210 TKAINING IN INDIA. 



from a leather-covered soda-water bottle, just enough 

 water to rinse his mouth out, the jockey is given a leg- 

 up, the syce dusts his boots down, and off they start 

 for the post, where, in case of accidents, a syce should 

 always go, and should take a spare stirrup leather and 

 girth ; for such things sometimes break at false starts. 

 Besides this, the jockey may have to dismount in order 

 to arrange some part of the gear, and might require the 

 syce to hold his horse, or to lead him up to the starting- 

 post in case he was fractious. 



Treatment after running. A horse should be 

 watered immediately after a race, and, if he be much 

 distressed, he may get \\ oz. sweet spirits of nitre in a 

 drench, or 2 drs. carbonate of ammonia in a ball. If 

 he has not to run for five or six days, he may get a bran 

 mash or two. But if a fortnight or more is to elapse 

 before his next race, he may have an alterative ball, and 

 be kept on green food for a couple of days or more. 

 His legs and feet may, with advantage, be fomented 

 after running. 



Race-horses travelling by rail. It may not be 

 out of place for me here to remark that when race- 

 horses are taken by rail, during the cold weather, their 

 tails (when they are in the horse-boxes) should be 

 pointed towards the engine, so as to obviate, as much 

 as possible, the chance of the animals catching cold. 



