SELECTION, CARE AND MANAGEMENT 



585 



to cool for at least a minute after this, and will still 

 be hot enough for use. Experienced branders do not 

 heat their irons even this hot. They heat them 

 until there is a bluish tinge running over the face 

 of the branding instrument, but beginners will have 

 to work as indicated. At the beginning it is best 

 to test the irons on some grade horses until you 

 have determined the proper heat and time. The 

 numbers are 1% inches high and the burning face 

 is barely % of an inch. The copper branding instru- 

 ments must be carefully handled; for when hot they 

 are very soft. If thrown down carelessly, or struck 

 against one another, they will be bent out of shape 

 and ruined. 



"Step up beside the colt, and if you are a short 

 man step on a box, so that you will be up on a level 

 with the neck. Then apply the brand to the neck 

 on the spot desired with one straight movement, 

 making sure that all of the branding surface of the 

 iron comes in contact with the neck. If this is not 

 done, one part of the brand will be deep while the 

 other will be barely touched. It is sufficient to bring 

 the iron against the neck and take it away. A 

 second is all that is required. If the hair has been 

 clipped, a second's touch with the hot brand will 

 bum the hair roots and turn the skin to a light-brown 

 color. Do not try to re-apply the brand; if you 

 do you will simply blur the figure and spoil the 

 mark. The chief danger with men who are inexper- 

 ienced in branding is that they have the iron too 

 hot, or apply it too long. This results in too deep 

 a bum, and in the case of such figures as 8 or 

 may bum out the entire center core, leaving a blotch 

 on the neck, so that the figure is indistinguishable. 

 If the irons are hot, as directed, a single straight 

 application for a second is sufficient to bum the hair 



