THE BIT. 40ft 



head in an unnatural, ungraceful, and uncomfortable posi 

 tiou, it gives tlie mouth a callous, horny character, an'l 

 entirely destroys all chance for fine driving. The check- 

 rein is considered valuable, especially to prevent horses 

 from grazing, or fi-om lowering the head. The same end may 

 be equally attained by substituting a simple bridle rein, 

 U> be fastened to the saddle without passing through the 

 loops of the throat-lash. 



The Bit. — The bit is the most important part of the 

 bridle ; in fact, the chief use of the latter is to hold the bit 

 in its place in the horse's mouth. Bits are of various 

 devices ; that most commonly used is the snaffle^ figure 27, 

 and for ordinary mouths, it should be large, plain, and 

 easy to the mouth ; the smaller it is, the more severe it wQl 



be. Thenar bit is 

 a simple bar of 

 iron^ without a 

 joint ; it is easiel 

 to the mouth than 

 the snaffle, and is 

 Fio.83.— Til., p.it. ""^ much used for 



fast trotting horses, which are to be driven with a strong 

 hand. A still easier bit is that represented in figure 82, 

 which is made of leather, covered with India-rubber ; it is 

 useful for very tender mouths. All of these bits should 

 be supplied with long branches, or large rings, or with 

 IfvTge discs of leather, to prevent their being drawn through 

 Uie mouth, when either rein is drawn in turning. For car- 

 riage teams there is often employed a species of curb bit, 

 called the Hanoverian, which does not differ, in principle, 

 from the Hanoverian bit, shown in figure 28. Its form ia 

 somewhat modified by having its branches straight, and 

 supplied with holes for attaching the reins at greater or lesa 

 distances from the mouth -piece, according to the amount 

 18 



