Riding and Driving. Collier Price
on the side of sire and of dam. This breeding is not so usual as might be supposed, although one of the best judges of saddle-horses in the state of Kentucky spoke the general sentiment when he said that a saddle-horse could not have too much Denmark blood. About one hundred animals of various ages, all of the best strains, fill up the tale. Colonel Woodford does not break his horses to saddle until they are in their fourth year, as he desires that they should have strength and development before they undergo training; but their excellent dispositions and the handling incident to their care make them quiet and easy to manage and quick to learn.
096a
FIG. 25.—HIGH LASSIE. TWO YEARS OLD]
096b
FIG. 26.—MARES AND FOALS. GAY BROTHERS
Five miles from Versailles, a short journey from Lexington, one finds the farm of the Ball Brothers. This is the home of Montgomery Chief, the grand horse that has fairly carried off the honors wherever he has been shown. In 1902 he won the championship at Louisville, Nashville, Indianapolis, Kansas City, St. Louis, and Chicago. In 1903, barred at Louisville, he was champion at Kansas City ($1000 prize), Chicago, St. Louis, and Atlanta. In 1904 he was first in his class at the St. Louis Exposition. Of imposing size, great substance, faultless form, golden coat, proud carriage, and brilliant action, Montgomery Chief is an admirable animal. His qualities seem too great for everyday use, and he is worthy of bearing an emperor at the head of a victorious army. If during his career the country had a more beautiful saddle stallion, it is to be regretted that no such appearance was made, and this horse must be considered the greatest of his class and day until his colors are taken from him in public competition.
It must not be understood that excellent saddle-horses may be found only on the large stock farms, where the selection is greater and the chances are greater. There is a good horse for nearly every holding in the Blue Grass region, and the man who breeds his only mare may through good luck, aiding good judgment, rear a Montgomery Chief or a Bourbon King, the last-named, I may say, being a young horse selected by many of the best judges to bear away the bell in future contests.
CHAPTER V
THE SADDLE—THE BRIDLE—HOW TO MOUNT
The English or flat saddle, is the only one fit for sport or pleasure. It gives no trouble in mounting or dismounting, it is the only form which permits every man to obtain the true seat, and it is far and away the most comfortable tree when a horse falls with its rider. It is used by civilians throughout the civilized world, and by military men in their sports and whenever its use by them is permissible. Indeed, the nearer the requirements of the military saddle allow it to approach the English saddle, the better.
The tree of the saddle should have a cut-back pommel to prevent the withers of the horse from being chafed. The side-bars should take an even bearing upon each side of the horse's back, a channel in the panel being made to keep the saddle clear of the spine. The throat of the tree should not be narrow enough to pinch the horse; if too broad, it will not be stable. The tree being suitable in other respects, it will be very easy to bend the lower points until they embrace the shoulders snugly, and to have a well-fitted saddle.
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FIG. 27.—STIRLING CHIEF
100b
FIG. 28.—STIRLING CHIEF IN TROT
The stirrups should be of tempered steel, of large size and not too light, with the tread at least an inch in breadth. When the panel, or under stuffing of the saddle, has been found to be right, care should be taken to preserve it, as it is very difficult to find a saddler who will replace it exactly. A cloth of felt or a piece of thin leather under the saddle will preserve the panel for many years. In places where I have found it impossible to have the panel satisfactorily fitted, I have removed it altogether, and girthed the saddle over thick felt numnah, a proceeding which answered perfectly. Saddle-galls are always due either to an ill-fitting tree or an ill-fitting rider; they are preventable, they should not exist.
The saddle having been found to suit the horse, the rider may consider his own comfort and convenience. It is always better, where skilful workmen can be found, to buy the tree of the right length and have the saddle finished to suit horse and rider. The web foundation of the seat can readily be arranged, before the pigskin is put on, so that the dip will suit the conformation of the man. The dip, or lowest point of the seat, should be slight. If too far to the rear, it will give the man a sensation of falling back; if too far to the front, it will throw his body forward. When, sitting upon his buttocks, he finds that he maintains a perfectly erect seat without restraint, it is just right. Where saddlers do not know their trade, it only remains to try finished saddles until the horse and the man are suited.
The whip should be a light, straight, flexible contrivance, with no more of a lash than a silken tip. The use of the crop, except in the hunting-field, is an absurdity. Fashion dictates that the whip should be held nearly straight in the right hand and pointing across the withers of the horse; but Fashion is not a horseman. As the whip should give strokes upon the forehand of the horse only under exceptional circumstances, common sense dictates that the instrument should be held point down, so that it may be applied with facility against the side of the horse just back of the girths—the proper place for its effects to produce increased impulses from the croup. With a woman the riding rod takes the place of the right leg of the horseman, and it is impossible to use it in that manner if it is held across the shoulders of the horse.
There are but two bridle bits for riding purposes. The first and most useful is the snaffle, a smooth, round mouthpiece, jointed in the middle, with rings, and, where it is employed alone, with cheek-pieces also on the ends. The snaffle is the bit for the beginner, because he can do little harm with it; and it is the bit for the accomplished horseman, because in his hands it has a great range of effects.
The curb-bit should never be used without the snaffle, as there are often occasions when the powers of the curb-bit alone are ineffectual, and the snaffle must go to its assistance. The mouthpiece of the curb-bit is rigid, with a raised middle, or "port," to give ease to the tongue of the horse and to let the mouthpiece come down upon the bars of the animal's lower jaw. Upon each end of the mouthpiece is an arm, the upper branch of which has a fixed ring for the cheek-piece of the bridle, the lower branch having a loose ring to receive the rein. The lower branch of this arm, measuring from the middle of the mouthpiece to the middle of the lower ring, should be 3½ inches in length. The upper branch, measuring from the middle of the mouthpiece to the highest part of the ring, into which the headstall is buckled, should be 1¾ inches in length, the assumed depth of the lower jaw of the horse. These measurements are as nearly exact as may be, to get the effects of a lever of the second class upon such a yielding and changeable thing as the head of the horse, the animal being, say, 15½ hands high, of normal form. Upon the ring of the upper branches metal hooks are fastened, and to these the curb-chain is attached. When the curb-chain, its links twisted until the chain is flat, fits properly in the chin groove of the horse, directly opposite to the cannons of the bit, that point becomes the fulcrum of the lever, and the power being applied through the reins to the long branches, the effects are applied to the bars of the lower jaw. The width of the mouthpiece will depend upon that of the animal's jaw; it should not be so narrow as to pinch the muzzle between the branches, nor so wide