THE POSITION OF THE BODY 53 



along, or whether he is carrying the whole body 

 entirely. 



As I have just pointed out, the faster the pace 

 the less "tap" is necessary (like the punchball), 

 and it has been worked out by some mathema- 

 ticians that the faster the pace of the horse, the 

 lighter the rider becomes in the saddle. They go 

 so far as to say that if a horse could be found to 

 gallop 800 miles an hour, that the rider's weight 

 would have dissolved itself into infinity. As I am 

 not a mathematician I will not dispute the point, 

 and as I have never ridden a horse at 800 miles 

 an hour, I have never experienced a sensation 

 which must be not without its novelty, and so I 

 must leave it at that. The point, however, is of 

 importance, and that is, that the body must 

 always be travelling with the horse, patted like 

 a punchball, and this position can only be at- 

 tained by having short reins and properly adjusted 

 stirrups. 



As this applies when galloping along the flat, it 

 applies still more when jumping. As the horse 

 takes off, it is of the greatest importance to him 

 whether he has to carry the whole weight of the 

 rider's body on his loins, or whether he merely 

 has to " pat " it over. It is this point that makes 

 all the difference to a horse's jumping. It decides 

 whether he will clear a rail or knock it down, 

 whether he will get over brilliantly or bungle it. 

 Make no mistake, faults are nearly always those of 

 the rider and not of the horse. Provided the ground 

 on taking off is firm, a horse can judge with 



