Part 13 (2/2)
Right hand ready to a.s.sist left]
In tandem driving, when going downhill, the leader's reins should be shortened; if the hill is long, they should be grasped in the right hand a few inches in front of the left, separated by the middle finger, released from the left hand for a moment, then carried back with the right hand behind the left and grasped again in the left, and held there until the bottom of the hill is reached. If, however, the hill is only a short one, they may be simply taken up in the right hand and held there for a moment. The leader should, of course, not be pulling at all when going downhill; on the other hand, his traces should not be so loose as to give him any chance of getting his feet over. In travelling on the level, the leader's traces should be only moderately taut. The tendency with beginners is to let the leader do too much work; this not only tires the leader, but it gets the wheeler in the bad habit of letting the leader pull not only the cart but the wheeler as well, and, in general, the leader should rather be reserved for uphill work. On the level most of the work, and downhill all of it, should be done by the wheeler.
While tandem driving originated in driving one's hunter in the lead to the meet so that there was no attempt at having the horses match, nowadays matched pairs are commonly shown in the ring tandem, so that it may be said that there are three different cla.s.ses of tandem horses: First, matched pairs; second, a large wheeler with a small, showy leader; and third, two horses of the hunter type, not necessarily matched, for a sporting tandem and for country work. It is a mistake to suppose that tandems are merely ornamental; on the contrary, it is one of the most practical ways of harnessing two horses, and the only really practical way of harnessing two horses to a cart. Horses generally enjoy being driven tandem because it means freedom for them both, and they can exert their strength to great advantage. Indeed, on the Continent nearly all the heavy trucking is done with very high two-wheeled vehicles drawn by two, three, or even four horses tandem.
Those who are in favor of putting a harness on their hunter will find that one of the best ways of exercising a hunter is by driving him in the lead of a tandem, as there he may be given much less pulling than if he is driven single. If you have a long-tailed hunter, do not, however, drive him in the lead. No long-tailed horse should ever be driven in the lead of a tandem, save in the exceptional case of showing a sporting tandem in the ring. The sporting tandem, as shown in the ring, is made up of any kind of a wheeler and the hunter in the lead with his saddle on. The riding bridle is carried in the cart.
Of late years there has been a great outcry against the practice of docking which, in my opinion, has arisen through ignorance and prejudice, and has been raised by people who do not at all realize the dangers of driving long-tailed horses, especially in a four or tandem.
The arguments used against docking are first that it is cruel and second that it prevents a horse from brus.h.i.+ng off the flies. Neither of these objections is well founded. The operation, when properly done by a competent man, causes almost no pain to the horse, is done very quickly, and has no after ill effects. With regard to brus.h.i.+ng off flies, this argument would be quite good if horses were left out in the fields without anything on them, but to use it with regard to the driving horses of persons of means is perfectly ridiculous. When a horse is harnessed he cannot possibly use his tail to brush off the flies. When he is standing in a properly appointed stable, he is always covered in summer with a sheet and in winter with a blanket, and there are no flies in winter. When he is turned out in summer he is always covered with a sheet.
Docking is not, as its opponents a.s.sert, a senseless fas.h.i.+on, but is founded on reason. A long-tailed horse, particularly if driven in a low four-wheeled trap, is almost sure, however careful the driver may be, to get his tail over at least one of the reins. If he does, it is a matter of great difficulty to release the rein, and if the horse is high-spirited or in any way vicious, as long as his tail is over the rein the driver has absolutely no control over him. He is in a position to kick, which he is almost sure to do, or to run, or to do anything he pleases, and he nearly always does something which he should not do. The opponents of docking are not persons who have driven high-spirited horses or who know anything about either tandem or four-in-hand driving.
The danger, when a horse gets his tail over the rein, is multiplied a hundred-fold when he is the leader of a tandem, for in that case the driver is absolutely helpless; there is nothing that he can do but either jump out of the trap and run to the leader's head or wait until such time as the leader may see fit to let the rein go. In the meantime the leader may be kicking, turning, pulling to one side, running away, upsetting the cart, or doing any one of a thousand things which the driver cannot in any way prevent. In pair driving it is also a very serious thing if either horse puts his tail over a rein. The result is that immediately control is lost not only over him but over the other horse as well, for half of the control over the other is had through the coupling rein which is buckled to the rein caught in the tail. Many most serious accidents have been caused by long-tailed horses catching the reins. I do not therefore consider it safe for a woman to drive a long-tailed horse of any spirit.
Of course roadsters or trotting horses never should have their tails docked, nor should thoroughbreds or polo ponies, and many hunters do not. But when a woman drives any of these long-tailed horses, she is taking risks which she had better avoid.
With regard to the looks of a horse, to my mind no driving horse with any kind of a formal trap looks smart with a long tail any more than he does with a long mane, or forelock, or with the hair about his fetlocks untrimmed. I am not talking about a horse in the state of nature, but of a horse harnessed to a properly appointed trap.
With regard to saddle horses, I think also that a horse of the park, hack, or combination type looks far better with his tail docked.
It might be said that a trotting horse is quite as apt to get his tail over the rein as any other driving horse, but this a.s.sertion loses sight of the very different way in which a trotting horse is driven, and of the fact that in a trotting wagon the driver sits so near that he can reach down and lift the horse's tail over, and that trotting horses are carefully trained not to start under these circ.u.mstances.
Trotting horses are in a cla.s.s by themselves, and it is more reasonable to say that the tails of trotting horses should be docked than that the tails of other driving horses should be long.
With regard to the mane, every driving horse should have his mane thinned out by pulling, so that it may not look s.h.a.ggy. Most ponies look best with their manes closely hogged. If this gives a ewe-necked effect the mane may be cut in a curve, short at the head and withers and longer in the middle. The forelock on all driving horses should be cut entirely away.
CHAPTER XIV
SHOW RING APPOINTMENTS
The harness should be of black patent-leather with square wire buckles.
Crests, monograms, or initials should be small and inconspicuous: for a single horse, placed on the standing martingale; for a pair, on the breast plates.
Loin straps, which are part of the appointments of a victoria or other trap driven by a servant, should not be used for ladies' traps driven by a lady. Pole chains with oval links are permissible or pole pieces, when the owner drives; chains are never permissible on any trap driven by a servant. The chains should fasten at the pole and no extra links should be allowed to hang.
[Ill.u.s.tration: PERFECTLY APPOINTED LADY'S PAIR]
Phaetons for use in the country have been shown of late, built on the lines of the George IV and finished in natural wood, and with them russet harness instead of black patent-leather is very smart, and, if the trap is a light one, Dutch collars may be used instead of Kay collars. All formal ladies' traps finished in dark colors should also be lined with the owner's colors, either black, dark blue, dark green, or maroon, and the servants' liveries should match the lining. Country traps of a light color should be lined in light colors, and it looks smarter for the lining to match the country livery, although gray liveries may be worn with any light lining. Ladies' traps may also be lined in leather instead of cloth and in the same colors, and it is most important that the tr.i.m.m.i.n.g of the lining should be strictly in keeping and very plain. The driving cus.h.i.+on should always be covered with the same material as the lining. The mat in the bottom of the trap should, of course, match the lining.
[Ill.u.s.tration: LADY'S SINGLE BASKET PHAETON]
The running gear of all ladies' traps should be finished in dark colors with inconspicuous striping, and the striping should be in keeping with the lining; that is, if the lining is other than black, the striping should be of the same color. All light colors for the striping, such as primrose, light red, and light green, should be confined to sporting traps and runabouts; light hues do not seem appropriate to formal ladies' traps.
[Ill.u.s.tration: WESTERN STYLE OF GIG HORSE]
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