104 THE hokse's rescue. 



"Mr. Brees, it would be my advice to pull those 

 shoes off, cat off his toes some, pare the toes down 

 well ; cut no more from the heels ; give him room to 

 travel around, and put no more shoes on him for six^ 

 months. That will help him some. It will not cure 

 him bj any means." 



He did so. I saw him driving Buckskin many months 

 afterward, and he was quite a horse. His knees were 

 tipped yet, but if they had done what I did to Mike's 

 feet after catting his heels down, and shortened his 

 toes a little more, he would have gone back on his base 

 or nearly so ; instead, it threw him further off. Ife 

 would have straightened his legs at the same tirae_ 

 Mike is iu trouble again, but it does not surprise me. 

 I have got used to this business. It has become a 

 common thing; I well knew he would be. He was in 

 a very bad shape when he started from the barn. He 

 has been on the road about two weeks. Mr. Bennett 

 said : 



''Doan, there is something wrong about Mike's hind 

 parts." 



"Yes ; there always has been since I knew him." 



" Can you fix him behind ?" 



"Yes, if I can have him in my care and control 

 four days. Nobody must use or exercise him but my. 

 self during this time." 



" All right," says Bennett, " go ahead." 



It is a hard job to get this horse's hind feet in the 

 soaking tub and keep them in. My little boy Frank 

 cannot do it; that's a man's business. I shall have to 

 neglect my shoeing for a while almost entirely to at. 

 tend to this horse and those I have in the barn. Mike was 



