36 THROUGH STABLE AND SADDLE-ROOM. 



the master is a sportsman, for if so, he would 

 never be so careless of his stable. It argues to me 

 that the groom is aware that his master either does 

 not know or does not care, and so he takes ad- 

 vantage of him. My advice to a master who finds 

 his groom careless or dirty in his stable is to get 

 another as soon as he can, and not to waste time 

 and property after he has duly cautioned him. It 

 must come to dismissal sooner or later, and is only 

 a matter of time. Therefore it is well to abridge 

 the intervening period as much as possible, and so 

 save a possibly worse state of things and much 

 vexation. When a servant is careless or untidy, 

 he is not trying to do his work (I mean, of course, 

 a servant who is supposed to know his business). 

 His heart is not in it. Good service must be 

 willingly given. If it has to be extracted at what 

 may be termed the sword's point, it becomes well- 

 nisfh valueless, and the strain on both master and 

 man becomes too great to continue for any length 

 of time, and must end in a ' blow up ' and parting 

 company. Therefore, the sooner the man conveys 

 himself and his talents to a sphere where they may 

 be more appreciated, the better for both of them. 



