168 



RAMBLES AFTER SPORT. 



awkward at firsts but one soon gets use to it. A superior 

 journey horse, however, is a " pacer/^ or, still better, 

 a "marcher/^ These marchadores come principally from 

 the province of Coquimbo, and are the dearest horses in 

 Chile ; their gait is rather easier than a pace, but is much 

 slower, never exceeding six or seven miles an hour. A 

 good pacing horse sometimes goes at a tremendous rate, 

 astonishing to people who have never witnessed it. Mr. 

 Charles Watson, of Valparaiso, had a white pacer who was, 

 I believe, nineteen years old ; I have frequently ridden 

 alongside of him, and when extended he could keep a very 

 fair horse at a gallop, and this with 4st. extra on his back. 

 To ride a pacer you must sit back in your saddle, with 

 your heels down and your toes well forward, as these 

 horses are exceedingly liable to stumble. When you 

 wish to extend your horse you haul on the bit as much 

 as possible, at the same time urging him with the spur ; 

 the harder you hold him the faster he goes ; if your arms 

 tire, he immediately breaks into a gallop. A whip must 

 never be used to a pacer, the action of raising the hand 

 inducing the horse to jump and " break.''^ The Peruvian 

 horses are nearly all pacers ; they are pretty little animals, 

 mostly used for ladies^ mounts, for which reason they 

 bring long prices, but on other grounds they are not 

 worth mentioning. 



None of these jump ; in fact, T don^t suppose there is a 

 horse in the country that could jump an eight-foot ditch* 

 Their great drawback, as might be supposed, is want of 

 pluck on a pinch. Considering the scantiness of his 

 fare, and that he is never groomed, the Chile horse 

 shows great powers of endurance at his own pace, but 

 (and here is the gist of the matter) don't push him ; if 

 you do, he'll give in, and there is no ''^come again '^ 



