Obligations to Dumb Dependents 225 



The contrivance is, as every horseman knows, useful, 

 sometimes necessary; not at all cruel, unless it be 

 so to hold a toothbrush against your own mouth- 

 angle; and is felt by the animal only when he at- 

 tempts to carry his head and neck to one side. As 



these appliances were presumably necessary, it is 

 due to luck only that some serious accident did not 

 follow this hysterical proceeding, and, had any 

 occurred, it would have been interesting to find out 

 whether the society could escape the consequences of 

 its high-handed action. " Burrs " have been in use 

 in the streets daily for years, and are seen to-day; 

 they do not cause suffering; they are very useful, 

 and with certain horses a safeguard against acci- 

 dents. 



Again the use of tight check-reins is universally 

 argued against, especially for draught work, yet 

 there are certain low-headed, straight-shouldered 

 horses which, if not checked, and that quite sharply, 

 allow the collar so to work against the point of the 

 shoulder that it is constantly galled. As a choice of 

 evils, checks should always be used in such cases. 



