XIV 



REINS V. NO REINS 



" All riders think they hold their horses, but most hold them- 

 selves." Count E. Martinengo Cesaresco. 



" Bad riders use the reins as a means of balancing themselves in 

 the saddle, and this is especially done in the hunting field." 



Walsh. 



"^"11 7HEN it was that reins came into use is not 



very clear; some recent researches of M. 



Edouard Piette's amongst prehistoric remains in 



France have brought to light carvings on bone of 



the Glyptic Age, which undoubtedly represent 



bridled horses, although the rudeness of the design 



leaves us in some doubt as to whether the reins were 



attached to a nose-band, or if what was probably a 



leather thong passed through the horse's mouth, and 



formed a make-shift bridle. Be this as it may, when 



we come to historical times we have proof that it 



was comparatively late before the use of reins 



became general; the inhabitants of Numidia and 



Mauritania, and, according to Berenger, of '' Nasa- 



143 



