REFUSAL 



mands of its rider. The two wills, the horse's and 

 the man's, are opposed. The man asks. The horse 

 refuses. The point at issue becomes, then, whether 

 the man is to remain master by virtue of his intel- 

 ligence. 



The initial step is to find the reason for the horse's 

 revolt. Has he, first of all, been obedient, and has 

 he already executed the movement asked? If he 

 has, then something new must have occurred to 

 alter the previous state of submission. With a little 

 experience, coupled with a great deal of calm, it is 

 always easy to discover what this something is. 

 We inspect our saddle and girths, the snaffle and 

 bit and throat latch. We consider whether some 

 small departure from the habit already formed by 

 the animal has not provoked the refusal. Have we 

 not repeated the same movement in exaggerated 

 form? Are we correct in our use of our effects? Are 

 these understood by the horse? Is he tired, or con- 

 fused, or sick, or lame? 



No, everything is all right, and as usual. The 

 horse revolts from pure willfulness, because it de- 

 sires to be master. Very well, I will tell you how to 

 handle this condition. 



If the manege or the road is too much crowded 

 with women, children, and beginners, wait pa- 

 tiently and without provoking any further rebel- 

 lion, until you are alone and free for the little fun 

 that you are going to give your mount. 



First make sure that you are entirely in the right 



315 



