THE CONCAVE-SEATED SHOE. 295 



some of the natural elasticity of the hoof; careless- 

 ness or ignorance in the manner of affixing the shoe 

 often occasioning an unequal bearing on the dif- 

 ferent parts of the foot ; necessarily producing great 

 mischief. 



The first object of shoeing is defence ; that is ac- 

 complished by almost any kind of shoe, the web of 

 which is sufficiently wide and thick. We prevent 

 mischief to a certain extent, by contriving to have the 

 bearing as nearly as possible where nature designed 

 that it should be. The whole weight of the horse is 

 supported by the crust when the foot first comes in 

 contact with the ground; and the sole afterwards 

 descends for the purpose of preserving the elasticity 

 of the foot. Then nature and reason demand that 

 the shoe should be constructed so that the bearing 

 shall still be thrown on the crust; and that the sole 

 shall have room and power to descend. 



THE CONCAVE-SEATED SHOE. 



The concave- seated shoe answers these purposes 

 well. It has a flat circle on the foot-side, running 

 round it; corresponding with the thickness of the 

 crust ; and, the lower part of the crust being pared 

 evenly round, the whole weight of the horse is placed 

 on a flat, level bearing. A shoe, however, the width 

 of the crust would not afford sufficient defence to the 

 sole ; therefore the web is prolonged on the inner 

 part of the circle, for about double the width of the 

 seated part all round. But this must not press upon 

 the sole ; for the sole will not bear the slightest pres- 

 o 4 



