[ "I ] 



CHAPTER XIII. 



Requirements of a good saddle. — Parts of a saddle. — Saddle- 

 trees.— Saddle-seats. — Saddle-fittings. — Saddle-flaps.— 

 Stuffing of saddles. — Panels. — Sweat-flaps. — Good and 

 bad trees. — Cut of saddles. — Straight seats.— Argument 

 in favour of straight seats. — Length of rein obtained by 

 use of straight seats. — Why horses pull less when ridden 

 by ladies. — Knee-rolls v. plain flaps. — Field correspond- 

 ence as to knee-rolls and plain flaps. — Use of the leg in 

 riding. — Cavalry riding. — Advantage of knee-rolls. — Major 

 Whyte-Melville on plain flaps. — Girths. — Stirrup-irons. — 

 Saddle-bar stops. — Fitting of stirrup - leathers. — Good 

 saddles. — Best saddles. — Materials used for lining saddles. 

 — Messrs. Whippy's new system of lining saddles. — Saddle- 

 heads. — Numnahs. — Chambering saddles. — Side - saddles 

 and sore backs.— Back-stays.- — Cause and prevention of 

 sore backs in ladies' horses. — Proper position for a lady 

 on side-saddle. — Improper seat. — Safety stirrups for 

 ladies. 



Before a-oino- into detail as regards saddles, it will 

 be, perhaps, as well for us to consider what a saddle 

 really is. As its name implies, it is a seat. It is, 

 in fact, a seat which is placed on the back of a horse 

 for a person to sit upon. It should therefore be 

 (and we will take the feelings of the dumb animal 

 firstly) comfortable to the horse, and also comfort- 



