ioo ANIMALS AT WORK AND PL A Y 



and ridden by one of his pages, who trailed a 

 broken lance. His 'barbed horse/ for State occa- 

 sions, covered with cloth of gold, also followed, led 

 by a second esquire, and ridden by a page in full 

 dress, who carried in his hand a battle-axe reversed. 

 Here is, perhaps, the origin of the curious custom 

 of reversing the boots, unless both are associated 

 with the old classical symbol of death, the inverted 

 torch. In the funeral procession of the Duke of 

 Wellington twelve horses drew the car ; these were 

 covered from eyes to fetlocks in housings of black 

 velvet, with black ostrich plumes upon their heads 

 The Duke's funeral was modelled upon the precedent 

 of that of John Monk, first Duke of Albemarle, the 

 only change in the trappings of the horses being 

 that the animals were only plumed on the head, 

 instead of carrying a second plume on the crupper, 

 which, as the tail was hidden by the velvet clothing, 

 had rather a ludicrous appearance. But in the 

 funeral of the Duke of Albemarle, led horses 

 formed an important part of the procession. 

 1 Mourning horses/ as they were called, draped in 

 black cloth and plumed, were distributed at intervals 

 in the cortege. The ' chief mourning horse ' followed 

 the Standard of England. The funeral car was also 

 followed by a cream-coloured 'horse of honour/ with 

 crimson caparisons, in the Duke of Wellington's 



