Teaching Horses Tricks. 



Many horses are susceptible of an education far more exten- 

 sive than is necessary for ordinary use, and for the benefit ol 

 such persons as may desire to teach their horses something more 

 than the usual accomplishments, whether for their own amuse- 

 ment, or for the purpose of seeing how far the intelligence of the 

 animal can be developed, I have prepared a description of a 

 variety of tricks, which, as performed by my horses, have been 

 received with universal applause, both in the United States and 

 in Canada. But that no person may be misled into supposing 

 that this forms a part of my general system of educating the 

 horse, I deem it proper to present these directions separately. 



Though the tricks to be hereafter explained will add nothing 

 of intrinsic value to the horse, nor of real benefit to his owner, 

 yet the reader will readily see in them the demonstration of a 

 highly important fact, viz., that horses can be taught the meaning 

 of words, and to yield obedience to sounds to such an extent aa 

 to convince a candid mind that their intelligence is far in advance 

 of that generally attributed to them. With these remarks I will 

 proceed to explain the modus operandi, as I call attention to a 

 variety of tricks they may easily be taught to perform. Before 

 passing to this, let me impress on the reader some leading prin- 

 ciples in educating the horse. First, never allow yourself to get 

 in a hurry ; impatience or excitement on your part will go far in 

 defeating the object of your instructions. Second, do not pro- 

 long your lessons beyond twenty minutes at one time; and, 

 especially, never use severity beyond that which may be ab- 

 solutely necessary. Thus by kindness and patience in repeating 

 your lessons at short intervals, you will surmount every dif- 

 ficulty and accomplish your purpose in a manner satisfactory to 

 yourself. 



