30 HANDBOOK OF THE TURF. 



ditch. The scent being certain and strong, the hounds would 

 run upon it with terrible speed, and the matched horses fol- 

 lowed them. These wooden bells were replaced by silver ones, 

 and were given " to him who should run the best and fleetest 

 on horseback on Shrove Tuesday." Hence the phrase <' bear- 

 ing away the bell." In 1607 this silver bell was replaced by a 

 small, golden bell. In 1-552 there was an arrangement for an 

 annual horse race at Haddington, Scotland, the prize being a 

 silver bell. These silver bells were subsequently replaced by 

 plates, called king's plates, donated by the king, of the value of 

 one hundred guineas. 



Belly. The abdomen ; the large cavity which contains 

 the stomach, liver, spleen, intestines, kidneys, bladder, etc., of 

 the horse ; the underneath portion of the body which is not 

 covered by bone. 



Bellies of the Tree. The broad boards of the saddle 

 on which the rider sits. 



Bent Before. When the fore legs of the horse are bent 

 forward at the knee, he is said to be " bent before." This may 

 proceed from overwork or from pain in the feet, resulting from 

 contraction, inflammation, etc., but it more frequently proceeds 

 from flat feet. In such cases the animal is unsound. When 

 the profile of the fore legs has a deviation of anything more 

 than the very slightest, it is a blemish. 



Bet. To pledge as a forfeit to another who makes a 

 similar pledge in return, on a future contingency ; a stake ; 

 a wager. 



Betting" Round. Laying fairly and equally against 

 nearly all the horses in a race so that no great risk can be 

 taken. 



Bezoar Stones. Calculi concretions ; hair-balls. For- 

 eign bodies or substances found in the stomach and bowels of 

 the horse and other domestic animals. They are sometimes 

 round, solid concretions, the size of a turkey's egg, of a lime- 

 stone nature, composed of a number of concentric coats or 

 laminae, each adhering, but, when broken, peeling off in distinct 

 pieces. Their outsides are generally jjolished and perfectly 

 smooth. They originate from some matter taken into the 

 stomach which the animal has not been able to digest. What 

 are known as triple - phosphate calculi are very common in 

 horses, especially if they are fed much on shorts. Dr. Noah 

 Cressy of Connecticut took a mixed calculi from a horse in 

 Vermont, which caused its death, that weighed thirteen ounces, 

 measured four inches in diameter, and was so large that it 

 could not pass the bowels. 



