FOREST AND STREAM. 



359 



The Horse Bit. — The question of the bit, and of the 

 hand that rules the bit, underlies the consideration of the 

 whole subject of man's dominion over the horse. The in- 

 telligence of man kind has hitherto invented but two prin- 

 cipal forms of the bit; the snaffle, the simple piece of iron 

 which lies across the mouth, subject to endless modifica- 

 tions, such as being twisted, jointed, and so forth; and the 

 curb-bit, a more powerful implement, which has likewise, 

 undergone innumerable variations. 



The curb-bit is an adaptation of the principle of the 

 lever, and the lengthening of the checkpiece allows a very 

 powerful pressure to be exercised upon the jaw of the 

 horse. Thesnaffie is, so to say, a natural bit, and the curb 

 an artificial one. The snaffle was used by our ancestors 

 and by the ancient Greeks; the curb is an Asiatic invention, 

 and was probably brought into Europe by the Moors^ In 

 the famous mosaic found at Pompeii, representing, as is 

 supposed, a battle between the Greeks and Persians, and 

 Avhich, at any rate, is the picture of a battle between Euro- 

 peans and Asiatics, the Eastern horsemen ride with curbs, 

 and the Europeans with snaffles. The difference in the bit 

 modifies the whole style of riding; and as there are two 

 sorts of bits, so are tliere two quite different styles or 

 schools of horsemanship, which may be called the eastern 

 and the western styles. 



The type of the eastern is best seen in the modern Bed- 

 ouin Arab, with his short stirrups, peaked saddle, and 

 severe bit; and the western type in its simplest form is 

 beautifully exemplified in the Elgin marbles, where naked 

 men bestride bare-backed horses. To ride after this fash- 

 ion is an athletic exercise; the strength of the man is 

 set against the strength of the horse with little ad- 

 ventitious aid. The rider restrains the horse's im- 

 petuosityby the sheer force of his arm, and he maintains a 

 seat on his back by exercising the muscles of his legs. It 

 is the equitation of athletes- and of heroes; but it is clear 

 that the balanced seat of the Arab, and the more complete 

 command over his horse which follows from the greater 

 security of his seat, would make him infinitely more for- 

 midable in war than the European, in spite of the superior 

 strength and size of the latter. 



History teaches us how the cavalry of the Saracens — 

 small men on small horses — rode down the Christian horse- 

 men till they learnt to ride with the bits, saddles, and lan- 

 ces of the Moslem cavalry. The invention of the curb-bit 

 necessitated the stirrup, for a man sitting upon a bare-back- 

 ed horse is forced to bear, at times, more or less heavily 

 upon the briddle; and if , so riding, he were using a curb- 

 bit, and he were to lean any part of his weight upon it, his 

 horse would stop, or would rear, or would flinch. The 

 ancient Greeks and Romans are believed not to have known 

 the use of stirrups. They are, indeed said not to have been 

 discovered till the fifth century of our era. This, if it is 

 true, would apply only to Europe. In the east they were 

 used many centuries before. The earliest representation of 

 one I know is in the above mentioned mosaic, where the 

 horse of a dismounted trooper in Oriental costume is drawn 

 with clearly-indicated stirrups; the Greek horsemen in the 

 mosaic are without them. — Mew Quarterly Magazine* 



A House Toilette ix England. — To show the amount 

 of money sometimes expended in keeping a horse stable in 

 condition, we publish the following list, by an English sad- 

 dler, of articles needed by a gentleman keeping a carriage 

 and one horse : — 



Set of single harness complete, one driving whip, car- 

 riage mats, whip socket, one loin leather, one suit horse 

 clothin"-, one night rug, one roller, one pair knee caps, one 

 set flannel bandages, one set linen bandages, one exercis- 

 ng bridle, one head collar, one pair head collar reins, two 

 logs, one pair pillar reins, one singeing apparatus, lamp, 

 one horse brush, one curry comb, one water brush, one 

 dandy brush, two composition brushes, one oil brush, one 

 bass broom, one inside carriage brush, one set shoe brushes, 

 one crest brush, one brass brush, two rack chains, six rub- 

 bers, four leathers, two sponges, one mane comb, one trim- 

 ming comb, one pair scissors, one dung fork, one dung 

 shovel, one dung basket, one corn measure, one corn seive, 

 one picker, one stopping box, one lantern, one pail, one 

 burnisher, one setter, one oil can, one oil bottle, one scraper, 

 one clippiag machine, one hemp head and reins, and clean- 

 ing materials, viz.: — soap, oil, dye, some composition, car- 

 riage candles, blacking. 



— The celebrated trotting horse Ripon Boy, died lately of 

 hydrophobia, at Horicon, Wisconsin. 



The Goodenough Horse Shoes. — Of course there are 

 rational and irrational methods of horse shoeing: men, as 

 a rule, keep forever in ruts, and why should farriers lie 

 supposed to differ from the general rules governing man- 

 kind? Expert as horse shoers may be in the art of secure- 

 ly fastening the iron shoe to the soft and elastic pad called 

 a horse's hoof , the grand error, the oversight, the ignorance 

 displayed, is in the construction of the shoe itself. We 

 may build a house of a peculiar stone, and employ the 

 cleverest masons to place and point the stone, but if the 

 stoue be poor in quality, all the skill of the masons goes 

 for nothing, for the house will, in time, crumble and go to 

 pieces. 



Now-a days, fortuuately, the construction of the shoe, 

 itself, has been taken out of the hands of the blacksmith, 

 and no end of careful study has been directed towards the 

 construction of an iron shoe, which shall not only be last- 

 ing, but at the same time, preserve the nature and quality 

 of the hcrses foot, and we have no hesitation from actual 

 experience in recommending the Goodenough horse shoe. 

 In the first place, it is a light shoe, being scarcely half the 

 weight of the old-fashioned shoe. The foot surface has the 

 marked advantage of having a true bevel, making that por- 

 tion of the web which receives the bearing of the hoof, the 

 widch of the thickness of the wall or crust. Especially 

 now, in. whiter, the calkins on the shoe is excellent !o pre 

 vent slipping. In the ordinary method of calking, the shoe 

 rests on three points, straining the foot so that the frog, 

 Whieh is unsupported, takes an unnatural proportion of the 

 pressure. In the Goodenough shoe the calks are wisely 

 supplied in such a way as "to give a ual oral bearing all 

 around. There is no 'possible doubt but that the Good- 

 enough shoe not only keeps a horse more squarely on his 

 legs, saving the rider or driver from danger, but necessarily 

 &ad£> to the comfort of the horse, and one immense advan- 

 tage in the Goodenough shoe is, that when well put on, it 

 '- hy far the most economical shoe in use. 



IngzziUqz. 



THE BEARS OF THE PYRENEES. 



THE bear is a serious beast, a thorough mountaineer, 

 curious to behold in his great-coat of felted hair, yel- 

 lowish or grayish in color. It seems formed for its domi- 

 cile and its domicile for it. Its heavy fur is an excellent 

 mantle against the snow. The mountaineers think it so 

 good that they borrow it from him as often as they can, 

 and he thinks it so good that he defends it against them to 

 the best of his ability. He likes* to live alone, and the gor- 

 ges of the heights are as solitary as he wishes. The hollow 

 trees afford him a ready-made house; as these are for the 

 most part beeches and oaks, he finds in them at once food 

 and shelter. For the rest, brave, prudent, and robust, he 

 is an estimable animal; his only faults are that he eats his 

 little ones, when he runs across them, and that he is a poor 

 dancer. 



In hunting him, they go into ambush and fire on him as 

 he passes. Lately, in a battue, a superb female was track- 

 led. When the foremost hunters, who were novices, saw 

 the glitter of the little fierce eyes, and perceived the black 

 mass descending with great strides, beating the underbrush, 

 they forgot all oi* a sudden that they had guiis,and kept whist 

 behind their oak. A hundred paces further on, a brave 

 fellow fired. The bear, which was not hit, came up on a 

 gallop. The man, dropping his gun, slipped into a pit. 

 Reaching the bottom, he felt of his limbs, and by some 

 miracle found himself whole, when he saw the animal hesi- 

 tating above his head, busy in examining the slope, and 

 pressing her foot upon the stones to see if they were firm. 

 She sniffed here and there, and looked at the man with the 

 evident intention of paying him a visit. The pit was a 

 well; if she reached the bottom, he must resign himself to 

 a tOte-a-tGte. While the. man reflected on this, and thought 

 of the animal's teeth, the bear began to descend with infi- 

 nite precaution and address, managing her precious person 

 with great care, hanging on to the roots, slowly , but with- 

 out over stumbling. She was drawing near, when the h u li- 

 ters came up and shot her dead. — A Tour through the 



Pyrenees * Twine. 



««^V- : _ 



SNAIL PRESERVES. 



SNAIL dealers are not content with collecting the cork- 

 screw individuals wherever they may happen to see 

 them; they proceed more systematically, and keep up snail 

 gardens or snail preserves; "it is really snail culture, analog- 

 ous in some degree to the oyster culture of England and 

 Prance. In the Voralberg, a bit of the Tyrol that juts in 

 like a wedge between Bavaria and Switzerland, there are 

 regular snail gardens, intended to subserve the twofold pur- 

 pose of ridding the farmers of a nuisance, and providing an 

 article of food for such human beings as can relish it. " In 

 various parts of the canton or distinct, during two or three 

 summer months, the gardens, hedges, coppices, woods, and 

 damp places are thoroughly examined by boys and girls, 

 who collect the snails, and deposit them in small plots of 

 ground set apart for the purpose. Each of these plots 

 forms a dry garden an acre or two in extent, free from trees 

 and shrubs, and having a moat or running water all round 

 it. The plot is covered with little heaps of twigs of the 

 mountain pine, mixed lightly with moss; these heaps are 

 placed at regular distances apart. The snails creep into 

 them for shelter alike against the cold of night and the 

 heat of mid-day sun. When this shelter is lessened by the 

 decay of the small leaves on the twigs, the heaps are fur- 

 bished up with a new supply, Every day the snails are fed 

 with cabbage leaves and grass, receiving an extra allowance 

 in damp weather. When harvest is over, and winter shows 

 signs of approaching, they regularly burrow themselves in 

 the heaps, and (figuratively speaking) tuck in snugly for the 

 winter. The water, after flowing all round the margin of 

 the plot, escapes by one outlet only; and at this outlet the 

 moat is guarded by a grating. The snails often tumble in- 

 to the water while crawling about their domain, or get into 

 it somehow or otber, and are carried by the stream towards 

 the grating; this is examined every morning, and all the 

 Wanderers taken back to their garden. When the snails 

 have sealed themselves up, they are collected for the 

 market, packed in perforated boxes lined with straw. Ac- 

 Cording to the plentifulness of the grass and cabbage crop, 

 dach plot or garden may contain from fifteen to fort}'' thou- 

 sand snails, some of which come to grief before the summer 

 is over; but the majority are destined to the honor of ap- 

 pearing on the dinner-table or supper-table of the South 

 Tyrolese inhabitants, who greatly relish them. The system 

 is certainly a commendable one, seeing that it brings to an 

 available market what would otherwise be a nuisance and 

 source of loss to the husbandman. — All the Year Round. 



TEXAS CATTLE. 



lew j§tthlientiom. 



IN 1872 there were four hundred and fifty thousand cattle 

 driven overland from Western Texas to Kansas, through 

 the Indian Territory, by Bluff Creek and Caldwell, up the 

 famous "Cbisholm trail." In 1871 as many as seven hun- 

 dred thousand were driven across. The general value of 

 "Kansas beeves" is $*h8 to $13 gold; but after deducting all 

 expenses the average profit on the "drive" is not much 

 more than a fair rate of interest on the money invested. 

 But few cattle are transported by sea; the outlet for the 

 trade by way of Indianola has never been very successful. 

 The Morgan steamships carry perhaps 40,000 beeves yearly 

 that way. The two great shipping points in 1872-3 were 

 Wichita, on a branch of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa 

 Fe Railroad, at the junction of the Arkansas and Little 

 Arkansas Rivers; and Ellsworth, on the Kansas Pacific 

 Railroad. The whole country, at the time of transit, is 

 covered with vast herds which begin to arrive in Kansas 

 early in May and await buyers there. A stampede is some- 

 thing which baffles description; you must witness it. It is 

 a tempest of horns and tails, a thunder of hoofs, a lightning 

 of wild eyes; I can describe it no better. Merely to see a 

 man on foot is sometimes sufficient to set the average Texan 

 cattle into a frenzy of fear, and a speedy stampede; for the 

 great majority of them have never been approached save 

 by men on horseback. The gathering up of stock is no 

 small task, as a herd of seventy-five^thousand cattle will 

 range over an area fifty miles wide by a hundred miles long. 

 Large stock-raisers are always increasing their stock by 

 buying herds adjacent to their ranges. Many persons make 

 fort lines by simply gathering upland branding the cattle 

 which the rightful owners" have negi&etecl to brand,— 

 Scribmr'ti Monthly, . _ 



[Publications sent to this office, treating upon subjects that corns within 

 the scope of the paper, will receive special attention. The receipt of oil 

 books delivered at our Editorial Booms will be promptly acknowledged 

 in the next issue. Publishers will confer a favor by promptly advising 

 as of any omission in this resoect. Prices of books inserted when 

 desired.] 



-♦ 



Artists and Aitvns. By Henry Blackburn. Author of 

 "Picturesque Normandy. " Illustrated. 18mo. Red edges. $1 SO. 

 Boston: J. R. Osgood & Co. 



This is a finely illnstraled little work, and comprises the jotting? of the 

 autlior as he passed through the several places of which he so pleasantly 

 speaks. His style reminds us somewhat of Bayard Taylor's manner of 

 conversation. The initial chapter opens with the author "on the wing; 11 

 The art season being on the wane in London, he commences his journey 

 from the Tweed to the Shetland Isles, over the hills and amid all the 

 beauties of nature, as unfolded to his artistic eye in a mild July day. 

 Being one of a sketching party of two, our friend Blackburn has fully il- 

 lustrated hio travels with graphic sketches of his picturesque tour among 

 what he tritely calls "Artists and "H'abs," and well has he acquitted him- 

 self in the work before us. We can only recommend this work to our 

 friends; we would much like to tell them more about it, to speak in de- 

 tail of Algiers, The Moorish Quarters, Our Studio, Models, Our Life 

 School, The Bonzareah, A Storm, and the many otber highly interesting 

 illustrated papers, but we forbear. 



ANNOUNCEMENTS. 



By T. S. Arthur. Illus- 

 Phila. : Porter & Coates. 



The Days of My Youth. By Amelia B. Edwards. :iu- 



thor of the "Vagabond Heroine,'' Ac Phila.: Porter & Coates. 

 Book of Standard Faiky Tales. Illustrated with ten 



full pages of engravings after designs by Dore and Crnikstanks. 12 



mo. $150. Phila,: Porter & Coates. 

 The Illustrated Book op Domestic Poultry. With 



twenty chromo illustrations, etc. By Martin Doyle. Brown, 8vo. 



$4 DO. Phila.: Porter & Coates. 



Ten Nights in a Bar-Room. 



.trated edition. Cloth, extra, $1 25. 



History ok Portsmouth, N. II. In two series, each a 

 complete work in itself. By Chas. W. Brewster, a pleasant, reliable, 

 correct, historian. Portsmouth, N. H. : Louis W. Brewster. 



Tin: IIousekeepee's Manual. By Catharine E. Beecher 

 and Harriet Beecher Stowe. Illustrated. N. Y. : Pub. By J. B. Ford 

 & Co. 



Library ok Poetry and Song. Being selections from 

 the best poets. Illustrated. With an introduction. By W. O. Bry- 

 ant. New York: J. B. Fold & Co. 



The Money Maker; or The Mysteries of the Basalisk. 

 Illustrated. Price $1 50. Boston: Lee & Shepard. Also Prof. J. 

 De Mille's new book, "The Winged Lion. " $150. Lee & Shepard. 



From Scribner, Armstrong & Co. we have three bcoks 



differing very materially in character., yet each may be called a pro- 

 nounced book. Each is a good book in^ its own peculiar department. 

 First, we have from the protiflc pen of Jules Vcrne,a favorite "Trip from 

 the Earth to the Moon;" then we have "Diamonds and Precious Stones 11 

 a translation from the French of Louis Dienlafait, telling us all about 

 gems and their wonderful interesting history; worth twice the price 

 named for it. Thirdly, the remarkable history of Stanley's, called "My 

 Kalluber." This is the famous traveller, who says he "found Living, 

 stone," and Kallubewas to him as the man Friday was to Robinson 

 drttgqe. At first we thought it a book for mature reading, but we think 

 it better designed for a younger class of our readers. We shall notice in 

 their appropriate places all the above books. These notes will be con- 

 tinued, giving short outlines of new publications from time to time as 

 books are received from the publishers for notice. 



jj$mwe)0 §jo ^or\e^onthnt$. 



[We shall endeavor in this department to impart and hope to receive 

 such information as may be of service to amateur and professional sports- 

 men. We will cheerfully answer edl reasonable (juestions that fall within 

 the scoj)e of this paper, designating localities for good hunting, fish- 

 ing, and trapping, and giving advice and instructions as to outfits, im 

 elements, routes, distances, seasons, expenses, remedies, traits, sincies 

 governing rules, etc. All branches of the sportsman's craft will receive 

 attention. Anonymous Communications not Noticed. 



— + ! 



F. B., Broad street. — Have sent to Nebraska for information. 



O. II. Hampton. — You must shoot off ties at. 23 yards. 



Dr. G. F. H., Hartford.— You can have the guarantee of Mr. Price, the 

 owner of the champion pointer of England. Do you require an imported 

 dog or bitch? 



Aquarium. Two fish are enough for one gallon of water, particularly 

 in warm weather. During the winter one or two moremay be added 

 to the number; a few aquatic phmts should be kept in an aquarium at all 

 times, and receive plenty of light. When plants are first put in, it 

 should remain a few days before the fish are put in so the water will have 

 tune to purify and clear itself. 



Alleghany, Pittsburgh.— Order one of the best grade 28 inch, 10 bore. 

 Try it every way, especially for penetration and pattern and report. If 

 you are satisfied with the one they send yon ; then order the proper 

 crook iu the stock for your friends and suggest any alterations you may 

 see fit. 



Exchange. — One of our most valuable correspondents wishes to ex- 

 change a complete set of the Medical and Surgical History of the War, 

 got up by the Government at great expense. These volumes are scarce 

 and very valuable. Any physician having a setter dog to dispose of can 

 make an exchange on terms. 



Mastiff, Baltimore.— I have a valuable mastiff; he is looking quite 

 thin and sick; see the cause in my letter. Ans. Mix the following and 

 give two tablespoonfuls every time: Prepared chalk. 2 to 3 drachms; ar- 

 omatic confection, 1 drachm; laudanum, 3 to 8 drachms; powder of gum 

 arable, 2 drachms; water, 7 ounces. 



Under Lever, New York.— 1st. What barrels are best for breech- 

 loaders, Damascus or laminated steel? Ans. Damascus iron of the 

 very best quality; but there is some made by unprincipled persons which 

 on the snrface presents the Damascus pattern without extending any 

 deeper. 2d. Do you consider Hazard's No. 2 duck shooting 'powder 

 coarse enough for a fine 7 lb., 12 bore. 28 in. laminated steel barrel 

 breech-loader? Ans. We don't understand the question; coarse enough 

 to do what? 3d. Why does not a pin fire gun shoot as good ana as 

 strong as a central fire? Ans, Each system has its advocates, but the 

 almost universal use of the central fire by sportsmen has never given a 

 practical solution to the question of preference. By reason of the cen- 

 tral ignition better shooting is done. 



J". N. W., St. John, N. B.— I have often; shot birds in the Bahamas, 

 called by the negroes, Gauldings. ' Can you please inform me of what 

 species they are? Their habits arc something as follows: It flies about 

 lagoons and mangrove bushes towards evening; I never found them 

 about in day time; of grayish color and about the. size of a partridge: 

 head like a hen's; I found them always alone; will send a sketch about 

 them sometime; they give fair sport, and I have often knocksd them 

 over on the wing; I often used to shoot wading from one little island to 

 another, with water from six inches to three feet deep and a broiling 

 sun overhead; have gone shooting in Jamaica with the thermometer at 

 100. Ans. Probably the Mangrove Hen, Ilattus longi/ostris, resembling 

 a pullet, which is mentioned by Gosse, Naturalist's Sojourn in Jamaica. 

 1)351. p. 247, 



