ITS ADMIRERS. 6oi 



proofs of this. In Britain (except in the army), and on 

 the continent, cold-shoeing is a mere historical souvenir. 



The writer of the above article, whose knowledge of 

 horse-shoes appears to have been almost, if not quite, as 

 limited as his experience among horses, adds, in speaking 

 of the manufacture of these shoes by machinery : ' Gentle- 

 men will then be able to keep a stock of shoes for their 

 horses at their own stables, and to have them put on there 

 by the farrier, who will need no forge. The work of the 

 farrier will, indeed, be so much simplified that in large 

 stables it will probably be desirable to have a groom in- 

 structed (!), and to make the removal of the shoes a 

 portion of the ordinary routine of the establishment.' 



It can scarcely be surprising that one who is so readily 

 captivated and can write so confidently in praise of this 

 long-exploded system, should recommend cold-shoeing, 

 and these shoes with calks at toes and heels, for the hunt- 

 ing-field. ' Another advantage of the system is one that 

 will be greatly felt in the hunting-field. The hoof, having 

 its natural form and surface preserved, draws out of clay 

 or mud without the suction by which so many ordinary 

 shoes are loosened, and so much extra labour is entailed 

 upon the horse. It has been calculated that this suction 

 may be nearly i lb. per lift to each foot, in addition to the 

 weight of the shoe ; and its total amount at the end of a 

 day's work would be such as to seem scarcely credible.' 

 Is it not a fact that horses have been for years, and are now, 

 shod with hunting-shoes ; that these shoes have been, and 

 are, concave on the ground and flat on the foot surface, 

 — even more so than Mr Goodenough's patent ; and 

 that so far as their form is concerned, they are less likely 



