126 HOW WOMEN SHOULD RIDE 



horse at his fences. Doing so only ne- 

 cessitates carrying the weight of 



Lifting , , , ,. , 



his rider s hands on his mouth, 



and risks pulling the horse into the 

 jump, while he is hindered from stretch- 

 ing his neck, as he must to land safely 

 and correctly. Hanging on to his mouth 

 is often the cause of a horse's landing 

 on all four feet at once, or dropping too 

 close to the jump. The pull on the 

 reins holds him back, thus inducing 

 these bad habits, and will often make 

 him refuse or dread to jump, knowing 

 that it entails a sharp jerk on his sensi- 

 tive mouth. To a casual or ignorant ob- 

 server it sometimes looks as though a 

 good rider were " lifting " his horse; but 

 it only appears so because, knowing in- 

 tuitively at just what instant his hands 

 must yield, he so accurately gives to the 

 animal's mouth that the action of the 

 horse's mouth and the rider's hands is 

 simultaneous. 



