VIII THE FOAL 97 
latter are often the sole cause of a young horse 
doing badly and losing flesh. 
A two-year-old agricultural colt or filly may 
begin to do a little work on the farm, and help 
towards its keep, but if a filly two years old and 
rising three is put into light work she should on no 
account be put to the horse at that age. I have 
observed no harm done by breeding off two-year-old 
mares that are left unbroken and well kept till they 
are rising four; in fact, it is better for a two-year- 
old mare to go to the horse, say, in June, foal in 
May when she is three years old, and not go to 
work till the following “back end” when she is 
rising four, than to go into hard work on the farm 
straight away. A hunter mare need not be any the 
worse for having a foal in May at three years old and 
remaining unmade till the following December, when 
she may be backed and ridden, and not only see, 
but go to, hounds before the end of the hunting 
season. 
A young hackney should be run in hand fre- 
quently—the more the better after he is two years 
old, to teach him to trot and move fast and freely ; 
his action thus early cultivated will rapidly improve 
when he gets into work and on to hard meat, and 
has his nose pulled in by his rider. 
As for the manner of accustoming young 
agricultural horses to the harrow, the plough, and 
the shafts, it would be, more appropriate for the 
farmer to teach me than that I should attempt to 
advise him, but all young horses that have learnt 
to run well in hand show themselves off to much 
greater advantage when the day of sale comes than 
H ' 
