SHOEING. 



the ftruaure of a horfe's foot in a natural ftate, it will be 

 ebvious, that paring away the fole, frog, &c. muft be hurt- 

 ful, and in reality is deftroying that fuWtance provided by 

 nature for the defence of the internal parts of the foot : from 

 fuch praftice it muil be more liable to accidents from hard 

 bodies, fuch as ftiarp (tones, nails, glafs, &c. From this 

 confideration we fhall likewiVe find, that a narrow piece of 

 iron, adapted to the ftape and fize of the foot, is the only 

 thing neceffary to proteft the cruft from breaking or wear- 

 ing away ; the fole, &c. requiring no defence if never pared. 

 But there is one obfervation farther necellary to be made ; 

 which is, that the (hoc (hould be made of good iron, well 

 worked, or what fmiths call hammer-hardened, that is, beaten 

 all over lightly with a hammer when almod cold. It is well 

 known, that heating of iron till it is red foftens it greatly ; 

 and when the (hoes thus foftened are put upon hories' feet, 

 they wear away like lead. But when the (lioes arc well 

 hammered, the iron becomes more compaft, firm, and hard ; 

 fo that a well-hammered (hoe, though made confiderably 

 lighter, yet will laft as long as one that is made heavier ; the 

 advantage of which is obvious, as the horfe will move his 

 feet with more atlivity, and be in lefs danger of cutting his 

 legs. The common concave fhoes are very faulty in this 

 refpeft ; for, in fitting or (haping them to the foot, they 

 require to be frequently heated, in order to make them bend 

 to the unequal furface which the hoof requires from the 

 conftant ufe of thefe fhoes ; they thereby become foft, and 

 to attempt to harden them by beating or hammering when 

 they are (haped to the foot would undo the whole. But fiat 

 fhoes, by making them when heated a little narrower than 

 the foot, will, by means of hammering, become wider, and 

 acquire a degree of elallicity and firmnefs which it is necef- 

 fary they fhould have, but impoffible to be given them by 

 any other means whatever ; fo that any farrier from praftice 

 will foon be able to judge, from the quality of the iron, how 

 much a (hoe, in fitting it to the circumference of the hoof, 

 will ftretch by hammering when it is almoft cold : this ope- 

 ration in fitting flat fhoes will be the lefs difficult, efpecially 

 when it is confidered, that as there are no inequalities on the 

 furface of the hoof (or, at leaft, ought not to be) which 

 require to be bended thereto, fhoes of this kind only require 

 to be made fmooth and flat ; hence they will prefs equally 

 upon the circumference or cruft of the hoof, which is the 

 natural tread of a horfe. And a preference has lately been 

 given by Mr. Moorcroft to this Ifind of flioe, which he calls 

 the " feated fhoe," and which he has formed in a die, in the 

 fame manner as money is ftruck in coining. The upper fur- 

 face of this (hoe confifts of two parts ; an outer part, which 

 is a perfeft plane near the rim, correfponding with the 

 breadth of the cruft, and called ihefeat ; and an inner part. 

 Hoping from the feat, and diftinguifhed by the name of the 

 he-vel. The feat is obvioufly intended to fupport the cruft 

 in its whole extent, the bevel to lie off" the fole ; and this 

 part being more or lefs broad, according to the kind of work 

 propofed to be done, will give the requifite ftrength to the 

 ihoe. As the whole of the cruft bears on the feat, it is lefs 

 liable to be broken than when only a fmall part of it refts 

 on the ftioe. In confequence, likewife, of the cruft refting on 

 the flat feat, the weight of the body has a tendency to fpread 

 the foot wider in every direftion, rather than to contraft it, as 

 has been obferved to happen with the common ftioe, and when 

 afterwards fhod with the feated one, it has become wider with- 

 out the horfe having been taken from his ufual work ; and 

 again, it is obferved, that a foot being of a full fize and proper 

 form when firft fliod with the feated flioe, has retained the 

 fame fize and form without the flighteft alteration, as long 

 as the feated fhoe was ufed. By the fiope or bevel in the 

 3 



ftioe, a cavity is formed between it and the fole, fufKcienf t<3 

 admit a picker, and to prevent preffure on this part, without 

 the fole itfelf being hollowed, and confequently weakened^ 

 For if it be one of the fundlions of the horny fole to defend 

 the fenfible fole, of which, from its fituation and nature, no 

 one can doubt, it mult be evident that the more perfeft it is 

 left, the ftronger it muft neceffarily be, and of courfe the more 

 competent to perform its office. And though he cannot be 

 fanguine enough to fuppofe that this (hoe will prevent 

 lamenefs in every cafe, there is neverthelefs fufficient proof 

 from experience to adert, that it will diminiih its frequency. 

 Some (trong objections have however been made to this forns 

 of (hoe by Mr. Coleman. If it fhould be found, where the 

 fhoe is applied, that the file very frequently receives pref- 

 fure, then we fhall demonftrate that the praftice is incom- 

 patible with the principle. If it be good praftice for the 

 fole to receive preflure, then the principle muft be erroneous 

 that attempts to make the fhoe reft totally on the cruft ; and 

 if the principle be well founded for the cruft only to fupport 

 the (hoe, then, if the fole be in contaft with the fhoe, the 

 praftice muft be imperfeft. Except a model is taken to 

 every horfe's foot, it is impoffible for the refting-place of the 

 fhoe precifely ta fit the cruft ; for the cruft not only varies 

 exceedingly in different horfes, but in the fame heof at differ- 

 ent parts. The flat furface, therefore, that is only broad 

 enough for the toe, is frequently too broad for the quarters 

 and heels. And in all the fhoes he has ever feen of this de- 

 fcription, the flat part of the flioe is made of the fame breadth 

 at the quarters as at the toe. It is farther to be obferved, 

 that this furface very generally exceeds the cruft at every 

 part. In the fame proportion as the feat of the fhoe ex- 

 ceeds the breadth of cruft, exaftly fo much of a flat furface 

 is oppofed to an equal quantity of fole. The principle of 

 this fhoe is therefore defeated by the praftice ; for, inftead of 

 the feat refting on the cruft, it projcfts over the edge of the 

 fole. It is therefore a faft, that while great pains have 

 been taken to make a flat feat on the fhoe, m order to fup- 

 port the cruft only, and the web concave, in order to remove 

 predure from every part of the fole, that the feat has never- 

 thelefs very rarely fitted the crult ; and confequently the 

 foles of all flat feet, at their conneftion with the cruft, muft 

 receive more or lefs of preflure from the feat of the fhoe. 

 Where the fole is concave, this fhoe will only reft on the 

 cruft ; but a fhoe that is flat on its whole internal furface 

 would anfwer the fame purpofe ; for the concave part of 

 the fole oppofite to the concavity of the web of the fhoe 

 would receive no preflure, even from a fhoe wholly flat. 

 He therefore recommends a flioe which has been found free 

 from thefe and other objeftions, and which indeed bids fair 

 to fuperfede the ufe of every other kind. But before this 

 is noticed, it may be neceffary to mention curforily the fhoes 

 propofed by Mr. St. Bel, and Mr. Taplin ; but in faft the 

 changes they have introduced are rather novelties than im- 

 provements. Mr. St. Bel has indeed committed a great 

 error, that of promoting the arched form of the horfe's 

 foot, and thus raifing the frog out of the way of preffure, 

 a praftice highly injurious to the animal. 



It is indeed obferved, in refpeft to Mr. St. Bel's mode of 

 ftioeing, by Mr. Coleman, that he employed a fhoe with a 

 fiat upper furface ; but, from not attending to the very- 

 important operation of removing the fole under the heels of 

 the fhoe, to every kind of hoof, it frequently failed of fuc- 

 cefs. But that the belt form of the external furface of the 

 fhoe is a regular concavity, that is, the common fhoe reverfed. 

 This fhoe leaves the hoof of the fame figure when fhod, 

 as before its application. And it is evident, that a con- 

 cavity has more points of contaft with pavement and other 



tonvex 



