for it. 

 It is quite a mistake to suppose that there is any advantage in 

 high action ; for appearance it is so far desirable that it is to 

 a certain extent fashionable, but for real work it is a distinct 

 drawback. In the first place, the horse loses time in lifting his 

 feet up into the air, and consequently gets over less ground ; 



