492 



HORSE-SHOES AND HORSE-SHOEING. 



that, seen in profile, it looked like a cradle, and would 

 appear to afford anything but a solid or easy footing. 

 The total length of the ordinary fore-shoe was to be four 

 times the length of the toe between the two first holes and 

 the posterior or inner border. 'The distance of the ex- 

 ternal border from the one and other branch, this measure 

 being taken between the two last or heel-nails, should be 

 three and a half times this length, one-half of which will 

 give the proper width of the heels to their very ex- 

 tremities. With regard to the adjusture, the toe should 

 be curved up {en bateau) from the second nails from the 

 heel to twice the thickness of the shoe, reckoning from 

 the ground to the upper edge of the shoe at this part ; it 

 is necessary also that from this situation the extremities 

 should rise up towards the heels to one-half its real thick- 

 ness, and from thence the convexity should be one and 



a half times its thickness ' (fig. 1 86). This mode of shoe- 

 ing was adapted to 



the aplomb and the 

 movements of the 

 limbs, Bourgelat 

 thought ; and his 

 reasoning on this 

 shows that at least 

 he had carefully 

 studied the mechan- 

 ical problems of pro- 

 gression. There 



was nothing in the way of novelty, however, in the curv- 

 ature of the shoe; we have shown in figures ^6, i,"], and 

 66, that ancient specimens found in Belgium and Ger- 



