136 HORSES: 



The following winter was quite open for this lati- 

 tude, and we used four horses, on the farm, in the 

 wood lot, and on the road, all unshod throughout the 

 season. Horses fairly on their feet. (that is, with tough 

 hoofs, not weakened by nails, and the influence of 

 shoes) will travel without flinching in the least over 

 the hardest and roughest frozen ground or -broken 

 stones,, provided they are a little used to it. A bare- 

 foot horse will not " ball " in soft snow and he will 

 stand up on smooth ice. So as the horses went 

 through the winter so well, and neither spring nor 

 summer made me change my mind about the princi- 

 ple involved, I approached the next winter with con- 

 fidence that I could drive the horses barefoot that 

 season too. I was too sanguine ; the ground froze 

 early, the roads wore down as smooth as a barn floor ; 

 there came a storm in January of mixed snow and rain 

 followed by extreme cold, and the whole land was a 

 sheet of ice. I thought about how Mr. Bowditch 

 had galloped on the ice with only a " toe-clip," and 

 started out boldly. My horse did not fall, but he 

 was in mortal fear of falling and I was proportionately 

 uncomfortable. I tried the matter well and gave it 

 up, had the horses shod and they went free again, ex- 

 cept when a soft snow fell upon the ice ; then with snow 

 two or three inches thick packed in balls below their 

 feet they were worse off than if barefooted. 



I am entirely satisfied that it is best to use shoes 

 in icy weather, and in fact in winter weather generally. 

 The disadvantage is that the hoof walls are hurt by 

 the nails — but then I have the nails driven very close 



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