X 1 8 Breaking. 



Breaking to Harness. 



For double harness work, a double-break and break 

 horse only are required to effect this object, and a very 

 short time will generally suffice to make a young horse 

 manageable, if driven with a steady companion, and by a 

 careful pair of hands. It is some time before he would 

 be fit for a timid lady, but for country work with those 

 who are not alarmed by an occasional slight freak, after z 

 week or ten days a horse may safely be used. The first thing 

 to be done is to put the harness on, and allow it to remain 

 for an hour or two during the two or three days before 

 the horse is driven. Previously to this, he should be 

 thoroughly broken to the saddle, because he will not 

 otherwise know the use of the bit, and without that he 

 will be entirely unmanageable. It was formerly a very 

 common practice to break carriage horses at plough, by 

 putting them in the middle of a team, and letting them 

 jump and kick till they were tired ; but this is a bad plan, 

 and many horses have been spoiled both in limb and 

 temper by it. Curbs and spavins are very commonly 

 caused by the struggles of a high-couraged horse ; and 

 jibbing will often ensue as a consequence in a bad-tem- 

 pered or sluggish one. The hot blood derived from the 

 Eastern horse leads these colts to plunge and fight against 

 restraint, in a very different way from the dull and phleg- 

 matic cart horse ; and, therefore, the plan is now dis- 

 carded in favour of the break, where the colt has the 

 power of moving forward, to some extent, in all his 

 plunges, if any, and his blood is not unnecessarily roused 

 by resistance. After he has been made accustomed to 

 the harness, he is put in with the break horse, an animal 

 of great size, power, and steadiness. The break horse 

 should first be put-to, and the break brought out into a 

 tolerably open place, where it may start on level ground, 

 or with a very slight ascent. The break is built very 

 strongly, and should have the space between the drawing- 

 bar and the front axletree made up with iron rods, so that 

 if a horse kicks over the bar, his legs do not fall, but he 

 draws them back again at once. The bar should be padded, 



