26 THE SPORT OF KINGS 



horses who are inclined to take the law into their 

 own hands when age and experience have shown 

 them their strength. There is no exaggeration in 

 these statements ; a man has only to go quietly along 

 a country lane to find plenty of instances of both. 



It must be palpable to any one that it is of the 

 greatest importance that the man who rides the 

 young horse, and more especially the young hunter, 

 during the first few weeks of his educational career, 

 should be a fine and careful horseman. He should 

 devote the whole of his attention to the horse he 

 is riding, marking his peculiarities of disposition, 

 and doing his best to remedy any little defects of 

 manner, generally caused by nervousness or ignor- 

 ance, without having recourse to severe punishment. 

 Mind, I am by no means in favour of the molly- 

 coddling and petting treatment advocated by some. 

 When the time comes, as come it must sooner or 

 later, that the horse and his rider have a real 

 difference of opinion, one of them will have to be 

 master, and the more firmly it is impressed upon 

 the horse that it is not he who has got the better of 

 the struggle, the better will it be for both. 



Two things should be taught the hunter before 

 ever he sees a fence — to stand quite still whilst he 

 is being mounted, and to walk well. How few 

 hunters we see that do either, yet they may easily 

 be trained with patience. Then, too, a horse 

 should be taught to gallop. I remember riding a 

 horse once, a five-year-old, with a view to purchase. 

 The horse could jump, but he had only been 

 " dodged about " and cantered. I had heard a 

 wonderful account of the cleverness of this animal 

 and looked forward to a good ride. Hounds 

 found in a nice patch of gorse. I got a good 



