LEADING-REIN CRUPPER 127 



that he had turned back, as he was not able to get over 

 the big fences. A few days after that, I had the same 

 colt and boy out with my own harriers, and gave the lad 

 strict orders to stick to the hounds. The result was that 

 the colt never turned his head from anything. I had 

 hardly landed over one enormous bank with a grip on the 

 taking-ofP side, which was almost too big for my liking, 

 although I was on one of the boldest hunters in Ireland, 

 when, to my surprise, the young one was at my girths, 

 sailing away in high delight at the fun. 



" It will not take long to make a young horse a good 

 jumper, provided he is treated with kindness, firmness, 

 and common sense. As soon as he gets confidence in 

 himself, he will be fit to go over any steeplechase course ; 

 and then the pace may be increased at the fences. He 

 should, if possible, always be ridden in company ; some- 

 times getting a lead, at other times taking it, or going all 

 abreast." 



Leading-rein Crupper. — The preliminary practice 

 I would pursue in '' making " a jumper, is first to give 

 him a good mouth by driving him on foot in the manner 

 described in " Illustrated Horse Breaking," and then 

 teach him to leap without any one on his back. The 

 great advantages of this method are that the horse which 

 is broken according to it, acquires a perfect mouth, is 

 under absolute control, and is free from the ill effects 

 which too frequently result from the punishment and 

 "jobbing" in the mouth that are inflicted on "green" 

 horses by bad-tempered and incompetent riders. After 

 a horse has learnt to leap well, when driven over jumps 

 with a rider who does not hold the reins on his back 



