DRIVING A PAIR. 307 



To do this well, the horses must match in. action and tem- 

 per, two slugs being much better than a free-tempered 

 horse with a si ug ; because, in this case, the whip applied 

 to the one only makes the other more free, and as a con- 

 sequence it is impossible to make them draw equally. In 

 some cases where two horses are exactly equally matched, 

 the coupling-reins must both b^ of equal length ; but this 

 is seldom the case ; and when they do not do an equal 

 amoant of work, the coupling-rein of the free one must be 

 taken up, and that of the idle horse let oat. In watching 

 the working of the two horses the pole-pieces should 

 always be the guide; and if both are slack, with, the end 

 of the pole steady, and neither horse shouldering it, the 

 driver may rest contented that his horses are each doing 

 their share ; if, however, the pole is shouldered by either, 

 that horse is a rogue, and is making the other do more 

 than his share, keeping the pole straight by the pressure ol 

 his shoulder, instead of pulling at the traces. On the 

 other hand, if either horse is pulling away from the pole, 

 and straining at the pole-piece, he is doing more than his 

 share, and his coupling- rein must be taken in accordingly. 

 Sometimes both shoulder the pole, or spread from it, which 

 are equally unsightly habits, and may generally be cured 

 by an alteration of the coupling-reins of both horses, let- 

 ting them out for shouldering, and taking them in for its 

 opposite bad habit. The reins are held in the same way for 

 double-harness as for single. In driving a pair, it should 

 always be remembered that there are two methods of driv- 

 ing round a curve, one by pulling the inside rein, and 

 the other by hitting the outside horse, and these two-should 

 generally be combined, graduating the use of the whip by 

 the thinness of the skin of the horse. In all cases the 

 whip is required in double harness, if not to drive horses 

 when thoroughly put together, yet to make them pull 



