Page:The Lady's Book Vol. I.pdf/162

146 RIDING. RIDING.

SOME horses are addicted to a very troublesome and vicious habit of turning round suddenly we do not here allude to shyness, but restiveness without exhibiting any previous symptom of their intention. A horse soon ascertains that the left hand is weaker than the right, and, consequently, less able to oppose him; he, therefore, turns on the off side, and with such force and suddenness, that it is almost impossible, even if the rider be prepared for the attack, to prevent him; in this case, it would be unwise to make the attempt; the rider would be foiled, and the horse become encouraged, by his success in the struggle, to make similar endeavours to have his own way, or dismount his rider. The better plan is, instead of endeavouring to prevent him from turning with the left hand, to pull him sharply with the right, until his head has made a complete circle, and he finds, to his astonishment, that he is precisely in the place from which he started. Should he repeat the turn, on the rider's attempting to urge him forward, she should pull him round on the same side three or four times, and assist the power of the hand in so doing, by a smart aid of the whip, or the leg: while this is doing, she must take care to preserve her balance by an inclination of the body to the centre of the circle which is described by the horses's head in his evolution. The same plan may be pursued when a horse endeavours to turn a corner, contrary to the wish of his rider; and if he be successfully baffled three or four times, it is most probable that he will not renew his endeavours. On the same principle, when a horse refuses to advance, and whipping would increase his obstinacy, or make him rear, or bolt away in a different direction, it is advisa, ble to make him walk backward, until he evinces a willingness to advance. A runaway might, in many instances, be cured of his vice by his being suffered to gallop, unchecked, and being urged forward when he shewed an inclination to abate his speed, rather than by attempting to pull him in; but this remedy is, in most situations, dangerous, even for men; and all other means should be tried before it is resorted to by the rider. Should either of our fair readers“ which the fates forfend!” have the misfortune to be mounted on a runaway, she may avoid any evil consequences, if she can contrive to retain her self possession, and act as we are about to direct: -she must endeavour to maintain her seat at all hazards, and to preserve the best balance, or position of body, to carry her defences into operation; the least symptom of alarm, on her part, will increase the terror or determination of the borse; a dead, heavy pull at the bridle will at once aid, rather than deter him in his speed, and prevent her from having sufficient mastery over his mouth and her own hands to guide him; she must, therefore, hold the reins in such a manner as to keep the horse together when at the height of his pace, and to guide him from running against anything in his course; and it is most probable that he will soon abate his speed, and gradually subside into a moderate pace. Sawing the mouth (that is, pulling each rein alternately) will frequently bring a horse up in a few minutes; slackening the reins for an instant, and then jerking them with force, may also produce a similar effect: but if the latter mode be adopted, the rider must take care that the horse, by stopping suddenly, do not bring her on his neck, or throw her over his head. In whatever manner the runaway be stopped, it is advisable to be on the alert, lest he should become so disunited by the operation, as to fall. Our reader will here think, perhaps, that all this advice may be easy enough to give, but difficult to follow: we beg leave, however, to tell her, that although it is not so easy as drawing on a worn glove, or replacing a stray curl, it is much more practicable than she may imagine; but we trust she will never have occasion to put it to the proof.

There is another situation, in which it is advisable to force the horse apparently to have his own way, in order to baffle his attacks. Restive horses, or even docile animals, when put out of temper, sometimes endeavour to crush their riders' legs against walls, gates, trees, posts, & c. An inexperienced rider, in such a situation, would strive to pull the horse away; her exertions would be unavailing; the animal would feel that he could master the opposition, and thus discovering the rider's weakness, turn it to her disad-