THE PIAFFER 



But since cavesson and reins prevent this, the horse 

 becomes more or less excited, and begins to move 

 in diagonal, up and down on the same spot. At this 

 point the trainer stops the horse, caresses him, and 

 begins again. 



It must be evident that, by this method, it is not 

 possible to obtain the slow piaffer at the beginning. 

 The first result is always the quick form. This, how- 

 ever, the trainer slows down by calmness and by 

 spacing the touches of the whip farther and farther 

 apart. Weights or bells may be attached at the 

 pasterns to encourage the horse to carry his knees 

 higher and higher. 



There has also been invented, I think by Han- 

 hauser, a special harness for the purpose of obtain- 

 ing the movement in diagonal. A heavily padded 

 strap is fastened to each pastern, and each pair of 

 straps in diagonal, is buckled to the two ends of 

 a rope. These ropes, in their turn, pass through a 

 pulley which is fastened to a strong surcingle so 

 that it comes close to the body at the middle of the 

 lower side of the chest. The ropes are rather tight, 

 so that, when the horse lifts, for example, its right 

 front foot, the pull comes against the left rear one. 

 Since, in addition, the horse is fixed fast in the pil- 

 lars, there is nothing it can do except to go up and 

 down in diagonal on the same spot. But the piaffer 

 of horses trained by such mechanical methods is 

 never elegant, supple, or brilliant. It suggests the 

 manequins of Mme. Tussaud. 



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