RACE-COURSES. 213 



which is best done by filling the holes with water, and 

 killing the rats as they come to the surface. 



The Indian sun bakes the earth hard, and seems to 

 burn up in a very short time whatever kind of manure 

 is put on it ; so that nothing but constant picking up 

 and laying down litter, sand, or tan, at least twice a 

 year, will keep a galloping track in anything like good 

 order. 



A track, 5 feet broad, will be found to be quite wide 

 enough on which to work a horse by himself. 



By constant manuring, a thin layer of good soil will 

 in. tim.3 be- formed ; but if the course be neglected for 

 even a couple of years, it will become as hard as a 

 turnpike road. 



The beau ideal of a galloping track is an elastic one, 

 that will neither jar the joints and suspensory liga- 

 ments by its hardness, strain the back tendons, or 

 cause a horse to hit himself by its stickiness, like 

 on soft clay, nor shorten the stride and make it 

 dwelling by deadness, like on sand. 



A heavy course is particularly trying to a horse with 

 oblique, and a hard course to one with upright pasterns. 

 Irregularities on the surface of the ground are a fre- 

 quent cause of sprain to tendons and ligaments. 



A galloping track such as I have mentioned, and 1-J 

 miles round, will cost about Ks. 400 a year to keep in 

 good going order. 



The periphery of a race-course, for big horses, should 

 not be less than 1} miles. One of 5 furlongs will do 

 for small ponies. 



I may mention that a distance is 240 yards. 



On a race-course, where horses are trained, one 



