80 HINTS ON HORSEMANSHIP 



the other is to be temperate ; it is an obvious 

 impossibihty to get either if the unfortunate animal 

 knows that his sides are, as likely as not, to be 

 torn every time he takes a jump. Not only does 

 it do positive harm in this direction, I know of 

 no occasion when it ever does any good. The 

 sharp spur does not prevent a horse from running 

 out or refusing. It doesn't help him to win a 

 race, and it certainly doesn't make him jump 

 better. Once a horse is in motion at any pace 

 over the collected trot, rowels have no effect upon 

 him at all, except to cause unnecessary pain and 

 discomfort. 



At polo, I am thankful to say, they have been 

 abolished for some years. I only wish the same 

 rule had been applied to racing. The blunt spur 

 does all that is required on these occasions, and 

 if a horse has been properly trained before he 

 comes out hunting, they are not necessary in the 

 hunting field either. 



When the spur is applied it should be on a spot 

 one inch behind the girth, and nowhere else. But 

 look at a horse returning to the paddock after a 

 steeplechase. One vnW find him sometimes with 

 spur marks all over him — on the shoulders, on the 

 loins, on the forearms, and heaven knows where 

 else. What use it has all been in helping the 

 horse to win a race is one of those mysteries that 

 I have never been able to fathom. I hope I may 

 live to see the day when the National Hunt Com- 

 mittee will issue an order that neither sharp spurs 

 nor whips will be allowed. A light stick if you 



