88 HOW WOMEN SHOULD RIDE 



A horse standing 15.2 at the withers, 



where it is always measured, may be 



much higher there than any- 



Measurement 



where else, his quarters being 

 disproportionately low. On the other 

 hand, the withers might be low and the 

 rump high, giving the strength, power, 

 and stride to a horse of 15 hands which 

 might be expected in one of several 

 inches higher. In races and shows it 

 enables low-withered horses to run and 

 compete against those which, although 

 high at the withers, have not the pos- 

 terior conformation to justify their 

 being in the same class. The more 

 common-sense and accurate method of 

 measurement, if it would only be gen- 

 erally adopted, is to take the height 

 at the withers and also at the rump, 

 average it, and call that the size of the 

 horse. For instance, a horse 15.3 at the 

 withers and 15.2 at the rump should 



