74 DRIVING. 



are generally taken out to exercise as soon as they are fed, and 

 the stalls cleaned out, and before the men's breakfast. The 

 time available for the work, especially in winter, is therefore 

 necessarily curtailed. 1 



A harness horse in regular work ought to be fed four times 

 a day, at six, eleven, four, and seven ; and should be given in 

 that time 1 2 Ibs. of good old oats. The allowance for race- 

 horses in training at Newmarket is from 14 Ibs. to 16 Ibs. per 

 diem. Before being fed they should invariably be watered, 

 unless the plan is adopted, which is at once more natural and 

 attended with no evil effects, of allowing a horse always to have 

 water in his trough, provided that at each feed the water in the 

 trough is changed. Water should never be given to a horse 

 just before undertaking hard work or immediately on coming 

 in if very hot and tired. In the latter case a little warm gruel 

 should take the place of it. 



See that your oats are of full weight, at least 40 Ibs. to the 

 bushel; that they are quite without smell, dry, neither too 

 fresh nor musty, and that they are of about the same size. 

 Hay should be old and good, sweet-smelling upland hay. It 

 should be clean, firm, and bright, and, if possible, from one to 

 two years old. New hay should never be given until after the 

 November of the year in which it was made. The bedding, 

 which should not be stinted, ought to consist of the best wheat 

 straw; it should always be kept thoroughly clean, and no dung 

 be allowed to remain amongst it. It should be turned over and 

 thoroughly exposed to dry every day. Barley straw is prickly, 

 irritating to the skin, and should never be used. Oat straw, 

 being much shorter than wheat, requires to be used in larger 

 quantities, and has the objection that horses are tempted to 

 eat it. The use of peat-moss involves much extra trouble in 

 grooming, but is very useful for sick horses or others not in 



1 The horses in the hack cars in the streets of Dublin are usually 18 hours 

 5 or 6 days running in the shafts. They get 28 Ibs. of oats a day, and think 

 nothing of running you down to Newbridge, over 20 Irish miles (about twenty- 

 five miles English measure). ED. 



