208 THE POCKET AND THE STUD. 



masters many have, who only took horses to livery 

 as being better than vacant stalls. 



I can conceive few things so unpleasant as 

 telling persons anything that looks like assuming 

 to oneself superior judgment to theirs. It is never 

 grateful to their feelings, and there is something 

 diabolical in willingly saying what can be con- 

 sidered as mortifying to that little amour propre 

 that actuates us alL I have friends whom I value 

 highly, who are always in some dilemma with 

 their horses ; in fact, they are a constant source 

 of loss, and anxiety, and annoyance to them. I 

 am sure to hear of their grievances, and I as 

 surely and sincerely condole with them. Some of 

 them have every feeling of liberality and kindness 

 to do all that is right and proper, do nothing 

 perhaps glaringly wrong ; and if they were to ask 

 what they did wrong, unless I could watch all 

 that was done, and under all circumstances^ I 

 probably could not tell them. But vv^here things 

 for a continuance go wrong, it is not chance or 

 fate that usually brings it about. With others in 

 the same predicament, it might be no difficult task 

 to point out where they erred. But then, in 

 telling them of one error, the same want of know- 

 ing how to do right would probably only change 

 the error, so that one might be as bad as the other. 

 There are persons, who, if they inquired in what 

 their bad management consisted, could only be 



