SHOEING. 399 



incapable of sufrering pressure without giving 

 pain to tke animal, and causing him to go 

 lame; and so flat or even convex as to be 

 much exposed to pressure. The shoe com- 

 monly employed for such feet is wide and 

 hollow, so that it bears only on the crust, a space 

 being left between the sole and the other 

 part of the under surface of the shoe. When 

 the horse has travelled a short time on the 

 road, this space becomes filled with dirt, 

 gravel, &c., so that the sole is exposed to the 

 same pressure as if the shoe were flat, or the 

 horse without shoes ; it is obvious then, that 

 a shoe so iiaiTow as to cover only the crust, 

 and so thick as to raise it about | of an inch 

 from the ground, will more effectually protect 

 the tender sole, than the wide hollow shoe ; 

 unless the horse be going upon a hard even sur- 

 face, or the rider frequently dismounting to pick 

 out the dirt which accumulates under the shoe., 

 I am convinced from the trial made of this 

 naiTow shoe, both by Mr. Fellowes and myself, 

 that it will be found the best method of 

 shoeing /^(Z^ or convex feet; and it appears to 

 me very probable, that upon a fair trial it would 

 be found the best shoe for general use. Per- 

 haps even heavy draught horses would do better 



