52 Among Men and Horses. 



amount of exercise is increased, more blood is brought to the 

 muscles, which consequently become proportionately stronger. 

 As the circulation of the blood through the tissues quickly 

 resumes its normal rate, after exercise has been stopped ; it 

 follows, that for the highest development of muscle, the 

 exercise should be of long duration. The healthy effect of 

 exercise, however, can be obtained only as long as it can be 

 continued without fatigue, which produces an injuriously 

 depressing influence on the nerves. To save the animal 

 from the ill effects of fatigue, and to give him as much 

 beneficial exercise as possible, we should divide the work 

 by frequent intervals of rest. Thus, instead of giving all 

 the work in the morning, we might give, say, a third of it in 

 the afternoon. We should also allow the horse on which our 

 solicitude is bestowed, a roomy loose-box, so that he might 

 move about at will, instead of being cooped up in a narrow 

 stall. Instead of giving him all his work, ' in once,' as 

 betting men say, we might send him three short spins, with 

 half-an-hour's walking exercise between each. As he gets 

 on in his training, he will now and then require a strong 

 gallop approaching in length the distance over which he has 

 to compete. To win races, horses have to be galloped, not 

 cantered only ; for speed in galloping can be cultivated only 

 by practice, just in the same way as speed in boxing — but 

 always with the saving clause of 'no fatigue.' Applying 

 the golden rule of treating a horse as I would wish myself 

 to be treated, I introduced in India many years ago, the 

 practice of giving a horse in training a fairly liberal drink 

 of water, immediately after he had done his work, before 

 sending him back to his stable — and with the happiest 

 results. By my example and writings, I destroyed, in India, 

 the old and cruel myth of a drink of water being dangerous 

 to the health of a heated horse ; supposing, of course, that 

 the water was not too cold. Take, for instance, a man who 

 is exhausted and streaming with perspiration after doing 

 some violent work : What, may I ask, is the first thing that 



