SOME OBSERVATIONS ON SHOEING. 
575 
are always to be adhered to, but the practice must vary as the 
varying nature of the case may require. For instance, the nails 
are only to be driven through the crust or outer wall of the 
toot; and no part of the shoe is ever to rest upon the sole. But 
to apply a shoe of the same form and make indiscriminately to 
all;—to a weak and to a strong foot;—to one that has upright 
and one that has low heels, although the shoe may be exceedingly 
well made, is still bad shoeing; because it shews a want of 
sufficient judgment and discrimination in the artist. 
Here it may not be amiss to take a short view of some of the 
leading forms of horseshoe, such as have either claimed the 
greatest degree of merit from their principles, or are most in use 
amongst us. 
The common seated shoe , which has so long been in very gene¬ 
ral use throughout the British isles, first, I think, met with a 
strong advocate in Mr. J. Clark, of Edinburgh (whose book on 
shoeing is dated 1782), and afterwards with a still more powerful 
friend in the late Mr. Morecroft. It is undeniably an excellent 
form as far as regards what may be called the two first principles 
of shoeing, viz. avoidance of pressure on the sole, and safety in 
nailing. But we find it does not prevent the heels of the hoof 
from contracting; and therefore, although it may be a very good 
shoe for perhaps the majority of feet, yet it is by no means the 
best that can be applied to such hoofs as have a strong tendency 
to contraction. 
The hinge-toed shoe , brought forward in such a favourable light 
before the public by Mr. Bracy Clark, is one formed upon an 
excellent theoretical principle, viz. that it will allow of the 
natural expansion of the heels on contact with the ground; 
which lateral expansion we observe takes place, to a certain 
degree, at every step, in the natural and unshod hoof. Now 
this is a very good principle to go upon, but unfortunately this 
shoe is quite impracticable in a very great number of feet. If 
the hoof be sufficiently strong to hold the nails without splitting, 
there cannot, perhaps, be a better contrived shoe to prevent or 
remove contraction of the heels. But wherever the crust is not 
exceedingly strong, the great stress upon the naifs, from the con¬ 
tinual sideway expansion of the shoe, must infallibly tear away 
their hold, leaving the hoof in a broken and bare state ; and if 
persevered in, perhaps, at last, untenable for nails, or a shoe ol 
any form. 
The cnrve-toed shoe , with the French method of nailing, first 
adopted by Mr. Goodwin, and so ably advocated by that authority 
in his excellent Treatise on Shoeing, offers a form which, at first 
sight, promises many advantages. 1 have, however, seen much 
