24 HORSES AND ROADS. 



point of view. The problem to be solved is, how to 

 keep your horse in health and get the most work 

 you reasonably can out of him. Straw, used with 

 judgment, will be found as economical as an3rthing 

 else ; it should only be put under the horse the last 

 thing at night, and it should be removed the first 

 thing in the morning. The horse will dirty it but 

 little in the night ; the dirty portion should, of 

 course, be carried out of the stable, and, in this 

 manner, no alarming expense of straw is incurred. 



It is well known to many travellers that in coun- 

 tries quite as cold as England straw is so scarce 

 and valuable that horses even sleep by night on 

 the bare floor ; and the horses from some of these 

 countries are imported to England with a great 

 reputation for possessing hardiness and sound con- 

 stitutions. But they do not dwell with us long 

 before we improve them down to a level with 

 our own breeds (in this respect), by hot stabling, 

 foul atmosphere, and many other fanciful crotchets 

 which come under the headings of 'mistaken kind- 

 ness,' or ' mistaken economy ; ' and economy well 

 understood is specially in demand, and should be 

 sought, in the present ' hard times.' In the case of 

 straw a double economy is very visibly to be found 

 in using it sparingly, as the outlay upon the article 

 itself is reduced ; and the horse, by being freer from 

 ailments, can do more work in the course of the 

 year. 



Certain classes of horses get, in the course of the 

 year, a diminution or cessation of labour. This is 



