GENERAL REMARKS AND INFORMATION. 7 



and will often prevent accidents, but in no case 

 should the rein be too tight. It is a different matter 

 when it is a gentleman's horse, and is either driven by 

 the owner or groom, such an animal should never be 

 left alone, and in a case of this kind I prefer not using 

 a bearing-rein, unless it is just for a few weeks when the 

 horse is first driven, then it should be very slack indeed. 

 I find in almost every case the animal has a better 

 mouth when not held up with the bearing-rein. 

 Another thing, a horse yields so much better to the 

 touch of the bit when broken-in without using the 

 former. 



When a horse stumbles, harsh measures should never 

 be resorted to. This is a mistake which is often made. 

 Nineteen drivers out of every twenty, when a horse slips, 

 will give the poor thing a good lash with the whip. 

 When it stumbles the next time the animal is doubly 

 frightened, as it expects a sharp cut with the whip, and 

 in its excitement and nervousness its knees are on the 

 road before it knows where it is. If a horse is likely 

 to stumble, it should be just touched up with the whip, 

 and kept well in band, but not just when it makes the 

 slip. 



It is not always well even to scold horses when 

 they do wrong. I will give my reasons why. When a 

 horse is standing about and happens to make a mistake, 

 and commences to bite the hedge, gets hold of a little 

 bit of grass, or puts its head over a fence, — which a young 

 mischievous horse will do sometimes, — the owner or 



