Chapter XVI (2)

When the metal has to be washed, cleaned, and polished, should the bit be sewn to the head-piece, the leather cannot be removed during the processes. Water is not beneficial to a leathern material; therefore the bit must either be imperfectly renovated, or the head-piece must be soiled during the requisite labor demanded for the purification of its adjunct. These annoyances are avoided when the bit is made to take on and off by the means of a buckle. Each part can then be properly attended to without hazard to the rest. Should the bridle not appear clean, the owner recognizes a legitimate cause for complaint; but when the bit is fixed, the groom has always ready an excuse for idleness, while the consequent wear will be found altogether more rapid.

There are various kinds of bits, and each has its admirers; but a well-broken and a good-tempered animal requires nothing more powerful than a snaffle. Restraints of needless severity, employed with extravagant exertion, are by no means required, though such are far too general with the great majority of professed horsemen. The animal is spoilt by such tuition. It is educated to understand nothing but coercion; whereas gentleness and firmness combined can accomplish much more than brutality can compel.

There is a well-known tale, which, being illustrative of this subject, may here be aptly quoted. A farmer, intending to break a colt for sale, mounted the animal; but hardly was he in the saddle before the ears were laid upon the neck, and the frame rendered rigid by the presence of obstinacy. The intention of the attitude was recognized by all; but offers of stick, whip, or spur were as stubbornly rejected. “No, no, no,” replied the kind-hearted proprietor to the proposal of such favorite persuaders. “Jane, lass! bring I the afternoon’s mug and pipe.” These were discussed. Another pipe was filled and exhausted, without the honest fellow descending to earth. Then the colt was invited to proceed; but the humor of the quadruped continued unaltered; accordingly it remained stationary, with the master on its back.

“Father! tea is quite ready,” cried Jane, peering from the kitchen window. “Bring it here, lass, for I shan’t get down!” was the response. The tea was brought and partaken of. The day was drawing toward its close, and the air was becoming cold. “I should not mind having my great-coat, a pipe, and a glass,” shouted the farmer. Everything was brought, and the man endeavored to make his position comfortable; but apparently took no heed of the creature beneath him. “For,” he observed, “if I could strike, the colt could fling and prance; so it might not be certain which would master; whereas, while I be quiet, I’ve the best on’t.”

Supper was eaten where the tea had been swallowed: the master showed he was resolved, unless the colt moved, to pass the night in the saddle. The animal became uneasy, and shifted about; but without progressing until some time after the clock had struck eleven. Then the colt was suddenly disposed to progress. “Whoy!” shouted its master, “you have stayed so long to please yourself, now remain a little longer to pleasure I!”

At length the rider was disposed to move, but in an opposite direction to that which the colt was inclined to travel. The animal was also willing to trot briskly, but the farmer would sanction nothing faster than a walk. Accordingly, the pair slowly moved five miles out, and trotted five miles home. Then the quadruped was placed before an empty manger, and left, tired and hungry, to its night’s meditations on the evils of disobedience. The above narrative, of course, concludes by stating that the animal proved docile “forever afterward.”

The obvious intention of the above is to discourage the employment of force. The strongest man cannot physically contend against the weakest horse. Man’s power reposes in better attributes than any which reside in thews and muscles. Reason, alone, should dictate and control his conduct. Thus guided, mortals have subdued the elements. For power, when mental, is without limit: by savage violence nothing is attained, but the man is often humbled through a conviction of defeat.

Every species of bit is evidence of a human mistake, and the wrench which it can exert is only the measure of the error. Many valuable animals are annually ruined, under a prejudiced notion about subduing a stubborn spirit. The horse is born submissive. It by nature acknowledges the superiority of man. When the animal refuses to obey, the disobedience only expresses the creature’s ignorance of the desires of its master; or declares the presence of some more potent influence than human authority. In either case, patience is the best remedy. Let the rider be passive until the slow understanding of the quadruped comprehends his pleasure; or until a sufficient pause has destroyed the spell by which the servant was enthralled. Pat the neck; speak encouragingly to the alarmed timidity. Then gently walk the fearful life a few steps. In shorter time, with less trouble and with far greater safety, will such measures restore composure, than violence possibly can compel submission; upon recovery, the acknowledgment of the master’s sway will be revived and strengthened by that sense of gratitude which, in animals, reason is powerless to pervert.

The snaffle is the gentlest indicator which the bridle possesses. It is generally sold in two forms--either plain or twisted. The latter supposed improvement renders its action upon the lips more sharp, the sharpness being proportioned to the fineness of the twist. The chain snaffle is, however, still more terrible in its operation, and is certainly better calculated to punish than to guide. A plain snaffle is, therefore, much to be preferred, the fact being well illustrated by the circumstance that the gentlemen who depend upon the milder species of check encounter fewer accidents than those riders who place their reliance in such mechanical restraints as are warranted to break the jaw-bone of any restive animal.

The mildest of the many bits in general use is called the “Hackney.” It is a curb bit and birdoon, having a double reined bridle. The last instrument is, however, gradually being superseded by the “Pelham bit,” which is capable of creating terrible agony. This restraint riders commonly employ with double reins; but it can be used with a single head-piece. In general it is manufactured smooth or plain, but it also can be twisted to any desired degree of severity.

The “Hanoverian bit,” like the majority of imported inventions, is a terrible exaggeration of the worst properties that once were thought sufficiently powerful. Its nature is best expressed by the phrase “hard and sharp,” which it has almost solely appropriated. A horse cannot grasp this novelty in its teeth, and thus render futile an unscrupulous master’s efforts to punish. “The Hanoverian” enables a rider to continue the agony which may have driven a sensitive creature to the confines of madness. As the sides are movable at pleasure, it is esteemed to be an admirable check for a pulling quadruped.

Should none of the foregoing embody the desires of some desperate horseman, there remains another, which is an ugly thing to be put into a living mouth; it is called the “Segundo bit,” and is the most barbarous of all the cruelties in general use. It is manufactured of three sizes; the longest of which enables any Christian gentleman to inflict the most lively torture upon the meekest of living creatures.

The “Chiffney bit” was once highly esteemed, and, assuredly, was fully equal to its pretensions; but it seems lately to have sunk low in public favor. The “Sliding Mouth bit” is the last invention of this kind. It is thought to operate beneficially upon animals which are employed in harness. The mouth piece is reversible, having a rough and a smooth side, and it is much approved of, because it professes to afford the horse something for the mouth to play with.

The actions of the dumb, however, are easily mistaken. Anything which pains the angles of the mouth, whether it should be a roughened bit or a tight bearing-rein, will provoke the horse to toss the head into the air. This motion is regarded by most persons as evidence of spirit, and as signifying a playful disposition; but it is in reality an effort to relieve for an instant the tension which drags against the lips. Another action which gratifies the majority of spectators is to behold a steed move the lips which are whitened with foam. Foam, however, only indicates the presence of thirst, and the reader will, upon reference to “Scald Mouth” in the previous volume, discover that rapid labial motion is not, in the horse, characteristic of amusement.

Bits of all sorts are decided mistakes, and the blunder is the greater as the restraint becomes the more severe. The occasional employment of such things is highly dangerous; their perpetual use destroys the sensibility of the mouth. That continued pain should deaden feeling is a wise institution, kindly ordained to prevent the sensibilities of this world becoming the playthings of barbarity. Nature protects her creatures from the incessant use of the goad by causing it to provoke numbness in the region on which torture would operate. The knowledge of this law should instruct mankind in the inutility of habitual severity; while the conviction that the same Tender Parent has, in madness, ordained a refuge for sudden agony, should teach all people not to lash the horse into that state which can alone render it truly dangerous.

With the last sentence the main subject of the present volume has concluded. The reader, as he reviews the topics which have been submitted to his judgment, is probably surprised to perceive how little of mystery legitimately appertains to the horse, but how much its requirements accord with the dictates of “common sense.” In short, “common sense” may be said to indicate all that the proper comprehension of the stable or its inhabitants need at the hands of a proprietor.

Yet, is it not surprising that society at large regards “horse knowledge” as a mysterious attainment, to be gained only by a long course of actual experience? Such a prejudice is without the slightest foundation. Antiquated customs and exploded notions are common enough in every mews. Filth is, in such places, supposed to be endowed with strange medicinal attributes, and cruelty is patronized as though the perfection of wisdom laid in the total absence of humanity. The horse, as at present treated, is the victim of ignorance, and is exposed to every abuse. Nature and her dictates are disregarded. The animal is tortured till it submits to abhorrent brutalities. Its instincts, as a created being, are not respected; neither are its necessities, as a living creature, ever considered. Its welfare is secondary to the convenience of the master, and its custody is transferred to the unscrupulous cupidity of the servant.

“_Common sense_,” however, demands these things should be amended; and the main purpose with which the foregoing pages were indited was a hope, through a plain statement of facts and an appeal to the reason of the public, of awakening those intrusted with authority over the equine species to the errors attendant upon the present system of Stable Management.

INDEX.

A.

PAGE

Abnormal condition of horn induced by the present mode of nailing, 99

Absence of the groom watched for, 255

Accidents are more rare since mutilation is less common, 381
might be avoided by masters being more gentle, 263
occasioned by injudicious breaking, 460

Accomplishments which fit to take charge of a dealer’s yard, 368

According to the position of the elbow so the hoofs must incline, 412

Action natural to a slanting shoulder, 408
necessitated by a straight shoulder, 405
often witnessed before private cabs in London, 407

Actions of the dumb are likely to be misinterpreted, 271

Active animals are always disliked in the stable, 215

Activity constitutes the horse’s pleasure, 206

Adapted for speed and exertion, 19

Additional bonds only provoke additional struggles, 228

Advantage of, and peculiarities of the new slipper shoe, 111

Advantages and disadvantages of all horns to give drinks with, 74
of the tin bottle, 75

Advantages of having the stable well regulated, 339
of nailing the new shoe to the toe, 113
of shoeing racers with tips, 473

Advantages secured by adopting the Arabian mode of nailing, 105
secured by movable mangers, 191

Advice to purchasers, 121

Affections of the horse, 201

After-meath, or rowen, 174

Age ought to be accurately observed, 147
renders the jaw-bone thin and narrow, 153

Ages have produced no change in the horse’s treatment, 223

Agony is evinced by a “kidney dropper,” when the spine is pressed, 269

Air-passages, the, can alter their dimensions, 25

All animals are spoilt if too greatly petted, 453
in the same stable are subjected to the same usages, 288
creatures play with food when not hungry, 213
feeding and drinking compartments should rest upon the ground, 310
hands should help the groom when the horse is exhausted, 348
horses are fully worked during the fourth year, 150
horses do not consume the like quantities of food, 197
needful security assured by open trevises in private stables, 306

Alteration in the nippers consequent upon old age, 136

Alterations are made to suit the declining breed of horses, 432
in the incisors, 159

Aloes, the retention of this medicine within the body, 165
become hard by keeping, 57

Aloes cannot be given to some horses, 56
often kill, 56
the purgative of the stable, 54
very uncertain in its action, 55

Always choose a horse having good haunches, 418
see the horse led out of the stable, 278

Ambulatory, an, anticipates the necessity of mounting in
the stable, 310

Anatomical considerations, 18

Anatomists, were horses extinct, could tell their characters from
their bones, 17

Ancient Arabian shoe, 95

Anecdote, about breeding horses, 429
concerning swerving in the horse, 291
illustrative of the evils generated by the present mode
of exercise, 303
of a jibbing horse, 284
of the author and Van Amburg, 434
to illustrate kicking, 272

Anger excited by the colt’s restlessness, 209

Angular prominences are upon the grinding surface of the new
molar tooth, 156

Animal, an, at five years old, pronounced to be in its prime, 153
not fitted for the saddle, is said to be suitable for harness, 421

Animals roll when their hair is uncomfortable, 230
after being conditioned are often passed by hacks, 464
are beaten when master complains of waste, 213
are guided by their experiences, 264
are incapable of conjecturing consequences, 264
are said to eat their own heads off, 367
brought to market at three years old, 146
drink less, having water at command, 314
having ewe necks are generally weak, 391
knowing no future, act on their experiences, 218
love most those who instruct them, 283
may be deeply diseased, and therefore called “vicious”, 271
the, are secondary to household duties in genteel families, 327
when procured, become members of the purchaser’s family, 379

Apparatus for steaming the horse’s food, 186

Appearance, the, of horses is the strongest evidence against
modern stables, 231

Appliances needed to cleanse a carriage, 488

Arab horse, the, conforms to no arbitrary mould, 395

Arabian mode of fastening the horse’s shoe, 100

Arab tail is well set on, active, and powerful, 387

Arnica lotion used for rick of the back, 275

Arrangement in the components of the teeth, 157
of the gutters within stables, 298

Art cannot amend a natural development, 450

Ascertain, to, if the horse has been properly groomed, 340

Aspect of the mouth materially changes after the first year, 138

At grass, horses enjoy free communication, 307

Attempted cures of jibbing are uncertain and expensive, 283

Attends at fairs and on market days, 431

Attend to the heels on the following morning, 352

Author’s plan of nailing, 105
suggestions should be tried for their own sakes, 297

B.

Back-bone of the horse, 382

Backing on to the gangway, 278
the horse out of the stall, supposes the spine to be injured, 278

Back of the stables, 317
the, as seen from above, 381
the, is often injured, 275
the, is supported by eighteen ribs on either side, 40

Bad hay and corn commonly given to horses, 179

Bad hay often cut into chaff, 177

Bad qualities of the cow-bellied horse, 404

Balling, blistering, firing, and bleeding in veterinary practice, 85

Balling irons, common form of, 62
improved form of, 62
only of use to timidity or inexperience, 60
Professor Varnell’s newly invented, 62

Balls, arguments in favor of, 73
caustics often employed in large doses with, 58
commonly intrusted to grooms, 54
horse, how made, 54
how prepared, 57
how moulded before delivery, 58
how to administer, 63
quiet mode of giving, 67
the form of, 58
the swallowing of, should be watched for, 68

Barouche and landau, 482

Bars or open trevises admit of equine familiarities, 307

Battering and fixedness aggravate the weakness of the fore limbs, 417

Beans, bad sample of, 188
Egyptian, 188
Egyptian, free from objection, 188
English, are too astringent, 188
English field, unwholesome when new, 187
good and bad sample of, contrasted with each other, 187
should be steamed, 188

Beard is sometimes present on good oats, 180

Bearing-rein, the, interferes with the use of the head, 389

Beating the horse in a stable is dangerous, 209

Beauty in horses generally coincides with excellence of spirit, 399

Be brief in your inquiries in the dealer’s yard, 374

Bed, a, is uncomfortable when not horizontal, 257

Beer recommended for the horse with a sensitive skin, 290

Behavior of grooms requires amendment, 338
to be exhibited toward dealers, 373

Bell, a, connected with the grooms’ cottages, enables assistance
to be summoned, 325

Benefits derived from having a stock of frosted shoes, 127
secured by a new mode of nailing, 105

Better division of work for the horse, 342
have no carriage than one kept in a damp shed, 324

Bird, the, returns to its cage, and the horse seeks its stable, 251

Birthday of all horses arbitrarily fixed by the Jockey Club, 146

Bishoped teeth, 134

Bishoping easily detected, 134
described, 134

Bit, the Pelham, its recommendations, 522
the Hackney and birdoon, 522
the Hanoverian, 523

Bits attached to ladies’ bridles, 519
buckled and sewn on, 519

Blackguards who sell horses are not horse dealers, 138

Black mail is exacted by most grooms, 329

Blacksmith’s forge, a, during frost, 127

Bleeding can, its form and use, 88
fleam, described, 89
horses should be blinded before, 91
lancet not recommended for, 89
not necessary in many cases, 87
strange love of, 86
was formerly fashionable, 85

Blistering and firing often united, 78
a stable right through, 80
often resorted to, to please the owner, 80

Blistering oil should be procured of a chemist, and diluted, 82
oil should be quite clear, 82
ointment is made with old flies, 82
omnibus horses, 81

Blisters and oak bark proposed for rick of the back, 275
and the firing iron counteract each other, 78
are at present too powerful, 78
only of late years have been reduced in strength, 78

Blood horses draw weight by strain upon the muscles, 401
can should be pressed against the neck, 91
if cold, and exposed to the air, becomes oxygenated, 24
mare and foal, 430
stick depicted, 90
when cold, has lost its living properties, 245

Bloods want an infusion of a little cocktail, 433

Body, horse’s, beautiful when skinned, 45
the, anatomically considered, 17
the, should be judged of as a whole, 386

Boiler-house between the gig-house and first loose box, 321

Bolting commonly ensues after a fit of jibbing, 280
through the stable door, 239

Bone bears the burden when the body descends a slope, 253

Bones, character of the animal pronounced by, 17
of the fore extremity, how retained in their places, 42
of the spine described, 38
of the forelegs, their action is regulated by the shoulders, 408

Bones, the, of the leg do not uphold each other, 408

Boy picking hay, 172

Boys should not be employed to lead horses through stable doors, 240
the, about training stables are not trustworthy, 470

Bracy Clark’s jointed shoe, remarks on, 118

Bray of the donkey and neigh of the horse, how produced, 47

Brain, the, becomes congested by moving in circles, 451

Branch drains also oppose the ingress of rats, 300

Branches of the lower jaw contract with age, 136

Bran mashes, how to prepare, 55
more gentle and more safe than aloes, 55

Breaches of stable decorum by young horses, 207

Bread, given to horses in Germany, might be used as food, 195

Breaker, the, operates only on the fears of the colt, 453

Breaking and training, 449
begins at three years old, 147
loose, 217
should be gradually enforced from the earliest age, 455

Breaks are not often publicly used to exercise horses in, 304

Breast collar-strap, 507

Breathing life treated as it were an inanimate chattel, 200

Breeders should take example from the agriculturists, 428

Breeding, its inconsistencies and its disappointments, 427
of horses is at present altogether wrong, 437
suckling, and living on grass, 446

Bricks and mortar are valueless in comparison with horse flesh, 298

Bricklayer’s trowel likened to the teeth, 158

Bringing the sole near to the ground, danger of, 102

Brittle hoof, 99

Brougham horse, a, 371

Brougham or phaeton harness, 503

Brushing or cutting about the pastern joint, 121

Bulk is not always an assurance of strength, 419
merely distends and injures the stomach, 177

Bull neck, a, 391

Bustle hails the appearance of a stranger in the stable, 204

Buy a young horse by the teeth as regards age, 164

C.

Calkins destroying the even bearing of the foot, 109
in the slipper shoe made by thinning the quarters, 111

Can, bleeding, its form and use, 88
blood should be pressed against the neck, 91
horses have aristocratic predilections, 215

Capacity of most doors to stables, 235

Capital and tact required to job carriages successfully, 368

Carriage, a, without C springs, and a brougham, 483
harness, a full suit of, 504
horses are not kept by the London dealers, 367
houses are always large enough, 233
the treatment required for, when in its house, 492

Carriages, 477
congregate on wet nights before fashionable mansions, 323

Carrying round the food to the stables, 192

Carters sit upon the loins of young horses, 265

Cart horse, a, 401
with a Roman nose, 394
horses are not formed to trot, 273
have long mustaches, 394

Cartilago nictitans, 36
its special use and action, 36

Carts should never exist without springs, 386

Cast in the stall, 231
under the manger, 259

Cause of chink of the back is the greed of proprietors, 273

Cause of odd hoofs in the horse, 413

Causes of cutting, 121
which increase the liability of the foreleg to injury, 416

Caustics dangerous as internal medicine, 59

Cavity of the pulp in the molar teeth, 157

Ceiling of stables, how it is formed, 316

Certain steeds snap and bite when being dressed too violently, 289

Channel diminishes with age, 136

Character and color of upland hay, 173
lowland hay, 173

Cheap harness is generally dangerous, 496
horses are not to be bought in London, 359

Cheapness is not economy when buying oats, 182

Chiffney bit, the, 523

Child, a, might sit the thorough-bred trot, 421

Chink of the back, 266

Circular chest, the, good for slow work, 401
exercise, 452
motion induces blindness, 451

Clark, of Edinburgh, his old shoe preferred to new inventions, 121

Classic mind, the, recognized the signification of the horse, 242

Clean saddle, how to, 516

Cleaning harness, the proper method of, 504

Cleansing and cooling with hot and cold water, 349
an exhausted horse, 348
an unclipped horse, 347

Clearing the fence, 462

Cleveland bays are a dangerous property, 368

Clinches are more secure when made upon the toe, 114

Clicking or forging common toward the end of a long journey, 124

Clipped horse, a, is a deformity, 346

Clipping and singeing, 343
induce many terrible disorders, 344

Clock-loft and lumber-room above the sheltered space, 320

Closing the wound after having bled the horse, 92

Clothes and saddle cannot be retained on the herring-gutted horse, 404

Clover hay, first crop of, 174
second crop of, 175

Coal-cellar, 319

Coaxing the foal to feed, 444

Coax the horse when giving medicine, 78

Collar-rope is bitten through without design, 216

Collar-strap disfigures the neck and mane, 218

Colt at three years may cut sixteen teeth, 149

Colts are wayward creatures, 207

Comminution of the food described, 155

Common form of horn employed to administer drinks, 74

Common sense is alone necessary to understand horses, 524

Common stallions are generally led through the country, 431

Comparison between the wild and domesticated horse, 201

Complex calculations required of the horse dealer, 362

Composure returns only when the rug is destroyed, 287

Compound soap liniment recommended for rick of the back, 275

Condition of horses referred to, 432
of stable windows generally, 315
of the blood explains the diseases of the foot, 246

Conduct of most drivers when the horse bolts, 293

Conjunctiva, nature and distribution of, 35

Consequences of being cast in the collar-rope, 224
of being cast under the manger, 259
of too much paring, miscalled disease, 106

Contents of the abdomen and thorax, 403

Continued standing is a bad symptom, 352

Contraction of the jaw-bones forces the teeth into the mouth, 158

Contrast between a three-year old and a bishoped sixteen-year old
mouth, 135
between the permanent and milk incisor teeth, 160

Cooking food for horses no novelty, 193

Copers esteem a kidney dropper a valuable horse, 269
the, always flurry a horse when pretending to show it, 277

Corner incisors first cut at nine months old, 141
milk incisors, being shed, announce five years old, 153

Corns are natural to upright hoofs, 415

Corn promotes fat, 187
should be crushed on the premises, 184
when crushed, requires further preparation, 186

Corpora nigra, present in the horse and camel, 31

Cost of a separate house for the groom would be fifteen pounds
per annum, 333
of horse flesh is much increased by hard food, 166

Coughing, its danger during the administration of a drink, 75
provoked by raising the head, 76

Countenance during a fit of jibbing, 282

Countersinking for driving nails, 113

Course of the food, how arranged, 28

Covered ride round the stable, 302

Cow-bellied or pot-bellied horse, the evils of, 404

Cribbing induced by confinement and indigestion, 205

Crime is the climax of social frailty, 426

Crowded forges prevented by laying in a stock of frosted shoes, 127

Cruel imprisonment, 201

Cruelties undergone at three years old, 148

Cruelty and roguery are associated, 425
cannot promote development, 164
is practiced to coerce the jibber, 280
of rasping the hoof to fit a small shoe, 131
of the present mode of breaking in, 141
resorted to after bleeding, 94
sometimes changes the action of the straight shoulder, 406
unintentionally inflicted on all horses, 168

Cruiser and Mr. Rarey, 453

Crusta petrosa, 157
is endowed with a limited power of growth, 158

Cures proposed for cutting from exhaustion, 122

Curry-comb should be abolished, 337

Curveting and lunging are alike in their influences, 449

Customers are protected by the author’s recommendations, 378
should be better suited than pleased, 364

Custom of the drivers attached to the former fly wagons, 265

Cutting away the horny sole, 103
often produced by exhaustion, 123

D.

Damp stables are equally costly and dangerous, 322

Danger consequent upon the internal use of caustics, 59
of casting the entire weight upon the wall, 103
of coughing during the giving of a drink, 75
of getting the hind leg beyond the post of the stall, 230
of gorging on dry wheat, 169
of standing in the manger, 209

Dangers of racing plates, 114
of the present method of nailing, 100

Darkness does not incapacitate the horse’s eye, 32

Date is apt to deceive the breeder, 440

Dead donkeys not rare, 47

Dealers buy with a view to certain purchasers, 375
do not show all their stock to every chance customer, 138
generally possess one or two blood-weeds, 369
horses are exercised in front of the house windows, 304
take much trouble to buy horses, 359
visit horse fairs and breeders of stock, 364
will not submit a horse of known unsoundness to a veterinary
examination, 378

Deformity consequent on neglect of the hoof, 102

Deglutition described, 29

Degree of motion permitted in the stable, 202

Deluging with water does not please the horse, 346

Dentine, 157

Depth of the lower jaw in the young horse accounted for, 157

Deranged stomach denoted by fastidious and by voracious appetite, 196

Detailed description of the surface-gutters of the stable, 299

Development of the hyoideal muscles, 400

Diagrams of the opposite formation of thorax, 402

Difference between fullering and countersinking, 113
between man and horse in their lodging, 233
in the food of man and horse when in training, 170
of head in a one and a two-year old, 144

Different articles eaten by horses, 166
forms of pasterns, 410
kinds of ears, 396
kinds of snaffles, 521

Digestion deranged by modern stables and present food, 196
of the horse is frequently impaired, 342

Disease in the horse is exposed to the conjectures of ignorance, 285

Discovered in the morning with the head under the manger, 258

Dishonest dealers always demand a written warranty, 365

Disposition of the horse should be studied, 77

Dock, the, should be regarded as a continuation of the back-bone, 386

Domesticated animals generally live on prepared food, 167
horse is very old by its thirtieth year, 165

Donkey, the, belongs to the equine race, 46

Donkeys natural to the sandy desert, 48
have to toil after man’s day of labor has ended, 51
prejudices concerning, tend to their misery, 51
serve only the poor, 49
the loins of, uphold riders, 51
thrust into any hole for the night, 49
work before the master begins to labor, 50

Do not coax a tired horse to feed, 351

Do not punish the horse for jibbing, 281

Doors of stables should fold, or be divided through the center, 307
open on to the ambulatory, 307
size of, according to Professor Stewart, 235

Double coach-house, 319

Doubt as to the weakness of a hollow back, 384

Down in the hip, 237

Drag on the clinches the consequence of the thin heel shoe, 120

Draught horses require high and good haunches, 421

Draughts in crowded stables enable the horses to live, 81

Draughtsmen, their qualifications, 478

Dress, a, carriage and a chariot, 482

Dressing the heels, 353
the horse, 340

Drinking, the manner of, explained, 71

Drinks or draughts, a form of horse physic, 68
danger of administering, 69
generally objected to, 68
reasons for these objections, 68
sometimes poured down the nostril, 69
the objection to so giving medicine, 73
usual mode of giving, 74

Driving a nail too fine, 100

Dry fodder prematurely wears down the teeth, 133

Drying the heels, 350

Dryness affects the nature of the horse’s food, 171

Dusk, and at ten o’clock, duties of, 341

Duties of the night watcher, 325

E.

Each groom should lead two horses to exercise, 306

Earning its keep during lactation, 436

Early and late is the best time for exercise, 466

Ears, different kinds of, 396

Eastern elevation of the contemplated stables, 325

Education, modern, makes men knowing and not good, 198
should commence with birth, 455

Effects of living upon grass in the field, 430

Egyptian beans are mild and sweet, 188

Eight months’ solitary imprisonment is not rest, 475

Eight o’clock duties, 340

Employers should be blamed for the groom’s debasement, 330

Employment of the drawing-knife a necessity, 106

Enamel, 157

English mode of paring the foot, 102
thorough-bred tail approaches to the Arab, 387

Entire horses are not necessarily savages, 433

Entreaty not to credit the possibility of a “vicious animal”, 294

Equine race, the, are treated as creatures without habits
or instincts, 241

Estimable qualities of hollow-backed horses, 384

Even man’s generosity causes the horse to suffer, 475

Every gentleman his own horse-breaker, 453

Everything in the stable yields tribute to the groom, 330

Evils of long nights to horses and to grooms, 198
of modern stables, 200

Ewe neck, an, 391

Exaggerated view of a weakly animal with dangerous action, 424

Examine the angles of the mouth before purchasing, 398

Excellence of the racer’s action in the trot, 420

Excessive weakness has lost many a race, 472

Exchanges, with horses, are very expensive, 373

Excited horse, mouth of an, 288

Excitement ensues upon first sniffing the pure air, 334
prevented by rapidly and silently distributing the food, 312

Exercise, during training, is given at mid-day, 466
can be given in all weathers under the ambulatory, 303

Exhausting labor renders bleeding unnecessary, 87

Exhaustion in youth is a bad preparative for the stud farm, 428

Expense of feeding the horse, how increased, 193
would not be increased by proper treatment, 463

Experiments, uselessness of, as a test for medicine, 60

Experiment, testing the effects of a thick and of a thin covering, 344

Explanation of the doctor’s difficulty, 303
of the term “May bird”, 364
of the word “nicking”, 387

Expression of the ears, 396

Extended view obtained by mounting into the manger, 210

Extravagance of hard food, 166

Extreme age rare in the horse, 88

Eye, the, is a certificate of the horse’s origin, 30

Eyes, the, of the horse are much exposed to injury, 291
various sorts of, 397

F.

Fœtus, the, is injured by the mother being sucked while breeding, 445

False nostrils, situation, nature and uses of, 25

Fancy is most active in the weakest intellects, 227

Fangs of the milk teeth are absorbed, 160

Farmers, the, idea of a breeding mare, 447

Fat is laid on, although lameness exists in the foreleg, 243
is promoted by the food--horses are sweated to remove fat, 467

Faults inseparable from stables, 233

Fearful change takes place when a horse is “thrown up” to breed, 435

Fed between the bursts, 472

Feeding of the grazing and the stabled horse, 429
the mare, 455
the newly-born foal, 443

Feeling, instincts or inclinations of the horse are never heeded, 198

Feet of farm horses are generally sound, 246
of thorough-breds generally bad, 115

Felt under-pad, 512

Few gentlemen’s stables are supplied with the best grain, 181
grooms live in the house, 327
horse dealers die rich, 367
horses reach their thirtieth year, 155
human beings should be exposed to the groom’s temptations, 330
tails are well set on, 387

Fleam, the, as made to be struck by the hand, 89
the, is preferable to the lancet, 89
the, described as used for bleeding, 89

Field (newspaper) description of roughing, from, 129

Fifth molar present by the second year, 145

Fired, sometimes, and blistered after it, 78

Fire has been kindled under a jibbing horse, 281

First crop of clover, 174
drops of blood taken from the forefoot are cold, 243
lessons in breaking should commence with the foal, 141
permanent tooth appears at one year old, 142
the, harness put on a foal, 456

Fittings needed for the interior of a carriage, 490
of the sheltered space, 320

Five-feet wide doors do very well for sleepy animals, 237

Flattery is much relished by all lower life, 456

Flesh is only another name for muscle, 381

Flexor muscle, the, influences the direction of the foot, 412

Flooring of the proposed stables described, 298

Foal first nips the grass when four months old, 141
one fortnight after birth, 139
the, may accompany the mare in her work, 436

Foals are generally crippled before they are born, 428
should be taught to regard men as friends, 444
teeth at birth, 139

Folly of docking, 380
of employing blisters to the legs, 79
of ornamental scroll work instead of plain bars, 306
of tying a horse by its head to the manger, 225

Food, 168
for the foal if the mare’s milk is tardy, 443
not thoroughly digested when presented dry, 165
of horses is contaminated in modern stables, 318
proper for an exhausted horse, 347
should be proportioned to the animal’s fatigue, 351
the greatest of many evils under which horses suffer, 169
when too abundant is wasted, 212

Foot, the, perspires through the horn, 353

Foreleg over the collar-rope, 221

Forelegs in the manger, 208

Forelimb is not a straight pillar, 409
the, is joined to the trunk by muscle, 41

Forge, horse’s dread of, 109
strange custom of charging different prices in, 110
the state of the, during a sudden frost, 127

Formation of the soil of stable, 301

Former shoes, unsuit for modern use, 96

Form of thorax which is best suited for slow and for fast work, 402
the, of a mare for breeding, 438

Four fully-grown permanent incisors only denote three years
of age, 147
miles an hour is a fair exercising pace, 305
or five o’clock duties, 341
permanent incisors in each jaw announce four years old, 152

Four “roomy” stalls may be converted into three loose boxes, 332

Fourth molar is the first permanent tooth, 142
year, at the, the horse should be taught to leap, 416

Four-year olds are thought to need no indulgence, 151

Four-year old colt may be placed between shafts, 459

Fracture of the haunch disqualifies for a gentleman’s service, 238

Freedom is naturally desired by the horse, 220

Freemasonry, the, which exists between steed and rider, 372

French martingale, the use of, 518
revolution, the nobleman and Bastile, 252

Frequent change of shoes injures the feet of thorough-breds, 473

Friction, when brisk, warms more than slow walking exercise, 352

Frog and sole injured by the wedge-heeled shoe, 119

Front of the new stable has no intermediate rails, 319
teeth appear to be but temporary, 145
teeth stick out like spikes at thirty years of age, 167

Frosted shoes worn out in three or four days, 128

Frosting or roughing as generally performed, 128

Fullered shoe, 113

Full loins are generally associated with a stout dock, 393
set of horse clothes, 498

Furzy tail disappears at one-year old, 143

G.

Gangway, the, should be kept clean, 338

General complaint of the roguery of horse dealers, 425
mode of leading the horse out of the stable, 236
view of the shoulder and foreleg, 416

Gentlemen like the springy seat afforded by a young spine, 146
should respect their station when treating with dealers, 378
when ignorant of horse flesh, should not attempt display, 370

Gentleness and caution requisite when trying a fresh horse, 372
should be displayed during a fit of jibbing, 282

Gentle riding and proper grooming would sustain condition, 475

German silver makes the best ornaments for harness, 496

Gestation is opposed to lactation, 445

Get up, 351

Gig, a, and a two-wheeled dog cart, 485

Gig harness and kicking-strap, 502
house, 319

Girths of saddles generally considered, 509

Giving a horse a quart of malt liquor, 347
out macerated food, 191

Glycerin and rose-water removes scurf, 290
wash, the mode of applying it to the skin, 337

Gnawing the manger rail the result of long captivity, 204

Good bridle, the characteristics of, 517
feeders are too commonly sluggish animals, 352
form, a, generally requires little aid in foaling, 439
horse, the, is good for every purpose, 420
oatmeal, how to recognize, 178
oats display no vast difference in size, 180
reach, a, in the trot, a valuable quality in a hack, 420
saddle, a, should fall into its proper place, 515
shoes are spoiled by being roughed, 128

Gowing’s, Mr., mode of giving a ball, 65
its advantages and defects, 66

Graced with the sweetest manners, sells the horses, 362

Grass, horses are generally shod with tips when out at, 116
suggests the food of the horse, 20
the natural food of the undomesticated horse, 133

Great muscular power is necessitated to move the head, 388

Greenhorns disliked by the regular dealer, 373

Green meat and mashes are better than aloes, 469

Grooms, 327
conceive the horse injures them, 222
display the union of innocence and knowingness, 354
doing house work generally neglect the stable, 355
flog the horse for standing in the gutter, 257
generally manage their nominal masters, 229
imagine the foot to be a mystery, 353
like fat in horses, 212
like the horse to have hard meat, 193
never regard cutaneous sensitiveness as a disease, 285
pretend to comprehend impossibilities, 355
pride themselves upon being “_close_”, 355
regard see-sawing as a fearful “vice”, 205
report effects, and never hint at causes, 229
ride as they please when exercising horses, 303
singe the hairs inside the horse’s ears, 395
should not ride when exercising horses, 306

Groom’s room is situated over the boiler-house, 324
idea of a horse’s long imprisonment, 211
secret mixtures are the originals of patent food, 196

Ground plan of the proposed stables, 321

Gruel is proper for an exhausted horse, 351

Guess only at the age after the fifth year, 163

H.

Hair should never be inclosed in the wound after bleeding, 93

Hairs from oats are felted together in the stomach, 183
on the oat, 182

Half an acre of close grass should be attached to each loose box, 309

Hames with double eyes, 506

Handling the feet, 457

Hand-over-hand pace, the, is bad, 423

Hard food must be a tax on the muscular system, 467
provender wears the teeth and shortens the life, 165
substances derange the horse’s digestion, 186

Hardships undergone at three years old, 148

Harness and food are benefited when separated from stables, 317
and stable sundries, 494
for the young, 456
horses are usually imperfectly broken, 459

Hat, the, should be removed before a horse is led out of
the stable, 240

Haunch-bone is often broken by striking against the door post, 238

Haunches, the, will express the qualities of the horse, 419

Hay, after-meath, 174
clover, first crop, 174
second crop, 175
from legumens might cost more, but would be better, 189
heated, 175
loft, the, should be over the coach-house, 333
lowland, 173
musty, 176
promotes fat, 189
should be sorted before it is placed in the rack, 171
upland, 172
weather beaten, 176

Head, carried straight out is ungraceful and unsafe, 390
the, must be retracted before the horse can rise, 260
the, by its movements inclines the body in certain directions, 380
the, denotes the treatment of the horse, 393

Health suffers from improper food, 169

Heaped manger unsuited for a famished horse, 178

Heat and impurity naturally provoke cuticular irritability, 224
and moisture correct the unwholesomeness of food, 190

Heaving at the flanks, 440

Heavy animals were formerly used for gentle purposes, 422
carts having long reins are injurious to the horse’s spine, 273

Heels are left unprotected if the shoeing is neglected, 106

Herald painting--how its charges are regulated, 478

Herbs, when dried, retain their properties, 171

Herring-gutted horse, the disadvantages of, 403

High-spirited horses are the most troublesome when confined, 215
stubborn horn the author prefers in the horse’s foot, 414

Hind hoofs enjoy a freedom denied to the forefeet, 244
legs, the, have a tendency to increase the burden of the
fore limbs, 417

Hinge of the spine for rearing, 44

Hobble the hind legs of a mare, 441

Hogs’ skins are seldom perfect, 515

Hollow-backed horse, 383
cavity at the toe of the slipper shoe, 111

Home, a, for a horse is not the same thing as a home for a man, 298

Hoofs are spoiled by roughing during frost, 128

Hopeless struggle of mankind, 200

Horn for giving drinks, common form of, 74
improved form of, 74
of the hoof described, 98
whalebone and wood are best for stable instruments, 336

Horse auction marts deal largely in unsound horses, 277
a, when sold should suit the purchaser, 361
dealers, 357
dealers are alive to the value of their stock, 379
dealers generally occupy the same place at successive fairs, 365
is intended to run unshod over grass land, 116
is very choice when eating grass, 170
its disposition should be studied, 77
lowers the head to feed and drink, 170
the, cannot turn in its stall without twisting the back, 279
the, has embraced its position, 252
the, has not changed with the mutation of society, 449
the, squatting suddenly like a dog denotes a kidney dropper, 267
knowledge is not a mystery, 524

Horses when they speedy cut are liable to fall, as though shot, 423
should be taken into use with bodies uninjured, 463
are always blamed for human carelessness, 234
are by grooms credited only with evil qualities, 216
are furnished with the means of self-injury, 262
are inclined to rest at mid-day, 468
are often captives for many days in the stall, 211
are put to the greatest exertion at five years of age, 153
are seldom dressed when brought home late, 230
are starved when confined to small stables, 81
body still beautiful even when the skin is removed, 45
can protrude their heads through the half-opened doors, 308
can see in comparative darkness, 228
dread the forge, 109
eating from the ground, require no hay rack, 310
eat various substances in different countries, 194
have no right to do as they like with their lives, 207
have perished from all four feet being blistered, 78
have to sleep on slanting pavement, 256
having wide hips and large thighs very seldom cut, 122
intended to breed should be tenderly nurtured, 435
lower the head while drinking, 76
must feel their captivity, 202
should be exercised on the premises, 304
slide backward on the slanting pavement, 259
the, painted by Stubbs, are lost to the present generation, 407
their rest broken by the inclination of their beds, 257
which kick when the foot is in the stirrup are often quiet
when mounted, 272
clothes generally much too short, 350

Horse flesh is being ruined by the race-course, 432

Hot-water pipes traverse the proposed stable, 322

How grooms contrive to spend so much money, 329
to examine for kidney dropping, 268
for the signs of cutting, 423
to feed a famished animal, 178
to feed a hunter, 471
to feed the mare and foal, 443
to make good gruel, 178
to macerate food, 190
to procure good oats, 182
to recognize a bishoped tooth, 134

Human child not a man when the permanent teeth appear, 152

Humanity in purchasers would destroy roguery in dealers, 425

Hunters, as a rule, are not kept by the London trade, 369
must be over four years old, 146

Hunting breast-plate, 511

I.

Impaling the foot on a projecting nail, 101

Imperfect vision renders a horse dangerous, 293

Importance of warmth to the horse, 322

Impossible to convince most grooms, 220
to make the teeth declare a horse older than it really is, 163

Imprisonment engenders eagerness to breathe the fresh air, 237

Improvement has not reached the jail of the horse, 297

Impure air, sameness of food, and confinement generate disease, 243
residence, an, generates a morbid craving, 329

In cavalry stables, horses are separated by bales, 307

Incisor teeth are not employed in the stable, 167

Incisors, the, which denote a three-year old, 147

Inclination of the feet of horses, 412

Incline of the superficial gutters, 301

Inferior margin of the jaw still thick at four years old, 151
oats possess the longest hairs, 183
specimens of oats commonly adulterated, 179

Injury done by boys who hold your honor’s horse, 124
occasioned to the crust of the hoof by nailing, 100
often done by the laws of the Jockey Club, 146
or blemish is feared by dealers as much as death, 366

Inquiry into the conduct of colt and groom, 209

Instinctive acts in man, 295

Instruction properly imparted does not strain the body, 461

Interior of the stable should be colored green, 316

In the end, it is cheapest to act justly, 331
field, horses rest with the hind legs highest, 247
stable, horses stand with the forefeet highest, 248

Inward soft organs govern the hardest outward secretions, 118

Irish horses are famed as good fencers, 462

Itching and scratching rank as vices in the stable, 223

J.

Jaw-bone becomes thin and narrow with age, 153
in early life, is full and round at the lower margin, 142

Jaw, the, of a two-year old intimates approaching change, 145

Jealousy regarding a choice colt, 376

Jibbing first alluded to, 280
is as common now as it was formerly, 286
is equine epilepsy, 280
most common in heavy and in harness horses, 282

Jobbing requires skill in placing horses, 368

Job masters assert the straight shoulder is the best for harness
purposes, 406
the, terms of, 368

Jockey Club, folly of its laws, 146
further alluded to, 163

Jolly fun of the trainer’s stable, 470

K.

Keep the stable-man to his duties, 355

Kettle, a two-gallon, wanted in every stable, 178

Kicker, a, and a biter, 434

Kickers often stand quiet when mounted on the opposite side, 273

Kicking in the night, 227

“Kidney dropping” is esteemed a terrible “vice”, 266

Kidneys, the, are not concerned in what is termed “kidney
dropping”, 270

Kiln-dried oats, to detect, 185

“Kim ovare”, 336

Kindle an opposite emotion and fear is destroyed, 293

Kindness preferable to any mechanical restraint, 61
is especially remunerative when bestowed upon the mare, 437
is responded to even when consciousness is partly lost, 283

Kinds of horn composing the wall of the hoof, 98

Know your own wants before a dealer’s yard is entered, 373

Konisberg oats, 180

L.

Labial action often mistaken in the horse, 524

Lachrymal gland, 35

Lad, a, should be allowed in every stable, 332

Ladies flushed from the ball-room often sleep in damp carriages, 323
patent stirrup, 514

Lady, the, and the magistrate, 164

Lady’s palfrey in the reign of Charles the Second, 422
side-saddle, 513
bridle is generally light, 517

“Lampas” explained, 157

Lamps, large and small, for a carriage, 492

Large lungs favor the increase of weight, 401
nostrils and mouth show breeding in a horse, 397
stables are generally well managed, 332

Lying on the gangway, 261

Lead liniment softens the exudation after blistering, 84

Leanness of hay-fed horses accounted for, 189

Leaping, how it should be taught, 461

Legitimate horse dealers, all have private yards, 358
as a body, are honorable men, 360

Legs, lower parts of the, contain no muscles to stimulate, 82
of the horse highly sensitive, 79

Legumens, sown broadcast and reaped, form a better kind of hay, 189

Length of back is of no separate importance, 386

Let no man talk about a “vicious horse”, 295

Licking the manger, an endeavor to make employment, 204

Life is fixed to no one condition, 371

Light draught horses can best dispense with muscular loins, 383
generally stops the kicking in the night, 227
should always be present in the stable, 228
work need only exercise the mare, 436

Lining of harness is soiled by bad grooms, 505

Liquid which drains from steamed food is a nutritious drink, 186

Liquor arsenicalis is good for the skin, 290

Load, the, being delivered, the heavy cart is trotted back, 273

Locality for the proposed stable, 319

Lofty crest, a, is best induced by proper food, 460

Loins, the, are without bony support, 382
cannot be too large or muscular, 382
transmit the force of the haunches, 382
the spines of, and of the sacrum, point different ways, 44

Long and short legs, the value of each, 405

Loop, a, of string, used instead of a twitch, 75

Loose boxes eighteen feet square, 298
would cure many “vices” of the stable, 222
shoes, perils of, 101

Low-bred haunches express weakness, 418

Lower jaw becomes sharp with age, 136

Lowland hay, 173

Lunging, 451

Lungs, capacity of, illustrated, 19

M.

Mail phaeton, a, and four-wheeled dog cart, 484

Malt liquor, horses soon grow fond of, 347

Man alarms the horse by needless cruelties, 263
alone has conceived a life without a pleasure, 206
and horse supposed to change positions--the result, 206
could not create the perfection which he injures, 44
is not more gregarious than the horse, 474
is not more humane than formerly, 381
is to blame for the horse’s stable conduct, 211
neglects the life which cannot be repaired, 234
not fitted to exert absolute authority, 80
and horse are not a match in strength, 521

Man’s fingers, a, cannot test the expansibility of a horse’s foot, 415
responsibility, how evaded, 53
senseless adherence to antiquated forms, 452

Manger, the, rope fastens the head immediately under the opening to
the hay-loft, 310

Manner of judging the limbs, 423
of using the blood can, 92

Manners, the, requisite in a horse dealer, 361

Many animals are ruined in the breaking, 452
animals become restless when clothed for the night, 286
artisans, conjunction of, to form a carriage manufactory, 479
grooms also expected to act as gardeners, 327
horses are unable to pass through a stable door with calmness, 239
houses have doors far larger than any stable, 235
horses lamed by the wedge-heeled shoe, 119
muscles of the haunch rise close to the dock, 387
smiths will profess to cure clicking, 125
things must change before present customs alter, 331

Mare, a, generally hardly treated, 445

Marks of the teeth are unworthy of dependence, 137

Macerating box for food, 190

Mastication a compound process, 155

Master and groom like a quiet stable, 203

May bird, 364

Medicine, the less the better during training, 469