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RIDING.

33 RIDING. The Virgin Queen, peerless Elizabeth, With grace and dignity rode through the host: And proudly paced her gallant steed, as though His saddle was a royal throne. HEALTH and cheerfulness, says an old author, are pursued with a better prospect of success on horseback than in any other manner. Riding, it is generally admitted, ranks in the first class of exercises: but it is an art, which those who are unskilled in can never sufficiently appreciate, or truly enjoy; and daily experience proves to us, that the greater portion of those ladies who indulge in it, labour under this disadvantage. In no other art are there so many self taught amateurs: numbers of ladies have a decided objection to going through the ordeal of a riding school; others do not reside where they can obtain the benefit of a master's instructions; and the generality consider that they are in possession of all that can be acquired on the subject, when they have discovered a mode of retaining the seat and guiding the horse. To such of our readers as happen to belong to either of these classes, and also to those who, having been taught by a ridingmaster, are still desirous of further improvement, the following treatise will, the writer flatters himself, if carefully perused, be productive of considerable advantage.

MOUNTING.

On approaching a horse, the tail of the habit should be gracefully gathered up, and the whip be carried in the right hand (Fig. 1). The hat should previously be well secured, and the hair combed back, or otherwise so closely dressed, that neither the wind, the action of the horse, the effect of damp weather, nor exercise, may throw it into disorder. Losing the hat is not only attended with unpleasant consequences of a trifling nature, but its fall may make the horse start, plunge, or even run away; and should it, when blown off the head, be prevented from dropping to the ground, by means of a fastening under the chin, the action of raising the whiphand in a hurry to replace it, accompanied, as it generally is, by a slight flutter of the whole frame of the rider, if either timid or inexperienced, is very likely to alarm the horse, if he happen to be shy or spirited. The hair, if loosely dressed, may lose its curl, and, by falling over, or being blown in the eyes of the rider, greatly embarrass and annoy her.

It is the groom's duty, when the rider approaches, to gather up the reins with his left hand, smoothly and evenly, the bit reins between, and somewhat tighter than the bridoon, properly dividing them with his forefinger. The lady receives them a little more forward than the point of the horse's shoulder, with her right hand, which still retains and passes the whip over the saddle to the off (or right) side: on taking the bridle in this manner, her fore finger is placed between the reins; the groom removes his hand, and the lady draws hers back, suffering the reins to glide gently and evenly through her fingers, until she reaches the near crutch of the pommel, which she takes hold of with her right hand, still holding the whip and reins, and places herself close to the near side of the saddle, with her back almost turned towards it. The groom now quits his former post, and prepares to assist her to mount. The horse being thus left under the lady's government, it is proper, that in passing her hand through the reins she should not have suffered them to become so loose as to prevent her, when her hand is on the pommel, from having a light, but steady bearing on the bit, and thus keeping the horse to his position during the action of mounting. She then places her left foot firmly in the right hand of the groom or gentleman in attendance, who stoops to receive it. The lady then lays her left hand on his right shoulder, and straightening her left knee, she bears her weight on her assistant's hand, which he gradually raises (rising himself at the same time) until she is seated on the saddle. During her elevation, she steadies, and even, if necessary, partly assists herself towards the saddle by her hands; one of which, it will be recollected, is placed on the pommel, and the other on her assistant's shoulder. It is important that she should keep her foot firm and