CHAPTER X 



THE CARTER'S PRIDE 



In the older days the country towns on market days were 

 gay with the brightly-painted farm-waggons with their well- 

 groomed teams. 



There was an amicable rivalry among the carters as to 

 the dressing of their horses, for the brightly-polished brass 

 ornaments and the gay rosettes of worsted ribbon were the 

 carter's own property, and when not on the horses were 

 often arranged as a trophy over the cottage fireplace. Fore- 

 most among these ornaments were the ear-bells, with their 

 upright plume of black and white, or red and yellow horse- 

 hair, that followed the top strap of the headstall and buckled 

 in just above the blinkers. Sometimes in the place of the 

 plume there was the ornament of three tinkling bells, or the 

 circular brass plate, hinged at the top, that flashed as it 

 swung, often turning right over as Dobbin tossed his head ; 

 and there was a brass plate with shaped edge, engraved with 

 a horse and cart or some other device, that went upon the 

 nose-band. Then there were the ' face-pieces,' in a great 

 variety of pattern : also used below the collar, three or four 

 one above another. Those of a raised crescent shape are of 

 an extremely ancient design ; the lowest one on the right, 

 with three crescents joined, I think I remember to be 

 identical with an Assyrian horse-ornament. Other portions 

 of the harness were profusely ornamented with small round 

 brass studs and heart-shaped and bossy brasses. 



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