70 PRACTICAL HINTS FOR HUNTING NOVICES. 



horse ; but look how he is made. Did you ever see 

 a more hunter-Hke horse ? " That may be true enough^ 

 but the novice wants a horse who is a real hunter, and 

 not an embryo one. In early deals the young horse 

 and the veteran should both be avoided. The first 

 named is possibly only half made, and has most of his 

 business to learn, while the veteran may have been got 

 up for sale, and be really so worn out that a heavy day 

 or two will bring on lameness. As regards age, horses 

 of from eight to eleven, in the prime of life as hunters, 

 are far the most likely to give satisfaction. If a hunter 

 is not made at eight he never will be, and a beginner 

 should if possible secure one between the two ages 

 named, though it need hardly be said that even now 

 it is no easy matter to determine a horse's age after 

 he has passed mark of mouth, very few people having 

 really studied the signs. 



If the beginner goes to a dealer in hunters he should 

 have fair confidence in his own ability as a horseman, 

 and he should bear in mind that it is far harder to buy 

 a single horse from many dealers than three or four, 

 or even more. There are, however, many honest 

 dealers, who will always do their best by their 

 customers, and such men will generally say which of 

 their horses can be ridden by anyone on a thread, 

 and which require a finished horseman. Beware 

 of the horse which is spoken of as " bold," for the 

 dealer's bold horse is often a very hard puller, who will 

 be with hounds if he can. Keflect, too, that, in a 

 general way, it is better to buy from a dealer (a hunter 

 which is intended for the following season) during the 

 spring or early summer than in the autumn just before 



