The advantage of double-handed riding is

The advantage of double-handed riding is

The advantage of double-handed riding is

The advantage of double-handed riding is, that, in a few hours, any colt and any pupil in horsemanship may learn it.

To make the most of a horse, the reins must be held with a smooth, even bearing, not hauling at a horse’s mouth, as if it were made of Indian rubber, nor yet leaving the reins slack, but so feeling him that you can instantaneously direct his course in any direction, as if, to use old Chifney’s phrase, your rein was a worsted thread. Your legs are to be used to force your horse forward up to the bit, and also to guide him. That is, when you turn to the right pull the right rein sharpest and press with the left leg; when to the left, vice versâ. Unless a horse rides up to the bit you have no control over him.

The rider has no power one-handed

The rider has no power one-handed

The rider has no power one-handed

But it takes a long time to make a colt understand that he is to turn to the right when the left rein is pulled; and if any horse resists, the rider has no power one-handed, as the reins are usually held, to compel him.

The practice of one-handed riding originated in military schools; for a soldier has to carry a sword or lance, and depends chiefly on his well-trained horse and the pressure of his legs. No one ever attempts to turn a horse in harness with one hand, although there the driver has the assistance of the terrets, and it is equally absurd to attempt it with a colt or horse with a delicate mouth. Of course, with an old-trained hack even the reins are a mere form; any hint is enough.

The golden rule of horsemanship is laid down by Colonel Greenwood

The golden rule of horsemanship is laid down by Colonel Greenwood

The golden rule of horsemanship is laid down by Colonel Greenwood

The golden rule of horsemanship is laid down by Colonel Greenwood, in a sentence that noodles will despise for its trite simplicity: When you wish to turn to the right, pull the right rein stronger than the left. This is common sense. No horse becomes restive in the colt-breaker’s hands. The reason is, that they ride with one bridle and two hands, instead of two bridles and one hand. When they wish to go to the left, they pull the left rein stronger than the right. When they wish to go to the right, they pull the right rein stronger than the left. If the colt does not obey these indications, at least he understands them, even the first time he is mounted, and the most obstinate will not long resist them. Acting on these plain principles, I saw, in August last, a three-year-old colt which, placed absolutely raw and unbridled in Mr. Rarey’s hands, within seven days answered every indication of the reins like an old horse turned right or left, brought his nose to the rider’s knee, and backed like an old trooper.

Hands And Reins.

Hands And Reins.

Presuming that you are in a fair way to obtain a secure seat, the next point is the use of the reins and the employment of your legs, for it is by these that a horseman holds, urges, and turns his horse. To handle a horse in perfection, you must have, besides instruction, good hands. Good or light hands, like the touch of a first-rate violinist, are a gift, not always to be acquired even by thought and practice. The perfection of riding is to make your horse understand and obey your directions, as conveyed through the reins to halt, or go fast or slow; to walk, trot, canter, or gallop; to lead off with right or left leg, to change leg, to turn either way, and to rise in leaping at the exact point you select. No one but a perfect horseman, with naturally fine hands, can do this perfectly, but every young horseman should try.

Placing one hand on the horse’s mane

Placing one hand on the horse’s mane

Placing one hand on the horse’s mane

Placing one hand on the horse’s mane, make him lean down to each side in succession, till he reaches to within a short distance of the ground. These exercises give a man a firm hold with his legs, on a horse, and teach him to move his limbs without quitting his seat. Then take him in the circle in the longe, and, by walking and trotting alternately, teach him the necessity of leaning with the body to the side the horse is turning to. This is the necessary balance. Then put him with others, and give him plenty of trotting, to shake him into his seat. By degrees teach him how to use the reins, then the leg.

These directions for training a full-grown trooper may be of use to civilians.

But to return to the subject of a man’s seat on horseback

But to return to the subject of a man’s seat on horseback

But to return to the subject of a man’s seat on horseback

But to return to the subject of a man’s seat on horseback. Nolan, quoting Baucher, says, When first put on horseback, devote a few lessons to making his limbs supple, in the same way that you begin drill on foot with extension motions. Show him how to close up the thigh and leg to the saddle, and then work the leg backwards and forwards, up and down, without stirrups; make him swing a weight round in a circle from the shoulder as centre; the other hand placed on the thigh, thence to the rear, change the weight to the opposite hand, and same.

It was not for want of examples of

It was not for want of examples of

It was not for want of examples of

It was not for want of examples of a better style that the continental military style was forced upon our cavalry. Mr. Nathaniel Gould relates in his little book as an instance of what determined hunting-men can do, that

When, in the year 1815, Blucher arrived in London and drove at once to Carlton House, I was one of a few out of an immense concourse of horsemen who accompanied his carriage from Shooter’s Hill, riding on each side; spite of all obstacles we forced ourselves through the Horse Guards gate and the troop of guardsmen, in like manner through the Light Cavalry and gate at Carlton House, as well as the posse of constables in the court-yard, and drove our horses up the flight of stone steps into the salon, though the guards, beefeaters, and constables arrayed themselves against this irruption of Cossacks, and actually came to the charge. The Prince, however, in the noblest manner waved his hand, and we were allowed to form a circle round the Regent while Blucher had the blue ribbon placed on his shoulders, and was assisted to rise by the Prince in the most dignified manner. His Royal Highness then slightly acknowledged our presence, we backed to the door, and got down the steps again with only one accident, that arising from a horse, which, on being urged forward, took a leap down the whole flight of stairs.

Soon after the battle of Waterloo

Soon after the battle of Waterloo

Soon after the battle of Waterloo

Soon after the battle of Waterloo, by influence of the Prince Regent, who fancied he knew something about cavalry, a Prussian was introduced to teach our cavalry a new style of equitation, which consisted in entirely abandoning the use of that part of the person in which his Royal Highness was so highly gifted, and riding on the fork like a pair of compasses on a rolling pin, with perfectly straight legs. For a considerable period this ridiculous drill, which deprived the soldiers of all power over their horses, was carried on in the fields where Belgrave Square now stands, and was not abandoned until the number of men who suffered by it was the cause of a serious remonstrance from commanding officers. It is a pity that the reverse system has never been tried, and a regiment of cavalry taught riding on English fox-hunting principles, using the snaffle on the road, and rising in the trot. But it must be admitted that since the war there has been a great improvement in this respect, and there will probably be more as the martinets of the old school die off.

When a riding-master tells you that you must ride by balance

When a riding-master tells you that you must ride by balance

When a riding-master tells you that you must ride by balance

Therefore, when a riding-master tells you that you must ride by balance, with your body upright, knee drawn back, and the feet in a perpendicular line with the shoulder, and your legs from the knee downward brought away to prevent what is called clinging, listen to him, learn all you can do not argue, that would be useless and then take the first opportunity of studying those who are noted for combining an easy, natural seat with grace that is, if you are built for gracefulness some people are not. In Nolan’s words, Let a man have a roomy saddle, and sit close to the horse’s back; let the leg be supported by the stirrup in a natural position, without being so short as to throw back the thigh, and the nearer the whole leg is brought to the horse the better, so long as the foot is not bent below the ankle-joint.

Legs from the knee carefully clear of the horse’s sides in fact

Legs from the knee carefully clear of the horse’s sides in fact

Legs from the knee carefully clear of the horse’s sides in fact

It is a curious circumstance that the English alone have two styles of horsemanship. The one, natural and useful, formed in the hunting-field; the other, artificial and military, imported from the Continent. If you go into Rotten Row in the season you may see General the Earl of Cardigan riding a trained charger in the most approved military style the toes in the stirrups, long stirrup-leathers, heels down, legs from the knee carefully clear of the horse’s sides in fact, the balance seat, handed down by tradition from the time when knights wore complete armour and could ride in no other way, for the weight of the armour rendered a fall certain if once the balance was lost; a very grand and graceful style it is when performed by a master of the art of the length of limb of the Earl, or his more brilliant predecessor, the late Marquess of Anglesea. But if you go into Northamptonshire in the hunting season, you may see the same Earl of Cardigan in his scarlet coat, looking twice as thick in the waist, sailing away in the first flight, sitting down on the part intended by nature for a seat, with his knees well bent, and his calves employed in distributing his weight over the horse’s back and sides. In the one case the Earl is a real, in the other a show, horseman.

And in the English cavalry in India

And in the English cavalry in India

And in the English cavalry in India

On this point we cannot have a better authority then that of the late Captain Nolan, who served in the Austrian, Hungarian, and in the English cavalry in India, and who studied horsemanship in Russia, and all other European countries celebrated for their cavalry. He says

The difference between a school (viz. an ordinary military horseman) and a real horseman is this, the first depends upon guiding and managing his horse for maintaining his seat; the second depends upon his seat for controlling and guiding his horse. At a trot the school rider, instead of lightly rising to the action of the horse, bumps up and down, falling heavily on the horse’s loins, and hanging on the reins to prevent the animal slipping from under him, whilst he is thrown up in his seat.

Do this often in the hunting-field

Do this often in the hunting-field

Do this often in the hunting-field

Young men should learn to leap into the saddle by placing both hands on the cantle, as the horse moves. I have seen Daly, the steeplechaser, who was a little man, do this often in the hunting-field, before he broke his thigh.

With respect to the best model for a seat, I recommend the very large class who form the best customers of riding-school masters in the great towns of England, I mean the gentlemen from eighteen to eight-and-twenty, who begin to ride as soon as they have the means and the opportunity, to study the style of the first-class steeplechase jockeys and gentlemen riders in the hunting-field whenever they have the opportunity. Almost all riding-masters are old dragoons, and what they teach is good as far as it goes, as to general appearance and carriage of the body, but generally the military notions about the use of a rider’s arms and legs are utterly wrong.

And full power over a pulling horse

And full power over a pulling horse

And full power over a pulling horse

There are certain rules laid down as to the length of a man’s stirrup-leathers, but the only good rule is that they should be short enough to give the rider full confidence in his seat, and full power over a pulling horse. For hunting it is generally well to take them up one hole shorter than on the road.

The military directions for mounting are absurd for civilians; in the first place, there ought to be no right side or wrong side in mounting; in both the street and hunting-field it is often most convenient to mount on what is called the wrong side. In the next place horses trained on the Rarey plan (and very soon all horses will be), will stand without thinking of moving when placed by the rider, so that the military direction to stand before the stirrup becomes unnecessary.

After all the rules of horsemanship have been perfectly learned

After all the rules of horsemanship have been perfectly learned

After all the rules of horsemanship have been perfectly learned

After all the rules of horsemanship have been perfectly learned, nothing but practice can give the instinct which prepares a rider for the most sudden starts, leaps, and kickings up behind and before.

The style of a man’s seat must, to a certain extent, be settled by his height and shape. A man with short round legs and thighs cannot sit down on his horse like tall thin men, such as Jim Mason, or Tom Oliver, but men of the most unlikely shapes, by dint of practice and pluck, go well in the hunting-field, and don’t look ridiculous on the road.

The first step is to sit well down on the saddle

The first step is to sit well down on the saddle

The first step is to sit well down on the saddle

The first step is to sit well down on the saddle, then pass the right leg over the upstanding pommel, and let it hang straight down, a little back, if leaping; if the foot pokes out, the lady has no firm hold. The stirrup must then be shortened, so as to bring the bent thigh next to the knee of the left leg firmly against the under side of the hunting-horn pommel. If, when this is done, an imaginary line were drawn from the rider’s backbone, which would go through the centre of the saddle, close to the cantle, she is in her proper place, and leaning rather back than forward, firm and close from the hips downwards, flexible from her hips upwards, with her hands holding the reins apart, a little above the level of her knee, she is in a position at once powerful and graceful. This is a very imperfect description of a very elegant picture. The originals, few and far between, are to be found for nine months of the year daily in Rotten Row. A lady in mounting, should hold the reins in her left hand, and place it on the pommel, the right hand as far over the cantle as she can comfortably reach. If there is no skilful man present to take her foot, make any man kneel down and put out his right knee as a step, and let down the stirrup to be shortened afterwards. Practise on a high chest of drawers!

I have placed at the head of this chapter a woodcut

I have placed at the head of this chapter a woodcut

I have placed at the head of this chapter a woodcut

In order to give those ladies who may not have instruction at hand an idea of a safe, firm, and elegant seat, I have placed at the head of this chapter a woodcut, which shows how the legs should be placed. The third or hunting-horn pommel must be fitted to the rider, as its situation in the saddle will differ, to some extent, according to the length of the lady’s legs. I hope my plain speaking will not offend American friends.

One of the most accomplished horsewomen of the day

One of the most accomplished horsewomen of the day

One of the most accomplished horsewomen of the day

I have high authority for recommending lessons without holding the bridle. Lady Mildred H , one of the most accomplished horsewomen of the day, taught her daughter to walk, trot, canter, gallop, and leap, without the steadying assistance of the reins.

A second point is, that every pupil in horsemanship should begin by holding the rein or reins (one is enough to begin with) in both hands, pulling to the right when they want to go to the right, and to the left when they wish to go to the left, that is the proper way of riding every strange horse, every colt, and every hunter, that does not perfectly know his business, for it is the only way in which you have any real command over your horse. But almost all our riding-school rules are military. Soldiers are obliged to carry a sword in one hand, and to rely, to a great extent, on the training of their horses for turning right or left. Ladies and gentlemen have no swords to carry, and neither possess, nor can desire to possess, such machines as troop-horses. Besides other more important advantages which will presently be described by commencing with two-handed riding, a lady is more likely to continue to sit squarely, than when holding the reins with one hand, and pretending to guide a horse who really guides himself. A man has the power of turning a horse, to a certain extent, with his legs and spurs; a woman must depend on her reins, whip, and left leg. As only one rein and the whip can be well held in one hand, double reins, except for hunting, are to a lady merely a perplexing puzzle. The best way for a lady is to knot up the snaffle, and hang it over the pommel, and ride with a light hand on the curb.

Both sexes are apt to acquire the habit of holding on by the bridle

Both sexes are apt to acquire the habit of holding on by the bridle

Both sexes are apt to acquire the habit of holding on by the bridle

Both sexes are apt to acquire the habit of holding on by the bridle. To avoid this grave error, the first lessons in walking and cantering should be given to the pupil on a led horse, without taking hold of the bridle; and this should be repeated in learning to leap. The horsemanship of a lady is not complete until she has learned to leap, whether she intends to ride farming or hunting, or to confine herself to Rotten Row canters; for horses will leap and bound at times without permission.

Little girls who learn their first lessons by riding with papa

Little girls who learn their first lessons by riding with papa

Little girls who learn their first lessons by riding with papa

Little girls who learn their first lessons by riding with papa, who is either absorbed in other business, or himself a novice in the art of horsemanship, get into poky habits, which it is extremely difficult to eradicate when they reach the age when every real woman wishes to be admired.

Therefore, let everyone interested in the horsemanship of a young lady commence by placing her, as early as possible, under the tuition of a competent professional riding-master, unless he knows enough to teach her himself. There are many riding-schools where a fair seat is acquired by the lady pupils, but in London, at any rate, only two or three where they learn to use the reins, so as to control an unruly horse.

If they are provided with suitable side-saddles

If they are provided with suitable side-saddles

If they are provided with suitable side-saddles

Young ladies may learn on full-sized horses quite as well as on ponies, if they are provided with suitable side-saddles.

A man, or rather a boy, may learn to ride by practice and imitation, and go on tumbling about until he has acquired a firm and even elegant seat, but no lady can ever learn to ride as a lady should ride, without a good deal of instruction; because her seat on horseback is so thoroughly artificial, that without some competent person to tell her of her faults, she is sure to fall into a number of awkward ungraceful tricks. Besides, a riding-school, with its enclosed walls and trained horses, affords an opportunity of going through the preliminary lessons without any of those accidents which on the road, or in a field, are very likely to occur with a raw pupil on a fresh horse. For a young lad to fall on the grass, is not a serious affair, but a lady should never be allowed to run the chance of a fall, because it is likely to destroy the nerve, without which no lessons can be taught successfully. All who have noticed the performances of Amazones in London, or at Brighton, must have in remembrance the many examples of ladies who, with great courage, sit in a manner that is at once fearful and ridiculous to behold; entirely dependent on the good behaviour of horses, which they, in reality, have no power of turning, and scarcely of stopping.

Before Rarey introduced his system

Before Rarey introduced his system

Before Rarey introduced his system

Before Rarey introduced his system, there was no satisfactory mode of training those ponies that were too small for a man to mount, unless the owner happened to live near some racing stable, where he could obtain the services of a feather-weight doll, and then the pony often learned tricks more comic than satisfactory.

By patiently applying the practices explained in the preceding chapters, the smallest and most highly-bred pony may be reduced to perfect docility without impairing its spirit, and taught a number of amusing tricks.

However suitable for carrying heavy old gentlemen

However suitable for carrying heavy old gentlemen

However suitable for carrying heavy old gentlemen

I particularly warn parents against those broad-backed animals which, however suitable for carrying heavy old gentlemen, or sacks to market, are certainly very uncomfortable for the short legs of little boys, and likely to induce rupture. On a narrow, well-bred pony, of 11 or 12 hands high, a boy of six can sit like a little man. It is cruel to make children ride with bare legs.

Children who have courage may be taught to ride a horse

Children who have courage may be taught to ride a horse

Children who have courage may be taught to ride a horse

Children who have courage may be taught to ride almost as soon as they can walk. On the Pampas of South America you may see a boy seven years old on horseback, driving a herd of horses, and carrying a baby in his arms!

I began my own lessons at four, when I sat upon an old mare in the stall while the groom polished harness or blacked his boots. Mr. Nathaniel Gould, who, at upwards of seventy years, and sixteen stone weight, can still ride hunting for seven or eight hours at a stretch, mentions, in his observations on horses and hunting, that a nephew of his followed the Cheshire fox-hounds at seven years of age. His manner of gathering up his reins was most singular, and his power of keeping his seat, with his little legs stretched horizontally along the saddle, quite surprising. The hero Havelock, writing to his little boy, says, You are now seven years old, and ought to learn to ride. I hope to hear soon that you have made progress in that important part of your education. Your uncle William (a boy-hero in the Peninsula) rode well before he was seven years old. The proper commencement for a boy is a pony in which he can interest himself, and on which he may learn to sit as a horseman should.

There is nothing heroic in good riding

There is nothing heroic in good riding

There is nothing heroic in good riding

There is nothing heroic in good riding, when dissected. The whole thing is a matter of detail a collection of trifles and its principles are so simple in theory and so easy in practice that they are despised.

It is an accomplishment that may, to a certain extent, be acquired late in life. I know instances in both sexes of a fair firm seat having been acquired under the pressure of necessity after forty years of age (I could name lawyers, sculptors, architects, and sailors), but it may be acquired with ease and perfection in youth, and it is most important that no awkward habits should be acquired.

A bold bad rider must not be merely brave, he must be fool-hardy

A bold bad rider must not be merely brave, he must be fool-hardy

A bold bad rider must not be merely brave, he must be fool-hardy

A bold bad rider must not be merely brave; he must be fool-hardy; for he is perpetually in as much danger as a blind man among precipices.

In riding, as in most other things, danger is for the timid and the unskilful. The skilful rider, when apparently courting danger in the field, deserves no more credit for courage than for sitting in an arm-chair, and the unskilful no more the imputation of timidity for backwardness than if without practice he declined to perform on the tight-rope. Depend upon it, the bold bad rider is the hero.

Not to be able to ride with a young husband a serious privation

Not to be able to ride with a young husband a serious privation

Not to be able to ride with a young husband a serious privation

For a young lady not to be able to ride with a lover is a great loss; not to be able to ride with a young husband a serious privation.

The first element for enjoying horse exercise is good horsemanship. Colonel Greenwood says very truly: Good riding is worth acquiring by those whose pleasure or business it is to ride, because it is soon and easily acquired, and, when acquired, it becomes habitual; and it is as easy, nay, much more easy, and infinitely more safe, than bad riding. Good riding will last through age, sickness, and decrepitude, but bad riding will last only as long as youth, health, and strength supply courage; for good riding is an affair of skill, but bad riding is an affair of courage.

A man feels twice a man on horseback

A man feels twice a man on horseback

A man feels twice a man on horseback

A man feels twice a man on horseback. The student and the farmer meet, when mounted, the Cabinet Minister and the landlord on even terms good horsemanship is a passport to acquaintances in all ranks of life, and to make acquaintances is one of the arts of civilised life; to ripen them into use or friendship is another art. On horseback you can call with less ceremony, and meet or leave a superior with less form than on foot. Rotten Row is the ride of idleness and pleasure, but there is a great deal of business done in sober walks and slow canters, commercial, political, and matrimonial.

You cannot learn to ride from a book

You cannot learn to ride from a book

You cannot learn to ride from a book

You cannot learn to ride from a book, but you may learn how to do some things and how to avoid many things of importance. Those who know all about horses and horsemanship, or fancy they do, will not read this chapter. But as there are riding-schools in the City of London, where an excellent business is done in teaching well-grown men how to ride for health or fashion, and as papas who know their own bump-bump style very well often desire to teach their daughters, I have collected the following instructions from my own experience, now extending over full thirty years, on horses of all kinds, including the worst, and from the best books on the subject, some of the best being anonymous contributions by distinguished horsemen, printed for private circulation. Every man and woman, girl and boy, who has the opportunity, should learn to ride on horseback. It is almost an additional sense it is one of the healthiest exercises it affords amusement when other amusements fail relaxation from the most severe toil, and often, in colonies or wild countries, the only means of travelling or trading.

Value of good horsemanship to both sexes.

Value of good horsemanship to both sexes.

Value of good horsemanship to both sexes. On teaching children. Anecdote. Havelock’s opinion. Rarey’s plan to train ponies. The use of books. Necessity of regular teaching for girls, boys can be self-taught. Commence without a bridle. Ride with one pair of reins and two hands. Advantage of hunting-horn on side-saddle. On the best plan for mounting. Rarey’s plan. On a man’s seat. Nolan’s opinion. Military style. Hunting style. Two examples in Lord Cardigan. The Prussian style. Anecdote by Mr. Gould, Blucher, and the Prince Regent. Hints for men learning to ride. How to use the reins. Pull right for right, and left for left. How to collect your horse.

The following anecdote from Scrutator’s Horses and Hounds

The following anecdote from Scrutator’s Horses and Hounds

The following anecdote from Scrutator’s Horses and Hounds

The following anecdote from Scrutator’s Horses and Hounds, illustrates the soundness of Mr. Rarey’s system: A gentleman in our neighbourhood having purchased a very fine carriage horse, at a high price, was not a little annoyed, upon trial, to find that he would not pull an ounce, and when the whip was applied he began plunging and kicking. After one or two trials the coachman declared he could do nothing with him, and our neighbour, meeting my father, expressed his grievances at being thus taken in, and asked what he had better do. The reply was ‘Send the horse to me tomorrow morning, and I will return him a good puller within a week.’ The horse being brought, was put into the shafts of a wagon, in a field, with the hind wheels tied, and being reined up so that he could not get his head between his legs, was there left, with a man to watch him for five or six hours, and, of course, without any food. When my father thought he had enough of standing still, he went up to him with a handful of sweet hay, let down the bearing rein, and had the wheels of the wagon released. After patting the horse on the neck, when he had taken a mouthful or two of hay, he took hold of the bridle and led him away the wagon followed thus proving stratagem to be better than force. Another lesson was scarcely required, but, to make sure, it was repeated, and, after that, the horse was sent back to the owner. There was no complaint ever made of his jibbing again. The wagon to which he was attached was both light and empty, and the ground inclined rather towards the stable.

A much more severe disease in America than in England. Edit.

Lady’s seat, with hunting-horn pommel.

Have it standing in a favourable position for starting

Have it standing in a favourable position for starting

Have it standing in a favourable position for starting

As soon as he performs rightly, hitch him in an empty waggon; have it standing in a favourable position for starting. It would be well to shorten the trace-chain behind the steady horse, so that, if it is necessary, he can take the weight of the waggon the first time you start them. Do not drive more than a few rods at first; watch your jibbing horse closely, and if you see that he is getting excited, stop him before he stops of his own accord, caress him a little, and start again. As soon as they go well, drive them over a small hill a few times, and then over a larger one, occasionally adding a little load. This process will make any horse true to pull.

There is a quicker process that will generally start a baulky horse

There is a quicker process that will generally start a baulky horse

There is a quicker process that will generally start a baulky horse

There is a quicker process that will generally start a baulky horse, but not so sure. Stand him a little ahead, so that his shoulders will be against the collar; and then take up one of his fore feet in your hand, and let the driver start them, and when the weight comes against his shoulders he will try to step: then let him have his foot, and he will go right along. If you want to break a horse from baulking that has long been in that habit, you ought to set apart a half-day for that purpose. Put him by the side of some steady horse; have driving reins on them; tie up all the traces and straps, so that there will be nothing to excite them; do not rein them up, but let them have their heads loose. Walk them about together for some time as slowly and lazily as possible; stop often, and go up to your baulky horse and gentle him. Do not take any whip about him, or do anything to excite him, but keep him just as quiet as you can. He will soon learn to start off at the word, and stop whenever you tell him.

And then speak to them with a steady voice

And then speak to them with a steady voice

And then speak to them with a steady voice

Almost any team, when first baulked, will start kindly if you let them stand five or ten minutes as though there was nothing wrong, and then speak to them with a steady voice, and turn them a little to the right or left, so as to get them both in motion before they feel the pinch of the load. But if you want to start a team that you are not driving yourself, that has been baulked, fooled, and whipped for some time, go to them and hang the lines on their hames, or fasten them to the waggon, so that they will be perfectly loose; make the driver and spectators (if there are any) stand off some distance to one side, so as not to attract the attention of the horses; unloose their check-reins, so that they can get their heads down if they choose; let them stand a few minutes in this condition until you can see that they are a little composed. While they are standing, you should be about their heads, gentling them: it will make them a little more kind, and the spectators will think that you are doing something that they do not understand, and will not learn the secret. When you have them ready to start, stand before them, and, as you seldom have but one baulky horse in a team, get as near in front of him as you can, and, if he is too fast for the other horse, let his nose come against your breast: this will keep him steady, for he will go slow rather than run on you. Turn them gently to the right, without letting them pull on the traces as far as the tongue will let them go: stop them with a kind word, gentle them a little, and then turn them back to the left, by the same process. You will then have them under your control by this time; and as you turn them again to the right, steady them in the collar, and you can take them where you please.

When we remember that we are dealing with dumb brutes

When we remember that we are dealing with dumb brutes

When we remember that we are dealing with dumb brutes

When we remember that we are dealing with dumb brutes, and reflect how difficult it must be for them to understand our motions, signs, and language, we should never get out of patience with them because they don’t understand us, or wonder at their doing things wrong. With all our intellect, if we were placed in the horse’s situation, it would be difficult for us to understand the driving of some foreigner, of foreign ways and foreign language. We should always recollect that our ways and language are just as foreign and unknown to the horse as any language in the world is to us, and should try to practise what we could understand were we the horse, endeavouring by some simple means to work on his understanding rather than on the different parts of his body. All baulked horses can be started true and steady in a few minutes’ time: they are all willing to pull as soon as they know how, and I never yet found a baulked horse that I could not teach to start his load in fifteen, and often less than three, minutes’ time.

Or looks around and doesn’t want to go

Or looks around and doesn’t want to go

Or looks around and doesn’t want to go

When your horse baulks, or is a little excited, if he wants to start quickly, or looks around and doesn’t want to go, there is something wrong, and he needs kind treatment immediately. Caress him kindly, and if he doesn’t understand at once what you want him to do, he will not be so much excited as to jump and break things, and do everything wrong through fear. As long as you are calm, and keep down the excitement of the horse, there are ten chances that you will make him understand you, where there would not be one under harsh treatment; and then the little flare up will not carry with it any unfavourable recollections, and he will soon forget all about it, and learn to pull truly. Almost every wrong act the horse commits is from mismanagement, fear, or excitement: one harsh word will so excite a nervous horse as to increase his pulse ten beats in a minute.