EQUITATION AND HORSE TRAINING. 89 



The head when drawn back should bend the neck without breaking « 

 it; when extended forward, it should stretch the neck without raising 

 it. When the horse is posed in this manner, the reins will retain full 

 power and both the front and hind legs will cooperate in any movements, 

 either lengthened or shortened, that the rider may exact. — Count 

 D'Aure. 



Different positions of the head. — In order that he may feel with uni- 

 formity the touch of his rider's hand and in order not to impede his 

 breathing, the horse's face should be set a little forward of the vertical. 

 This position should be taken for ordinary gaits and for simple and regu- 

 lar movements. 



The more we wish to shorten the gait the more the face should 

 approach the vertical plane; on the other hand, the more we wish to 

 increase the speed the more the face should depart from this plane. 



In these last two cases the position of the head may also be considered 

 as normal since the gaits depend thereon. 



The head may assume a faulty position; that is to say, one too near 

 or too far from the vertical; this may be due to defective conformation 

 of the forehand, faulty fitting of the bit, undue sensitiveness of the chin 

 groove or bars, or finally, and this is most frequently the case when 

 horses throw the nose into the air, to a defect in the conformation of 

 some part of the hind quarters. 



These faulty positions can be combatted by the rider not only by a 

 judicious use of the aids, but by a careful selection of the bit, an atten- 

 tive fitting in the mouth, and a studied adjustment of the curb chain. — 

 Count D'Aure. 



Influence of conformation. — All horses can not be 

 ridden in the same manner. General principles of con- 

 duct and training remain the same, but supplings vary 

 according to the defects of conformation that must be 

 overcome. 



A horse of good conformation is easy to train ; all that 

 is necessary is to teach him the language of the aids, and 

 when he understands everything becomes simple to him. 

 When, on the contrary, proper balance is wanting, it is nec- 

 essary not only to instruct him, but also, by means of 

 protracted and well understood exercises, to establish an 

 artificial equilibrium that will correct natural defects. 



« The bend should be near the poll; the rest of the neck remains 

 practically the same in all positions, or, as it is called, "unbroken." 



