142 XENOPHON ON HORSEMANSHIP. 



tions a Spanish breed of horses whose natural gait 

 was the amble, and adds that this led to the belief 

 that the trot was in all breeds an acquired gait. 



44. (Page 46.) The Greek spur had no rowels, 

 but was merely a small goad fastened to the heel 

 by straps which passed over the instep and under 

 the sole. Such spurs have been found in Olympia 

 and in Magna Graecia, and are represented in 

 vase-paintings. A book on the development of 

 the spur, with many beautiful plates, is '' Der Sporn 

 in seiner Formen-entwicklung," Zchille und Forrer, 

 Berlin, 1891. 



45. (Page 47.) The Odrysians were a Thracian 

 tribe, whose power, once extending from the Stry- 

 mon to Abdera, declined at the end of the fifth 

 century b. c. 



46. (Page 47.) This seems at first sight a device 

 entirely unworthy of a horseman, and Berenger 

 strongly condemns it ; but it is evident, from what 

 follows, that Xenophon's intention was not to 

 recommend one to support himself by the mane, 

 but to prevent the beginner (this book was written 

 for " the younger of his friends ") from disturbing 

 the horse in his leap by jerking at the bit. The 

 context shows that it was with the bridle-hand 



(thus kept motionless) that the mane was to be 

 grasped. The expression " it is not a bad thing " 

 is probably purposely selected ; and Xenophon 



