THE BLACKSIMITH 179 



Few libraries are without that useful work, "The Horse,"* 

 written by Lord Brougham, and a select party of sportsmen 

 (Mr. Leader, most likely, and others), and published under 

 the superintendence of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful 

 Knowledge — a work that contains more really useful matter in 

 an easy, unpedantic, intelligible-to-the-meanest-capacity-form, 

 than any that we know of; and were it not for the tendency it 

 might have to lead ignorant fellows to experimentalize on poor 

 horses, we could wish it were in every saddle-room as well. 

 That, perhaps, not being desirable, we may quote a passage on 

 shoeing that is incapable of perversion, and well worthy the 

 attention of masters, servants, Bullwaists, and all — if such 

 bigoted creatures as Bullwaists are open to conviction : — " We 

 will suppose the horse is sent to the forge to be shod," says 

 Lord Brougham and Co. : " If the master would occasionally 

 accompany him there, he would find it much to his advantage. 

 The old shoe must be first taken off. We have something to 

 observe even on this. It was retained on the foot by the ends 

 of the nails being twisted off, turned down, and clenched. 

 These clenches should be first raised, which the smith seldom 

 takes the trouble thoroughly to do ; but after going carelessly 

 round the crust, and raising one or two of the clenches, he 

 takes hold first of one heel of the shoe, and then of the other, 

 and by a violent wrench separates them from the foot, and by 

 a third wrench, applied to the middle of the shoe, he tears it 

 off. By this means he must enlarge every nail hole, and 

 weaken the future hold, and sometimes tear off portions of the 

 crust, and otherwise injure the foot. The horse generally 

 shows by his flinching that he suffers by the violence with 

 which this preliminary operation is performed. The clenches 

 should always be raised or filed off; and where the foot is 



* Here let us recommend Mr. Miles's treatise on the foot of the horse to 

 the especial attention of sportsmen and horse masters generally. It is a 

 most sensible work. 



