278 Modern Riding and Horse Education 



a man who stops when he has misjudged his run 

 at a high jump. 



Some horses require to be put back on their hocks, 

 and jump better in a double bit ; others, like the cele- 

 brated " All Fours," collect themselves of their 

 own accord and perform best with a slack rein : they 

 can see what they are doing and measure their dis- 

 tance better with their heads free. 



A placid disposition is a valuable asset in a show- 

 jumper; the education can scarcely fail to irritate 

 many temperaments. Both horse and man require 

 special training. The man must, amongst other 

 things, learn to lean well forward on landing, and 

 the horse's training must be of two sorts. Firstly, 

 continual up-and-down-hill work — the steeper the 

 better — at first at a walk and then at a canter, for 

 the purpose of muscle development. This can be ob- 

 tained by continual jumping, but it is apt to sicken 

 the horse and make him shin-sore. Secondly, special 

 training in high jumping over those fancy obstacles 

 which are never met with out of the show-ring. The 

 difficulty of teaching high jumping is that it must, if 

 possible, be done without giving the horse falls, as 

 in coming down from a height of, say, six feet, he 



