24 MANUAL OF PACK TKANSPOBTATION. 



In the days of the "panel" crupper, the division of the crupper 

 below the dock was a straight cut, provided with holes on either side 

 for lacing. When the animal's taU became sore the lacing was 

 tightened, with the object of drawing the dock of crupper downward 

 from the animal's tail or dock, in each case affording no relief, but 

 instead, causing soreness across the buttocks. 



The latter trouble caused many pack masters to be constantly at 

 work on the dock, adding more filling, some going so far as to pro- 

 vide a wooden stick to give it stiffness, without relief. (See sec. 9.) 



When the withers and loins became sore, the aparejo was said to 

 be "broken down;" hence the packer's objection to the use of the 

 aparejo as a seat, an objection well taken, but not the direct cause. 

 (See footnote.) 



It was considered that tight cinching caused "belly bunches," and 

 that unevenness in the filhng or padding was alone responsible for 

 body bunches. 



For "body bunches" (a puffing up of the skin), the hay or padding 

 was loosened up in the aparejo, with the expectation of giving relief, 

 when perhaps a fault in one or more of the "ribs" may have been the 

 direct cause of the "bunch." In the first instance, a loosening of the 

 hay will not reduce a bunch; in the second instance, an improper 

 rib or stick in the aparejo will always cause trouble. Both of these 

 conditions must be removed to relieve the animal of its misery. 



For "belly bunches" a gunny sack or other sirnilar material was 

 provided and folded in several thicknesses, so as to have a surface 

 about 10 inches square, and held together by a few stitches; a hole 

 was then cut at center, corresponding to the size of the bunch; the 

 pad was then held over the affected part, the cincha of the aparejo 

 holding pad to place and expecting to afford relief or reduce the 

 bunch. The cause of the trouble not being removed, the use of the 

 pad did not reheve it. 



When the aparejo was improperly ribbed, by being too weak in 

 front, the cinch or the aparejo worked forward, causing what are 

 termed "cinch sores," retarding the travel of the animal, as weU as 

 throwing the load forward and eventually on the animal's neck if 

 not attended to, and, if ribbed too weak, at rear, throwing the load 

 over the animal's kidneys, preventing the animal from retaining its 

 aparejo in proper position and carrying its load with comfort. 



When the pack mule would leave the trail and lie down, endeavor- 

 ing to relieve itself of its burden, it was said the animal could not 

 stand tight cinching, and was not a suitable animal for pack service. 



The misery shown by the dumb animal never appealed to the sense 

 of the animal man. 



For all these evils the proper "setting up" of the aparejo must be 

 intelhgently understood, and sore mules wiU be a thing of the past; 

 or, in other words, there must be smooth bearing on the body of the 

 animal covered by the aparejo and its cincha. (See sees. 4 to 7.) 



Note. — The objection taken by packers to using the aparejo as a 

 seat when in bivouac is because the weight of the body when seated 

 on the aparejo compresses the ribs more than happens when the 

 aparejo is on the animal. 



