XII 



FALLS 



THE ART OF FALLING LEARNING TO FALL BAROMETER OF 



FEAR FALLS NOT THE HORSE'S FAULT 



HE art of falling may be considered as a 

 necessary accomplishment in riding to hounds. 

 Nothing will advance a novice further in the 

 " noble science " than a few harmless falls, 

 It is a singular thing that a man never begins to ride until 

 he has been dumped over his horse's head. From that 

 moment he becomes a rider, whereas before he was only a 

 timid hanger-on, or so hampered by the dread of falling 

 that he could not ride. He finds it is not half so bad as he 

 had imagined. It benefits him in his hands and seat, and, 

 indeed, in every way. 



There is a knack about falling, as there is about swimming. 

 No one can tell a beginner how to fall : he must learn by 

 experience. The great thing for the novice is to have had 

 enough practice in riding to save him from losing his head, 

 and then to get spilt often enough to acquire the necessary 

 schooling. 



The first few times the novice goes to grass his mind 

 becomes a blank ; his head literally is lost. The mo- 



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