124 HINTS ON HORSEMANSHIP 



Secondly, the standing martingale does keep a 

 horse from throwing up his head when approaching 

 a fence. 



Keen horses have a knack of doing this, and it 

 is often difficult to get their heads down in time 

 for the " take off," and many a fall has been 

 occasioned thereby. 



Thirdly, it prevents a horse being able to jerk 

 the reins over his head. This occurs quite fairly 

 often, and is particularly noticeable when going 

 fairly fast, as in a point-to-point, when some 

 mistake has been made. The horse throws up his 

 head because he has been jabbed in the mouth, or 

 from some other cause, and the rider when he has 

 re-established himself in the saddle finds his reins 

 both on the same side of the horse's neck. 



All these things are avoided by the standing 

 martingale, and as they do not interfere in any 

 way with a horse's jumping, I have often wondered 

 why they are not universally adopted in place of 

 the other kind. 



Twisting Stirrup Leathers 



While on the subject of saddlery, here is a little 

 tip which is useful. Before mounting give the 

 stirrup leathers a twist, so as to make the iron 

 hang at right angles to the horse's sides instead of 

 of parallel to them. This will be found of great 

 assistance if, at any time, one happens to lose an 

 iron, as it can then be picked up on to the foot 

 without any difficulty. 



