146 Among Men and Horses. 



their heads touched without making a desperate resistance ; 

 because, no matter how wild a horse may be, the Australian 

 rough riders easily manage to put a head collar on him by 

 driving him into a ' crush,' in which he can be securely fixed. 

 A crush, I may remark, consists, as a rule, of two rows, seven 

 or eight feet long, and about two and a half feet wide, of 

 strong posts let into the ground, and provided with pieces 

 of wood which can be used to block up both ends. Such an 

 erection may be used for the entrance into one paddock from 

 another, in which case, any of the horses passing through 

 can be detained and tied up. Sometimes the crush is made 

 to open out, so that the captive, after having been forcibly 

 bridled, saddled, and mounted, can be suddenly let free 

 with full permission to kick his rider off, if he is able. 

 Although these imported horses have had some of the ' rough 

 edge ' taken off them, they are, on arrival, difficult to manage, 

 and as they are rarely less than four years old when they 

 are caught and put on board, they are naturally inclined 

 to fight on being handled or backed. Being all either 

 geldings or mares, very few of my Colonial pupils had the 

 vice of biting, which is generally confined to entires. I 

 have had a great number of so-called man-eating East- 

 Indian and Arab stallions pass through my hands, as well as 

 horses of all degrees both at home and abroad ; but have 

 never known a single instance of a horse, outside his own 

 stall, actually attacking with his teeth a man who faced him ; 

 although many animals will make a feint of doing so. I will 

 go farther and say that I do not believe that there is a horse in 

 the world which, in any open place, would try his best to 

 ' savage ' a man who guarded himself with a stick held in a 

 direction across the animal's face. Although this statement 

 may be received with incredulity by many ; I not alone 

 adhere to it, but am prepared at any time to prove it 

 practically. Naturally, I shall have cited the case of Cruizer, 

 who was secured only by Rarey hiding under a cart loaded 

 with hay, which occupied the animal's attention while the 



