SENSE OF HUMOUR 85 



stories told in all good faith of dogs and horses 

 showing uneasiness and alarm at apparitions 

 which men failed to see, of so-called "ghosts," 

 for example, in places which had been the scene 

 of a violent death. Without careful investiga- 

 tion one can scarcely treat such tales as evi- 

 dence ; but it is quite possible that some 

 horses, like some women, are strongly psychic. 



That horses have a crude sense of humour is 

 known to every horseman. To rip the cap off 

 a groom's head and drop it in the water is the 

 sort of joke which appeals to a horse or a little 

 boy. Once I was standing beside a friend who 

 sat in a dog-trap, and each of us enjoyed a 

 glass of beer while we passed the time of day. 

 Just for fun the pony drank half my beer, but 

 when I brought him a bowl of the same, pre- 

 tended to be an abstainer. That pony would 

 visit his master's dining-room of a morning to 

 remove the covers and inspect the dishes for 

 breakfast. 



Another friend of mine once had a horse 

 named Kruger, black roan with a white star 

 on each flank. It had been his life's ambition 

 to be a skewbald, and disappointment had 

 lopped both ears over a glass eye, so that he 

 looked like the very Devil. A greyhound body, 

 long legs and a mincing gait completed his un- 



