Part 4 (1/2)
Some thirty years ago I remember seeing the ex-Queen of Naples superbly mounted, riding _a la cavaliere_. Her Majesty was then even more beautiful than her Imperial sister the Empress of Austria, and quite as finished a horsewoman. She wore a high and pointed-crowned felt hat, a long white cloak, something like the Algerian bournouse, patent-leather jack-boots, and gilt spurs. Her seat was perfect, as was her management of her fiery Arab or Barb, the effect charming, and there was nothing to raise the faintest suspicion of a blush on the cheeks of the most modest. There is no doubt that the d.u.c.h.ess de Berri mode of sitting on a horse is much less fatiguing to the rider, gives her more power over the half-broken animals that in foreign countries do duty for ladies'
horses, and, in a very great measure, does away with the chance of establis.h.i.+ng a raw on the back. In support of the claims of this, to us, novel manner of placing the rider on her horse's back, I quote from Miss Isabella Bird's ”Hawaiian Archipelago.” Describing her visit to the Anuenue Falls, that lady writes: ”The ride was spoiled by my insecure seat in my saddle, and the increased pain in my side which riding produced. Once, in crossing a stream, the horses had to make a sort of downward jump from a rock, and I slipped round my horse's neck; indeed, on the way back I felt that, on the ground of health, I must give up the volcano, as I would never consent to be carried to it, like Lady Franklin, in a litter. When we returned, Mr. Severance suggested that it would be much better for me to follow the Hawaiian fas.h.i.+on, and ride astride, and put his saddle on the horse. It was only my strong desire to see the volcano which made me consent to a mode of riding against which I have a strong prejudice; but the result of the experiment is that I shall visit Kilauea thus or not at all. The native women all ride astride on ordinary occasions in the full sacks, or kolukus, and on gala days in the pan--the gay winged dress which I described in writing from Honolulu. A great many of the foreign ladies in Hawaii have adopted the Mexican saddle also for greater security to themselves and ease to their horses on the steep and perilous bridle-tracks, but they wear full Turkish trousers and jauntily made dresses reaching to the ankles.” Writing later from the Colorado district of the Rockies, Miss Bird adds: ”I rode sidewise till I was well out of the town, long enough to produce a severe pain in my spine, which was not relieved for some time till after I had changed my position.”
Mrs. Power O'Donoghue runs a tilt with all her might against the idea of any of her s.e.x riding like men. But there are so many manly maidens about now who excel in all open-air pastimes requiring pluck, energy, physical activity, and strength, and who attire themselves suitably in a sort of semi-masculine style, that is not asking too much of them to try the virtues of the cross-saddle. Their costumes are not so much _neglige_ as studiedly, so far as is possible without exactly ”wearing the breeches” in public, of the man, manly. One of our Princesses has the credit of being an adept with the foils; our cricket and golf fields are invaded by petticoats of various lengths; we see polo played by ladies on clever blood ponies; they take kindly to billiards and lawn-tennis; and it is whispered of a few that they can put on the ”mittens” and take and give punishment. It is not so much the prudery about sitting like men that excites the wrathful indignation of the opponents of cross-saddle riding as the apparent difficulty of deciding upon the thoroughly neat and workwoman-like costume.
[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 1. No. 2. No. 3.]
The three different costumes represented in these sketches do not differ very greatly in propriety. Shorten No. 3, the Eilitto Muddy-Weather costume--who says there's nothing in a name?--just a trifle and encase the wearer's lower limbs in a pair of Messes E. Tautz and Son's gaiters or leggings, and we have the costume sported the winter before last by a well known lady. It certainly looked, on a wearer of advanced years, a trifle eccentric, but any pretty girl, in her _premiere jeunesse_, blessed with a good figure and gait, would have been the admired of all admirers. This costume with the funny name is much patronized by lawn-tennis players, golfers, and skaters.
Nos. 1 and 2 are as like as ”two Dromios,” and in no very material degree differ from the short-skirted walking-dress. They have been brought out with an eye to riding _a la cavaliere_, and being strong and yet neat are intended for prairie-riding in the far West, for the rough-and-ready work of the Australian or New Zealand bush, and for scouring over the veldt of South Africa, or for the hundred and one out-of-the-way places of the earth, whither our English girls venture, from necessity, for adventure, or some more potent attraction. Of the two I prefer No. 1, which is the smarter. It is nothing more or less than a short habit made in the shape of a frock-coat, and is b.u.t.toned the whole way down to the knees. The long boots, which, by the way, show off a pretty well-turned ankle and foot to perfection, are certainly a trifle more in evidence than is the case when the lady wears the regular habit and is desirous of showing as little ”leg” as possible--a desire, when the foot is threes or narrow fours, and the instep well sprung, not too often indulged. No 2 has a divided skirt.
I do not ask ladies of mature age, or even those whose seat is formed, to don one or other of these costumes, though, after the experience of Miss Bird and others, they might, under similar circ.u.mstances, adopt both the costume, and the cross-saddle with advantage. In the backwoods and jungles a wide lat.i.tude in dress may be permitted without a.s.sailing the strictest modesty.
The fas.h.i.+on of riding in the cross-saddle, if it is to be introduced, as it ought to be, must emanate from the rising generation. The luxury of having both feet in the stirrups, of being able to vary the length of the leather, of having a leg down either side of the horse, and a distribution of the bearing equally on each foot, is surely worthy of consideration when many hours have to be spent in the saddle and long weary distances travelled. If agreeable to the rider, how much more so to the horse? We men know what a relief it is on a long journey to vary the monotonous walk or the wearying trot with an occasioned hard gallop ”up in the stirrups,” or how it eases one to draw the feet out of the stirrups and let the legs hang free. I have already hazarded the opinion that a lady's seat on a side-saddle is a very firm one, but when she is called upon to ride half-broken horses and to be on their backs for hours at a time, traversing all sorts of country, she undoubtedly is heavily handicapped as compared with a man.
Mrs. O'Donoghue, much to the damage of her own contention, so clearly demonstrates my views that I venture to quote _verbatim_ from one of that lady's published letters. ”My companion was in ease while I was in torture. Because he had a leg on either side of his mount, his weight equally distributed, and an equal support upon both sides; in fact he had, as all male riders have, the advantage of a double support in the rise; consequently, at the moment his weight was removed from the saddle, it was thrown upon both sides, and this equal distribution enabled him to accomplish without fatigue that slow rise and fall which is so tiring to a lady whose weight, when she is out of the saddle, is thrown entirely upon one delicate limb, thus inducing her to fall again as soon as possible.” As for mere grip--the upright and leaping-heads _versus_ both knees--the security in either case is about the same, but the woman's position in the side-saddle is the more tiring and cramping of the two, and in complete control over the horse, the man's position on the horse has a very decided advantage.
APPENDIX I.
THE TRAINING OF PONIES FOR CHILDREN.
We will take it for granted that the colt, say a three or four year old, is well accustomed to the restraint of the common halter, and is obedient to the cavesson on both sides, also that he leads quietly and bears a fair amount of handling. Were I permitted to explain the Galvayne system, I could, in a very few pages, save the breaker and the colt much time, trouble, and many trials of temper and patience. I have not the professor's permission to make the tempting disclosures.
Without trenching on his domain, I may lay down the following rough-and-ready _modus operandi_, which, however, I am free to confess would be considerably facilitated by a set of his breaking tackle, especially of a particular rope, not made of any vegetable fibre, which, in some cases, exercises a potential control. We must just ”gang our ain gait” as my countrymen say.
Having fitted the colt with a soft-lined head-collar-bridle, of the Australian bush pattern, with strong hooks or straps by which to attach the bit, I proceed to bit him. The bit should be on the flexible principle, the mouth-piece being either of chain or a series of ball and socket sections, covered over with white and tasteless rubber, or other soft and yielding material. It should be no thicker than a man's little finger. Inside the cheek and leg of this snaffle I have a large flat disc of sole leather, rounded at the edges, st.i.tched as a guard to prevent the possibility of the bit being drawn through the mouth, of pinching the cheeks against the teeth or in any way injuring the mouth.
Every bit, no matter how merciful, will, more or less, make the bars of the mouth tender, but this least of all. If any suffering is evident, or any inflammation set up, then the use of the bit must, till all appearance of undue redness has disappeared, be discontinued. A little tincture of myrrh with eau-de-cologne applied with the fore finger will soon allay the irritation and remove the tenderness.
The best way to insert the bit is, having fixed the near ring to the spring hook or strap on the near side of the head-collar, then coming round to the off side of the head, gentling the pony's head all the time and soothing him, to quietly work the two fore fingers of the left hand into his mouth, and on an opportunity offering, to slip the bit quickly into the mouth. This must be done deftly, without alarming the pony, for if the first attempt result in failure he is certain to throw up his head, run back, and otherwise thwart subsequent endeavours. A little treacle smeared on the bit will make it more palatable and inviting. The first time the bit is in the colt's mouth it should not be allowed to remain more than an hour, and his head must be entirely without restraint. On removing it examine the mouth to see that it has not been injured or bruised, and give him a carrot, or apple. It is immaterial whether these bitting lessons be given in a roomy loose-box, barn, covered-yard, or small paddock.
After becoming reconciled to the bit, strap on a roller or surcingle, having two side and one top ring st.i.tched on to it, the side rings being placed horizontally about where the rider's knees would come, that on the top fore-and-aft. Through these three rings a strong cord should be run forming a sort of running rein, tie the cord to the off-ring of the snaffle, bring it back through the off-side ring, up and through the top ring on the back, down through that on the near side, and so on forward to the near ring of the bit to which it is fastened with a slip knot, taking care that though a slight bearing be upon the bars of the mouth, the colt's head is not tightly reined in and an irksome continuous strain kept on a certain set of muscles of the neck. This running-rein arrangement admits of lateral play of the head, and minimizes the possibility of creating a one-sided mouth.
After a few short lessons in lounging on both sides with his head thus restrained, he may be made to stand in stall with his hindquarters to the manger, the reins being fastened to the post on either side. If the stall, as probably will be the case, be too wide, narrow it by placing sheep hurdles laced with straw on either side of him, so narrowing his standing room that he must preserve a fair ”fore and aft” position. The reins must be, if the pillars are too high, fastened to the three rings on the surcingle as explained above. In addition to the single reins there must also be driving reins or cords, carefully adjusted as to length, so as to preserve an even pressure on either side of the mouth, attached to the rings on the manger, so that any attempt to advance is immediately curbed by the strain on the bit.