60 HORSES AND ROADS. 



better sentiments of the present age has been proved 

 to be a waste of time ; the better plan is to appeal 

 to their pockets.' Now, it is an acknowledged 

 fact that the exercise of these cruelties costs 

 every horse owner considerable sums yearly; and, 

 according to Mr. Douglas, although the natural 

 life of the horse is from thirty-five to forty years, 

 three-fourths of them die under twelve years old, 

 and, in the army, even sooner. Therefore, on an 

 average, every one buys three horses where he might 

 do with one if he were only humane to that one. 

 This ought to be sufficient inducement to men to 

 look to their horses' feet, for it is through the 

 feet that nearly all are thus early rendered useless, 

 and through the feet to the legs. ' One horse 

 could wear out four pairs of feet,' is an old 

 proverb, and a true one, amongst horsemen; and 

 Philip Astley justly wrote : ' Certainly he that pre- 

 vents disease does more than he that cures.' Now 

 diseases of the feet are very rarely cured at all ; but, 

 by the use of brake-power and a sensible system of 

 stable treatment and shoeing they might nearly all 

 be prevented. The Charlier shoe — defective in the 

 beginning because it did not admit of natural ex- 

 pansion and contraction — was improved upon by an 

 observant and reflective man at Melton, who reduced 

 it to a three-quarter shoe ; and this was a great stride 

 to the good. 



' Impecuniosus,' as he appears to have done with 

 everything that gave any promise of being an im- 

 provement, tried it, and found that it really was 



