BIPEDS AND QUADRUPEDS. 103 



short anecdote, not redounding greatly to the credit 

 of my precaution or foresight. 



During a visit to a friend, I had a deal with him in 

 the horse way ; he took a fancy to a nearly thorough- 

 bred horse I had driven to his house in my dog-cart ; 

 we made an exchange, I taking, in part of payment, 

 a monstrous animal, he had by him ; big he was, as 

 an ordinary dray horse, yet a fast trotter. On leaving 

 the house I inadvertently did not take the trouble of 

 investigating how my harness fitted this Goliah. 

 About a mile on the road, there was a steep and very 

 sandy hill ; about half way up it the great Elephant 

 gave a stagger, and down he rolled on his side ; I 

 guessed he was choked, and on looking at the collar 

 I found it was fully three inches too short for him ; 

 my knife applied to its top soon altered that ; and, 

 letting down the hames, he trotted home gaily his 

 twenty five miles : now, had he not fell, possibly I 

 should have driven the poor beast home half stran- 

 gled all the distance. 



The opposite to this is, collars being too long, or 

 wide, for the neck ; in such cases they are certain to 



