248 TRAINING VICIOUS HORSES. 



unbroken colt of my own raising for a young Morgan brood 

 mare in foal, "sight unseen" (as the boys used to swap jack- 

 knives), the animals being upwards of sixty miles apart when 

 the trade was made. 



After having made this trade it was gradually revealed to 

 me that I had secured a kicker of the first water, and that the 

 last three owners had not dared make the attempt of even 

 putting a harness upon her. But I want to say right here that 

 this proved to be one of the best horse trades I ever made in 

 my life. I kept and used this mare for upwards of two years, 

 and used her in any and all places any one could need use a 

 horse, viz.: in the field, on the road, on a milk wagon, under 

 the saddle, and in all ways a general purpose horse might be 

 used ; and, among other things, this mare, beside another Ver- 

 mont Morgan mare, cut twelve acres of heavy grass in a day, 

 driven by my son. Now, how would I use a kicking horse in 

 harness ? 



In the first place, check pretty hard with an over-draw 

 check (let me say right here that this is the only use I ever had 

 for an over-draw check, as they are very cruel if used long at a 

 time, and especially so if buckled at all tight). Tie the tail, at 

 the end, firmly into a loop, fasten with a strong, but small, cord 

 to the whiffletree ; have the string just long enough to allow a 

 very slight motion of the tail. Firmly fasten by the middle to 

 the end of the string a small, smooth, round piece of stick of 

 tough, hard wood, a little thicker than a lead pencil. When 

 you hitch the mare up run this through the loop, fix it securely 

 across and go ahead. She will not try to kick many times 

 rigged in this way, before giving up, as she cannot kick if she 

 wishes to. I will repeat that the cord must be strong. Per- 

 severance guarantees success in this case. I would also recom- 

 mend the wearing of a regular kicking strap on all animals 

 driven in single harness that are at all liable to kick. 



