The Use and Misuse of the Hands 97 



making the distribution of the rider's weight more 

 difficult. 



Many writers would have us never to cease from 

 maintaining the gentlest feeling on the horse's 

 mouth, but this does not hold good for all-round 

 work. For polo, as the Messrs. Miller rightly ob- 

 serve, the pony must gallop with no pressure on the 

 reins. Slight pressure at the beginning of a chucker 

 generally means marked pressure at the end of it. 

 During a gallop to hounds the firmness of hold 

 must be regulated by the weight of the rider and 

 the nature of the ground; it should never be con- 

 stant, the horse may lose his good mouth and his 

 true balance if we teach him to " hang." In racing 

 and in steeplechasing parlance the horse is " driven 

 into his bridle," and a certain leaning is necessary, 

 but when man and horse are going at their ease 

 there should be no pressure at all. 



Phillipps's maxim on hands is worthy of note. 

 He says that the hand of the horseman should 

 resemble the temper of a commander — ^pleasant 

 while obeyed, formidable if disobeyed. 



Raise the hands and you raise the horse's head, 

 lower them and he should lower his. A great deal 



