[45]CHAPTER III.SADDLING THE COLT.Thecolt must now be saddled. Allow him first to look at, smell, and feel the saddle, then place it gently on his back, draw the girths up, at first very slackly, put on the crupper with the buckle as before, and a breastplate. I object to a martingale, my reason for which I shall mention further on. At first do not put on any stirrup-straps or stirrups, as they will only act as alarmants to the colt. After petting him for a time in the loose box, tighten the girths moderately, and lead him out for a time, and then longe him to accustom him to the flapping of the saddle; after which drive him about the roads with the saddle on. Repeat this in the afternoon.[46]On the following day do as before, but attach stirrup-irons and straps to the saddle; you may also fasten a strap on either side of the flank to the crupper, so as to get the animal used to having objects touching and dangling from him. Repeat this in the afternoon, and also on the following day, when the colt will be ready for mounting.Before mounting, longe the colt well with the saddle on, then take him back to his loose box, and put on a French, or as some people call it, a Dutch martingale, consisting simply of a couple of rings joined together, through which the reins pass. To make this clearer for such of my readers who may not have seen one, I will describe how this is done. Unfasten the buckle in the centre of the reins, and pass each rein through a different ring, then buckle the reins together again over the withers, the rings or French martingale will then be between the colt’s chin and his breast. I much prefer this French martingale to the one in ordinary use, which has two straps with rings at their[47]extremities buckled on to the breastplate, through which the reins pass, for with the former you are able to steady the colt’s head without constraining it, which is the worst thing you can do when first riding a young animal; while the latter fixes the head too much in one position, and also tends to make him carry it far too low, when all attempts to mouth him are useless, for the bit will then be in theangle of the lips, the very place where it ought not to be.There is also a danger should the colt fight much, especially with his fore-feet, of their becoming entangled in the martingale or reins. Men put the common martingale on when riding a young colt, for the simple reason that it gives them a good purchase, and thus enables them to hold on; a man who requires this aid to keep him in the saddle should never attempt to break-in a colt, that is, if he wishes him to have a good mouth, or one only a little removed from cast-iron. If a man can sit a colt without any pressure on the reins, he will[48]probably be able to mouth the animal well, provided he has certain other qualities, such as patience, knack, &c., for a man who can retain his seat without the aid of the reins has, as a general rule, light hands; while on the contrary, the man who relies upon the reins to secure him his seat in the saddle, has neither hands nor seat, and the sooner he contents himself with riding the horse nature gave him—to wit, his own legs—the better, for he will only spoil every horse he crosses, provided they have not been already spoilt by some other bad rider.To return to the subject. After having put on the ring martingale, see that everything is right about the colt. Look to the girths, that they may not be slack, see that the crupper is neither too tight or too loose, and that no hairs have gathered under it, and satisfy yourself that everything is as it ought to be, even to the buckles of the bridle. Then gathering up the reins in your left hand, and standing with your left side to his shoulder, place your[49]left foot in the stirrup, and gradually bear weight upon it, when after a while you may raise yourself in the stirrup, so that both your legs are off the ground. You must watch minutely every movement of the animal, and speak gently and soothingly to him. After standing in the stirrup for a few seconds, lower yourself to the ground again, and then repeat the same a few times, until the colt seems quiet and used to it, when you may throw your right leg gently over his back, taking care not to touch him with it, and placing all your weight on your right hand, grasping the pommel of the saddle. When your leg is over his back, lower it quietly into its proper position, but keep it from touching the animal’s side until you have gently seated yourself in the saddle, then put your foot in the stirrup and there you are. Now do not spoil everything by trying to make the colt progress, but sit still, talk to him, pat him, and do everything you can to pacify the animal, and get him used to seeing you take such liberties with him as sitting on[50]his back; for, mind you, he feels an insult as much as you do. If a stranger were to jump on your back, you would immediately resent it by trying to get him off, and by fighting him; but if a friend were to do the same thing you would laugh, and if you did not exactly enjoy the joke, at any rate you would not resent it. The same with the colt. If you get on his back and urge him forward, he thinks you are taking a liberty, and as such are an enemy, and therefore tries his best to get rid of you; but on the other hand, if you sit still and speak kindly to him, he will recognise your action as that of a friend, although he may not actually laugh. After having sat on him a few minutes, you may get off, but very quietly, so as not to frighten him. Release your right foot from the stirrup, keep the leg from the animal’s side, and raise it to a level with his back, then gradually lower it on the near side until you are standing in the near stirrup. Pause here a few seconds, make much of him, and then lower yourself to the ground, take your left foot out[51]of the stirrup, and then handle and fondle the colt. Repeat this a few times, and then lead him out to the longing ground, as that most familiar to him, and where he has learnt his several acts of subordination, which latter is not the least beneficial aid, for he will recognise it as the scene of such to you. You must now mount him in the same quiet manner as before, but sit still, talk to him, and above all do not urge him forward, for if you do he will generally fight, plunge, rear, buck or kick, and then unless you are a good rider he will send you sprawling on mother earth. A fight at this juncture should always be avoided, for if he throws you he will know he is the conqueror, and will most likely be a kicker, a rearer, &c., for some time to come, if not for life; but, on the other hand, if you get the better of him it may so cow him that it will be a long time before he gets out of the sulks, or he may be a ‘slug’ and mean-spirited horse for the remainder of his days. Therefore avoid making him worse, for if you only give him[52]time he will most likely walk off of his own accord, and if on the longing ground will probably walk or jig-jog round the circular track through sheer custom, or he may take a path of his own, but whether he chooses the circular path or one of his own, do not check him, but allow him to go where he likes for a time, of course gradually sheering him off with the reins until he goes whereyoulike. Do not pull at him, let him have all the reins you can, your only control being gradual guidance from side to side. Never mind his taking large corners, you are not mouthing him as yet, but getting him used to carry you, and by degrees cajoling him into going where you require him. You must not force him, or there will be an open fight, which is to be avoided for the first few days after first mounting, but little by little cause him to go in your direction, but so imperceptibly as to make him believe it is of his own free will he is going there.It has been my theory from the commencement of this little treatise so to work as to[53]cajole and manœuvre the colt into following your wishes, that they are so imperceptibly gained that he does not notice them as acts of actual obedience, for they have come upon him in so gradual a manner that there having been no fight over the matter he imagines the actions to have been of his own free will. Of course there must be an open rupture sooner or later which will undeceive him, but this should be avoided with all possible care until he has been mounted a week if possible. Ride the animal about the field for an hour or an hour and a half quietly, not going out of a walk or jig-jog, and then take him back to his loose box, and repeat the same in the afternoon, your object at present being to get him used to your weight on his back, and to gradual guidance; you are not trying to mouth him, or attempting to teach him his paces. ‘Little by little,’ and ‘Perseverando,’ are my mottoes, and ought to be those of every man who undertakes to break-in a colt. It is very much like bringing up a child; you cannot give a child an adult’s[54]thoughts at one lesson, or teach him right from wrong, but must continue it over a long course of years; and if you correct a child harshly, or beat him without showing where his fault lies and reasoning with him, he will either show fight as best he can—for he does notunderstandwhat he has done wrong orwhyit is wrong—or else he turns sulky and broods over his wrongs, which latter I hold to be worse than the former; and this holds good in the horse, for a sulky colt is much harder to overcome and requires much more patience than one which breaks out in open fight, for when the fight is over it is over, but with a sulky one there is no knowing how long it may last. As it is best to reason with a child, and prove to him that he is wrong, instead of whipping him, so is it best to teach a horse by degrees what is required of him, for he cannot be reasoned with, but must learn step by step the lessons given him. If you endeavour to teach him too much at once, or in too rapid strides, hecannot understand, and therefore when you[55]punish or reprimand him he turns sulky, or shows fight, and very naturally too, for he does not know why he has been punished after doing his best to please you.Ride the colt for the three following days (morning and afternoon) about the field so as to avoid a fight with him caused by passing carriages, carts, or any other objects which might alarm him, and by so doing he will gradually become accustomed to the guidance of the reins and understand the pressure of the heels and other little signs, imparting to him the pace and direction in which he is to move, after which he can be ridden on the road. It is best to select a good wide road, and to avoid all narrow ones and lanes for a time, until he is handy at passing vehicles &c., for if you meet a cart in a lane there is very little room for him to pass it by, and as he is almost sure to dance about a little there is always some danger of his hurting himself against the wheel or some projecting part of the cart; but on the other hand, if the road be wide there is no such[56]danger, and he will also be got past any object which may frighten him much easier, and the chances of having a fight with him are thus reduced to a minimum. Always avoid a fight if possible by every means in your power, for instance, if a carriage is coming very fast towards you, either from behind or in front, and you think it calculated to frighten your pupil very much, you can by raising your hand show the coachman that you wish him to drive quietly until he has passed you, and you will find that in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred he is civil enough to comply with your mute request, but the hundredthdeserves——Well, perhaps the less said about his deserts the better, for I suppose it is impossible to find a flock of human beings without one black sheep amongst them, above all amongst grooms and coachmen, who as a class are the most ignorant and bigoted men on the face of the earth; there are, however, some few trustworthy excellent men among them, but they are very few and far between.[57]If on nearing a heap of stones or any other object, such as a woman’s petticoat or other garments drying on a hedge, at which the colt seems inclined to be frightened, do not flog him past but speak kindly to him and pat him, do not hurry, but let the animal take his own time, and you will find by degrees that he will take a step or two towards it, and at last get close to and possibly touch it with his nose after having smelt it; then you must ride him backwards and forwards past it a few times, and when he has ceased to notice it continue on your way. You will of course have a fight some time or other, for the colt may wish at some cross roads to choose one for himself, irrespective of any choice on your part, or he may wish to follow some horse on the road before him, and refuse to leave an animal feeding by the roadside, but in whichever mode he disputes your authority you must undeceive him, and thatthoroughly and at once. If he requires whip and spur, let him have them, but remember, never allow him to get the upper[58]hand of you, for if so, you may just as well turn him out and leave off breaking, until you have found a man whocanmaster him, for he will have found out his own strength and will not forget it in a hurry. If it takes you half a day or even a whole one to make him do as you wish, it will be time well spent.After having ridden him for a fortnight, you may discontinue the mouthing bit, and in its stead use an ordinary plain snaffle, taking care to select as large a one as possible, for if it is too fine it will hurt the animal’s mouth, and either render it dull or extremely sensitive.If a colt is well broken at first there will be no necessity in after life to resort to such means as those which Rarey introduced, or the dodging process of M. Carriès as mentioned in the ‘Pall Mall Gazette,’ the paragraph concerning which I herereproduce:—‘Horse Taming.—History repeats itself in horse-taming, it appears, as well as in other matters. Mr. Rarey and Cruiser have met with their match in M. Carriès and Trocadéro.[59]Trocadéro, son of Monarque and Antonio, has of late exhibited symptoms of the most fearful ferocity; and “about two months ago,” according to “Le Sport,” M. Aumont “met M. Carriès,” who offered to tame the animal. M. Aumont, having inquired whether the means employed would not be drugs or such violence as might injure the horse or render him still more furious, and having received an assurance that nothing of the kind would be used, he consented; and, at a time agreed upon, a visit was paid to the stud at Victat-Pontfol, and the experiments began. The first thing was to enter the horse-box. This M. Carriès did, in presence of M. Aumont and all the “stable,” who “s’attendait à le voir dévoré.” An exciting “duel” ensued; the horse rushing, time after time, with open mouth and with “hennissements féroces,” at M. Carriès, who merely dodged him by rapid movements aside, as the toreador dodges the bull. After ten of these attacks so met, “the animal suddenly stopped to contemplate the audacious individual who braved[60]him in this manner, and was at once seized with the nervous trembling which comes over ‘le lutteur aux prises avec un adversaire contre lequel ses moyens habituels ont échoué. Trocadéro était dompté!’” And M. Carriès took advantage of the horse’s stupor to put a saddle and bridle upon him, after which Trocadéro submitted like a lamb to have his fore-feet shod, and ultimately his hind-feet, without more ado. The dodging process of M. Carriès certainly beats for simplicity even the throwing-down process of Mr. Rarey; but it might be awkward if the tamer were to meet with a horse less susceptible of “stupeur” than Trocadéro appears to be. The question suggested by all these horse-taming feats, however, is whether they could not be rendered altogether unnecessary by care taken in the original training, and whether, as regards the trainer and the method he adopts towards his four-legged pupils, the gist of the whole matter does not lie in what has been said by a French authority:—“S’il est brutal, le poulain deviendra farouche, violent, et méfiant; si,[61]au contraire, il sait mettre l’animal en confiance, la bonne entente s’établira promptement.” It certainly seems that, if a horse in his years of discretion, or rather maturity, and of confirmed viciousness, can be tamed so readily by a resolute but gentle master, there ought to be little or no difficulty in training him up during foalhood, like Captain Cuttle’s fig-tree, in the way he should go, so that when he is old he would not depart from it.’
Thecolt must now be saddled. Allow him first to look at, smell, and feel the saddle, then place it gently on his back, draw the girths up, at first very slackly, put on the crupper with the buckle as before, and a breastplate. I object to a martingale, my reason for which I shall mention further on. At first do not put on any stirrup-straps or stirrups, as they will only act as alarmants to the colt. After petting him for a time in the loose box, tighten the girths moderately, and lead him out for a time, and then longe him to accustom him to the flapping of the saddle; after which drive him about the roads with the saddle on. Repeat this in the afternoon.[46]On the following day do as before, but attach stirrup-irons and straps to the saddle; you may also fasten a strap on either side of the flank to the crupper, so as to get the animal used to having objects touching and dangling from him. Repeat this in the afternoon, and also on the following day, when the colt will be ready for mounting.
Before mounting, longe the colt well with the saddle on, then take him back to his loose box, and put on a French, or as some people call it, a Dutch martingale, consisting simply of a couple of rings joined together, through which the reins pass. To make this clearer for such of my readers who may not have seen one, I will describe how this is done. Unfasten the buckle in the centre of the reins, and pass each rein through a different ring, then buckle the reins together again over the withers, the rings or French martingale will then be between the colt’s chin and his breast. I much prefer this French martingale to the one in ordinary use, which has two straps with rings at their[47]extremities buckled on to the breastplate, through which the reins pass, for with the former you are able to steady the colt’s head without constraining it, which is the worst thing you can do when first riding a young animal; while the latter fixes the head too much in one position, and also tends to make him carry it far too low, when all attempts to mouth him are useless, for the bit will then be in theangle of the lips, the very place where it ought not to be.
There is also a danger should the colt fight much, especially with his fore-feet, of their becoming entangled in the martingale or reins. Men put the common martingale on when riding a young colt, for the simple reason that it gives them a good purchase, and thus enables them to hold on; a man who requires this aid to keep him in the saddle should never attempt to break-in a colt, that is, if he wishes him to have a good mouth, or one only a little removed from cast-iron. If a man can sit a colt without any pressure on the reins, he will[48]probably be able to mouth the animal well, provided he has certain other qualities, such as patience, knack, &c., for a man who can retain his seat without the aid of the reins has, as a general rule, light hands; while on the contrary, the man who relies upon the reins to secure him his seat in the saddle, has neither hands nor seat, and the sooner he contents himself with riding the horse nature gave him—to wit, his own legs—the better, for he will only spoil every horse he crosses, provided they have not been already spoilt by some other bad rider.
To return to the subject. After having put on the ring martingale, see that everything is right about the colt. Look to the girths, that they may not be slack, see that the crupper is neither too tight or too loose, and that no hairs have gathered under it, and satisfy yourself that everything is as it ought to be, even to the buckles of the bridle. Then gathering up the reins in your left hand, and standing with your left side to his shoulder, place your[49]left foot in the stirrup, and gradually bear weight upon it, when after a while you may raise yourself in the stirrup, so that both your legs are off the ground. You must watch minutely every movement of the animal, and speak gently and soothingly to him. After standing in the stirrup for a few seconds, lower yourself to the ground again, and then repeat the same a few times, until the colt seems quiet and used to it, when you may throw your right leg gently over his back, taking care not to touch him with it, and placing all your weight on your right hand, grasping the pommel of the saddle. When your leg is over his back, lower it quietly into its proper position, but keep it from touching the animal’s side until you have gently seated yourself in the saddle, then put your foot in the stirrup and there you are. Now do not spoil everything by trying to make the colt progress, but sit still, talk to him, pat him, and do everything you can to pacify the animal, and get him used to seeing you take such liberties with him as sitting on[50]his back; for, mind you, he feels an insult as much as you do. If a stranger were to jump on your back, you would immediately resent it by trying to get him off, and by fighting him; but if a friend were to do the same thing you would laugh, and if you did not exactly enjoy the joke, at any rate you would not resent it. The same with the colt. If you get on his back and urge him forward, he thinks you are taking a liberty, and as such are an enemy, and therefore tries his best to get rid of you; but on the other hand, if you sit still and speak kindly to him, he will recognise your action as that of a friend, although he may not actually laugh. After having sat on him a few minutes, you may get off, but very quietly, so as not to frighten him. Release your right foot from the stirrup, keep the leg from the animal’s side, and raise it to a level with his back, then gradually lower it on the near side until you are standing in the near stirrup. Pause here a few seconds, make much of him, and then lower yourself to the ground, take your left foot out[51]of the stirrup, and then handle and fondle the colt. Repeat this a few times, and then lead him out to the longing ground, as that most familiar to him, and where he has learnt his several acts of subordination, which latter is not the least beneficial aid, for he will recognise it as the scene of such to you. You must now mount him in the same quiet manner as before, but sit still, talk to him, and above all do not urge him forward, for if you do he will generally fight, plunge, rear, buck or kick, and then unless you are a good rider he will send you sprawling on mother earth. A fight at this juncture should always be avoided, for if he throws you he will know he is the conqueror, and will most likely be a kicker, a rearer, &c., for some time to come, if not for life; but, on the other hand, if you get the better of him it may so cow him that it will be a long time before he gets out of the sulks, or he may be a ‘slug’ and mean-spirited horse for the remainder of his days. Therefore avoid making him worse, for if you only give him[52]time he will most likely walk off of his own accord, and if on the longing ground will probably walk or jig-jog round the circular track through sheer custom, or he may take a path of his own, but whether he chooses the circular path or one of his own, do not check him, but allow him to go where he likes for a time, of course gradually sheering him off with the reins until he goes whereyoulike. Do not pull at him, let him have all the reins you can, your only control being gradual guidance from side to side. Never mind his taking large corners, you are not mouthing him as yet, but getting him used to carry you, and by degrees cajoling him into going where you require him. You must not force him, or there will be an open fight, which is to be avoided for the first few days after first mounting, but little by little cause him to go in your direction, but so imperceptibly as to make him believe it is of his own free will he is going there.
It has been my theory from the commencement of this little treatise so to work as to[53]cajole and manœuvre the colt into following your wishes, that they are so imperceptibly gained that he does not notice them as acts of actual obedience, for they have come upon him in so gradual a manner that there having been no fight over the matter he imagines the actions to have been of his own free will. Of course there must be an open rupture sooner or later which will undeceive him, but this should be avoided with all possible care until he has been mounted a week if possible. Ride the animal about the field for an hour or an hour and a half quietly, not going out of a walk or jig-jog, and then take him back to his loose box, and repeat the same in the afternoon, your object at present being to get him used to your weight on his back, and to gradual guidance; you are not trying to mouth him, or attempting to teach him his paces. ‘Little by little,’ and ‘Perseverando,’ are my mottoes, and ought to be those of every man who undertakes to break-in a colt. It is very much like bringing up a child; you cannot give a child an adult’s[54]thoughts at one lesson, or teach him right from wrong, but must continue it over a long course of years; and if you correct a child harshly, or beat him without showing where his fault lies and reasoning with him, he will either show fight as best he can—for he does notunderstandwhat he has done wrong orwhyit is wrong—or else he turns sulky and broods over his wrongs, which latter I hold to be worse than the former; and this holds good in the horse, for a sulky colt is much harder to overcome and requires much more patience than one which breaks out in open fight, for when the fight is over it is over, but with a sulky one there is no knowing how long it may last. As it is best to reason with a child, and prove to him that he is wrong, instead of whipping him, so is it best to teach a horse by degrees what is required of him, for he cannot be reasoned with, but must learn step by step the lessons given him. If you endeavour to teach him too much at once, or in too rapid strides, hecannot understand, and therefore when you[55]punish or reprimand him he turns sulky, or shows fight, and very naturally too, for he does not know why he has been punished after doing his best to please you.
Ride the colt for the three following days (morning and afternoon) about the field so as to avoid a fight with him caused by passing carriages, carts, or any other objects which might alarm him, and by so doing he will gradually become accustomed to the guidance of the reins and understand the pressure of the heels and other little signs, imparting to him the pace and direction in which he is to move, after which he can be ridden on the road. It is best to select a good wide road, and to avoid all narrow ones and lanes for a time, until he is handy at passing vehicles &c., for if you meet a cart in a lane there is very little room for him to pass it by, and as he is almost sure to dance about a little there is always some danger of his hurting himself against the wheel or some projecting part of the cart; but on the other hand, if the road be wide there is no such[56]danger, and he will also be got past any object which may frighten him much easier, and the chances of having a fight with him are thus reduced to a minimum. Always avoid a fight if possible by every means in your power, for instance, if a carriage is coming very fast towards you, either from behind or in front, and you think it calculated to frighten your pupil very much, you can by raising your hand show the coachman that you wish him to drive quietly until he has passed you, and you will find that in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred he is civil enough to comply with your mute request, but the hundredthdeserves——Well, perhaps the less said about his deserts the better, for I suppose it is impossible to find a flock of human beings without one black sheep amongst them, above all amongst grooms and coachmen, who as a class are the most ignorant and bigoted men on the face of the earth; there are, however, some few trustworthy excellent men among them, but they are very few and far between.
[57]If on nearing a heap of stones or any other object, such as a woman’s petticoat or other garments drying on a hedge, at which the colt seems inclined to be frightened, do not flog him past but speak kindly to him and pat him, do not hurry, but let the animal take his own time, and you will find by degrees that he will take a step or two towards it, and at last get close to and possibly touch it with his nose after having smelt it; then you must ride him backwards and forwards past it a few times, and when he has ceased to notice it continue on your way. You will of course have a fight some time or other, for the colt may wish at some cross roads to choose one for himself, irrespective of any choice on your part, or he may wish to follow some horse on the road before him, and refuse to leave an animal feeding by the roadside, but in whichever mode he disputes your authority you must undeceive him, and thatthoroughly and at once. If he requires whip and spur, let him have them, but remember, never allow him to get the upper[58]hand of you, for if so, you may just as well turn him out and leave off breaking, until you have found a man whocanmaster him, for he will have found out his own strength and will not forget it in a hurry. If it takes you half a day or even a whole one to make him do as you wish, it will be time well spent.
After having ridden him for a fortnight, you may discontinue the mouthing bit, and in its stead use an ordinary plain snaffle, taking care to select as large a one as possible, for if it is too fine it will hurt the animal’s mouth, and either render it dull or extremely sensitive.
If a colt is well broken at first there will be no necessity in after life to resort to such means as those which Rarey introduced, or the dodging process of M. Carriès as mentioned in the ‘Pall Mall Gazette,’ the paragraph concerning which I herereproduce:—
‘Horse Taming.—History repeats itself in horse-taming, it appears, as well as in other matters. Mr. Rarey and Cruiser have met with their match in M. Carriès and Trocadéro.[59]Trocadéro, son of Monarque and Antonio, has of late exhibited symptoms of the most fearful ferocity; and “about two months ago,” according to “Le Sport,” M. Aumont “met M. Carriès,” who offered to tame the animal. M. Aumont, having inquired whether the means employed would not be drugs or such violence as might injure the horse or render him still more furious, and having received an assurance that nothing of the kind would be used, he consented; and, at a time agreed upon, a visit was paid to the stud at Victat-Pontfol, and the experiments began. The first thing was to enter the horse-box. This M. Carriès did, in presence of M. Aumont and all the “stable,” who “s’attendait à le voir dévoré.” An exciting “duel” ensued; the horse rushing, time after time, with open mouth and with “hennissements féroces,” at M. Carriès, who merely dodged him by rapid movements aside, as the toreador dodges the bull. After ten of these attacks so met, “the animal suddenly stopped to contemplate the audacious individual who braved[60]him in this manner, and was at once seized with the nervous trembling which comes over ‘le lutteur aux prises avec un adversaire contre lequel ses moyens habituels ont échoué. Trocadéro était dompté!’” And M. Carriès took advantage of the horse’s stupor to put a saddle and bridle upon him, after which Trocadéro submitted like a lamb to have his fore-feet shod, and ultimately his hind-feet, without more ado. The dodging process of M. Carriès certainly beats for simplicity even the throwing-down process of Mr. Rarey; but it might be awkward if the tamer were to meet with a horse less susceptible of “stupeur” than Trocadéro appears to be. The question suggested by all these horse-taming feats, however, is whether they could not be rendered altogether unnecessary by care taken in the original training, and whether, as regards the trainer and the method he adopts towards his four-legged pupils, the gist of the whole matter does not lie in what has been said by a French authority:—“S’il est brutal, le poulain deviendra farouche, violent, et méfiant; si,[61]au contraire, il sait mettre l’animal en confiance, la bonne entente s’établira promptement.” It certainly seems that, if a horse in his years of discretion, or rather maturity, and of confirmed viciousness, can be tamed so readily by a resolute but gentle master, there ought to be little or no difficulty in training him up during foalhood, like Captain Cuttle’s fig-tree, in the way he should go, so that when he is old he would not depart from it.’