264 In Scarlet and Silk 



upon the brain power possessed by the pupil. 

 I have been on some half-dozen or so young 

 ones, which ten minutes' experience convinced 

 me were little better than congenital idiots ; 

 to persevere with such as these is sheer w^aste 

 of valuable time, for no class of horse (not 

 even excepting steeplechasers) require so 

 much natural cleverness as hunters. To watch 

 a smart hunter getting out of all sorts of the 

 unexpected difficulties which are pretty sure 

 to fall to his lot in the course of a season, is 

 one of the most interesting sights I know of. 



Falls have the most curious and contradic- 

 tory effects on different horses. We often see 

 the careless, slovenly jumper vastly improved, 

 and occasionally made into a really smart 

 performer, by getting " rapped over the 

 knuckles " with stiff timber that he has been 

 trying to take liberties with. On the other 

 hand, I can call to mind at least a dozen cases 

 where a fall has caused a horse to lose heart 

 and courage, and — for the time at least — be- 

 come a persistent refuser. Dick Christian 

 said, " If a young horse gets a very bad fall, it 



