94 DRIVING. 



nothing of the merits of this contrivance, but it is a self- 

 obvious fact that it is advisable, whenever practicable, for the 

 harness-maker to see the horse he is required to fit with a 

 collar. The straightness or obliquity of the animal's shoulders, 

 the width of chest, leanness or fleshiness of neck, and the con- 

 dition he is in at the time of measurement, are one and all matters 

 which to a greater or lesser degree demand particular attention. 



The foregoing remarks apply almost exclusively to the 

 ordinary horse-collar, i.e. the stuffed one which is put on over 

 the horse's head ; but as we desire to impart as much informa- 

 tion as possible upon the subject of harness, we here make 

 mention of several inventions which have from time to time 

 been submitted to the horse-owning public. First of all comes 

 the zinc collar-pad of Mr. Dexter Curtis, 59 Tenby Street 

 North, Birmingham. 1 This contrivance 'for the prevention and 

 cure of horses' sore necks ' we quote the inventor's description 

 may be described as a sort of false collar of zinc. Mr. Curtis's 

 theory is, we believe, that when the horse gets warm, the moisture 

 acting upon the metal creates a sort of extempore zinc ointment, 

 the cooling and healing properties of which are well known. 



The article manufactured by the Alpha Air Horse-Collar 

 Company, 9 Eagle Place, Piccadilly Circus, London, differs 

 from the collar in ordinary use in being filled with air instead 

 of stuffing. The prospectus claims for this invention the 

 following advantages among others : ' The pad being pliable 

 enables the horse to fit himself immediately to his collar in 

 draught ; it resists perspiration and is cool to the shoulders ; 

 it is lighter, and more durable than the ordinary collar ; it is 

 not more costly than the ordinary kind ; and it prevents sore 

 shoulders.' It is inflated through a small screw opening, some- 

 thing like that attached to a common air seat ; but there is 

 this peculiarity about it viz. : that when the screw is turned 

 so as to allow the air to escape, the collar partly refills itself 

 again. Several testimonials in favour of this collar are printed 

 on the prospectus, two of them being from Mr. Sangster, the 



1 I strongly recommend these zinc collar-pads. ED. 



