142 MISPLACED DELICACY. 



strong large saddles : they do not ; bnt let me tell 

 them, lOst. is quite weight enough to hurt a horse's 

 back very much with a short saddle ; and in fact, a 

 tall light man should have as long a saddle as a heavy 

 weight, though it may be a lighter one. High cantles 

 are quite an abomination in a hunting-saddle, and of 

 no earthly use : they do not keep a man in his saddle, 

 for his body has no business to touch them : it is the 

 proper sweep of the saddle that must do this, the 

 lower part of the waist of which should be at least 

 seven inches from the cantle : then a man sits in his 

 proper place, if anything can make him. If he wants 

 a high cantle to effect this, let him get one made 

 three feet high at once, and have it painted to repre- 

 sent a peacock's tail. This would really have a most 

 imposing appearance, and make such a man a dis- 

 tinguished character in the field, which I should say 

 nothing else would. 



I am afraid it is not even so considerate an idea as 

 the saving of weight to the horse that induces men 

 to ride on small saddles ; for I have heard old sporting 

 men say, that when leather-breeches were in general 

 use, they were not considered first-rate unless they 

 weighed 91b. So much for fashion ! Gentlemen, at 

 least some of them, are particular enough now-a-days 

 in preserving the delicacy and softness of the visible 

 parts of their skins. I conclude this attention was 

 carried still farther in former days : seven pounds of 

 unnecessary additional weight was, I should say, a 

 very heavy tax to make horses pay for delicacy of 

 skin in situations where I should conceive it was 

 uncalled for, if not inconvenient. 



Although, as I commenced by saying, it is ex- 

 tremely difficult to define the comparative effect of 



