ART OF HANDLING AND TAMING DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 39 
vehicle, is less dangerous than when at liberty, for the man has more 
the means of mastering him. Those who have to hold a horse by 
the bridle should place themselves beside his left shoulder, and, 
drawing his head towards them, hold it down : he cannot then 
bite, nor plunge, nor prance on his conductor. If, on the contrary, 
the man who wishes to hold him places himself before him, the 
animal runs quickly at his conductor, or drags him down, or tram- 
ples on him, or, disengaging himself, escapes, causing much disor- 
der, and compromising every one’s safety. His master, already 
wounded, may find himself exposed to actions by law, or brought 
before the police and compelled to make reparation for the acci- 
dents which the animal has caused. 
In attempting to stop a fiery horse which has run away, great 
care must be taken to avoid receiving a dangerous kick. The es- 
sential point is to seize the animal by the bridle. If he has not a 
halter, it is still more difficult to stop him. It is then necessary to 
seize him firmly by the ear or fore-lock. If these measures are 
badly taken and the animal escapes, he often wounds by his kicks, 
or tramples on the body of the fool who would stop him. 
A fiery horse, when he is harnessed to a carriage or a cabriolet, 
requires still more prudence, for the obstacles the vehicle opposes 
to his flight exasperate and augment the dangers of this position. 
It is in this case that coolness, address, and courage, are the most 
necessary to guide us in employing the proper means to be used in 
order to prevent the occurrence of serious accidents. In these cases 
I have frequently seen courageous and active men stop a furious 
horse, and throw him down and twist the head backward on the 
chest, either by means of the bit or by taking the lower lip in one 
hand and the ear in the other, the more quickly to perform this 
twist of the head on the chest. Paris has had a recent example of 
the empire which a vigorous and determined man may exercise over 
a very strong horse. We saw this in the case of a Russian, who, 
to perform castration on a powerful horse, seized the thighs and 
hams of the animal and held them firmly in his nervous arms, and 
then, with a movement equally rapid and cruel, pulled out the tes- 
ticles with his teeth, which served him for bistoury and other in- 
struments. In this practice, equally cruel and extraordinary, this 
new-fashioned operator required no assistance, nor any of the means 
used to fix the animal. This operation has been practised with 
success in the stud of Virofley, and in the stables of several ama- 
teurs by this Russian, who assures them that this proceeding is 
generally adopted in his native country. 
But notwithstanding these traits of courage, this happy teme- 
rity, there is no doubt that patience and gentleness are the prefer- 
able means of taming most animals — that good treatment will 
