Chapter 10

HANDS, VOICE, WHIP AND SPUR.

HANDS.

Nearly every writer on the subject of riding is of opinion that "good hands" are inborn and cannot be acquired. This may be so, but the worst of hands may be greatly improved by good teaching and practice. Continental horsemen do not, as a rule, learn how to ride across country, but the majority of them devote much study to the various methods of bitting and handling horses, and, as far as hacking is concerned, their horses are better broken and better handled than they are in this country. I am not alluding to the question of seat, as I think Britons, and especially our Colonial cousins, can beat them on that point; but it is evident, as can be seen any day and in any hunting field, that more study should be devoted to the acquirement of good hands. A course of school riding, especially on a made "school" horse, which is a very light-mouthed animal, would greatly lessen the clumsiness of heavy hands; or, if such instruction were unobtainable, good practice might be had on a young horse which had been carefully broken by a competent horseman. No young horse will pull until he is taught to do so by bad handling, and a lady who wishes to improve her hands might ride a young animal, in the company of an old steady horse, and ascertain in this way what the natural condition of a horse's mouth really is and how easily it may be controlled. I do not think that many ladies have heavy hands with horses--their chief fault lies in their want of control over their mounts. Many ride with the reins so loose that their horses get out of hand and go in an uncollected manner, and accidents not unfrequently occur from this cause. As horses which are not well in hand in the hunting field will, sooner or later, bring their riders either to grief or to disgrace, this slipshod method of handling should be avoided. Although the grip which a lady obtains in a side-saddle should render her entirely independent of the reins as a means of support, she is handicapped by being unable to lower her hands to the same extent as a man. I have found that with horses which carry their heads too high, and throw them up if the rider tries to lower them, a standing martingale attached to the rings of the snaffle affords considerable help in obtaining perfect control, especially with young horses. But I would not recommend a lady to use a standing martingale with a horse which has not previously been accustomed to it, nor indeed at all, unless she rides chiefly on the snaffle; for although it is perfectly safe to use the curb with a standing martingale in steadying and collecting a horse, it would be highly dangerous to touch it when the animal is jumping. The majority of riding men regard the standing martingale as dangerous--and rightly, for only men with good hands can safely use it. If any sudden snatch or jerk were made at the curb, and the horse in throwing up his head found himself caught by the standing martingale, a very serious accident might happen. The standing martingale in no way impedes a horse's jumping, for horses do not jump with their heads in the air, unless they fear the curb. Fig. 48 shows its maximum length. It may be said that ladies ought not to ride horses which carry their heads too high, but many of us have to make the best of what we can get in the matter of horseflesh, and employ the surest methods at our command for keeping such animals under perfect control. The standing martingale is dangerous in hunting only when going through gates, as it is liable to catch in a gate post and cause trouble.

The faster a horse goes at any particular pace in a natural and unconstrained manner, the more will he try to extend his head and neck, so as to bring the centre of gravity of his body forward, and also to aid the muscles of the neck in drawing the fore limbs to the front. The pulling in of the head and neck by the reins will, therefore, be a direct indication to the animal to slacken his speed. If he be well broken he will not only go slower, but will also signify the fact of his obedience by yielding to the bit by the play of the joints of his head and neck. When he keeps these joints (namely, those which connect the lower jaw to the head, and the head to the neck, and the joints of the neck themselves) free from all rigidity and bears lightly on the bit, he is what is called "well in hand," in which state every horsewoman should endeavour to keep her mount, as it is the _beau ideal_ one that admits of full control by the rider and of perfect freedom of movement on the part of the horse. Having the horse well in hand, the rider should be careful to keep the reins _at one unaltered length_ for the particular rate of speed at which she is going. If she desires to increase it, she should give her horse a signal which he understands, and should lengthen the reins as may be required. If she wishes to go slower, she should proportionately shorten them; but she should _always_ preserve uniformity of speed at any pace by keeping a fixed length of reins. Nothing is worse for a horse's mouth than the constant "give and take" (in Ireland they call it "niggling" at a horse's mouth) which is practised by almost every bad rider. This fact is so well recognised by our jockeys that "Keep your hands steady" is the chief order which competent trainers of racehorses give to their lads. When a rider keeps shifting the position of her hands, her bewildered animal will be unable to know at what speed she wants him to travel. All this reads very simple, but sometimes we find that horses, especially when excited by hounds, insist on going at their own pace. If the coast is clear in front, and the horseman in advance has got safely over and away from the fence to which a lady is approaching, it would not be wise for her to interfere with her hunter, because, if he knows his business, he won't fall if he can help it. But if, on the other hand, the only practicable place in a fence is not free, the keenness of the animal must be checked by a judicious use of the curb. If he is so headstrong as to refuse to obey this command by slackening speed, he should be turned round either to right or left, whichever may be the easier for his rider. When we find ourselves in such a tight corner we must, for our own safety as well as for that of our neighbours, exercise a certain amount of force in controlling our horses. The "silken thread" method of handling, which is, or should be, employed at any other time, stands us in poor stead in the face of this difficulty. There are horses which will neither slacken speed nor turn for their riders, and a runaway in the hunting field is by no means rare. If any lady has a hunter who takes charge of her in this manner, I would strongly advise her to ride him in a standing martingale (p. 82), because with its aid she will generally be able to turn him, even if she cannot stop him in any other way. A horse which will neither slacken speed nor turn in any direction gallops on, as a rule, with his head up, and, having succeeded in shifting the snaffle from the bars to the corners of his mouth, he is impervious to the action of the curb, because his head is too high for the curb to act with advantage. On such an animal the standing martingale is valuable, because it makes him keep his head in a proper position. A great deal of sound sense has been written by different horsemen on the subject of "hands." Sam Chifney tells us to use the reins as if they were silken threads which any sharp pull would break, and Mr. John Hubert Moore always gave the advice to take a pull at the reins as though you were drawing a cork out of a bottle without wishing to spill one drop of its contents. I have often, in my own mind, likened a horse's mouth to a piece of narrow elastic which is capable of expansion up to a certain point. When vigorously tugged at, it is no longer elastic, but as unyielding as ordinary string. Good hands maintain its elasticity, bad ones convert it into string. A sympathetic touch on a horse's mouth can only be made by "good hands." A musician, if he is an artist, will accompany a weak-voiced singer so sympathetically that the sweet though not robust notes of the voice are heard to the best advantage: he is a man with good hands. A heavy-fisted player, desiring to show his command over the instrument, will try to turn the accompaniment into a pianoforte solo, and the nice notes of the struggling singer will be entirely drowned by noise. He is like the heavy-handed, unsympathetic rider.

VOICE.

For pleasant riding, it is essential that the horse should understand his rider's orders, which are usually given to him only by the reins and whip. However efficiently a lady may use these "aids," the fact remains that a good understanding between herself and her mount is better established by the voice than by any other means. With a little vocal training any ordinary horse, when going fast, will pull up more promptly and with greater ease to his mouth and hocks, by a pleasantly uttered "whoa," than by the action of hands and reins. Young horses, like foxhound puppies which are taken out for the first time, show great reluctance to pass moving objects; but if the rider speaks encouragingly to her mount in a tone of voice that means he must go on, he will try his best to obey her, although his attention may be divided betwixt fear and duty. As a reward, his rider should give him a few pats on the neck and speak encouragingly to him, and she will doubtless find that he will make a bolder effort to obey her voice when he again finds himself confronted with a similar difficulty; because he will associate his first escape from apparent disaster with her voice, and will in time have such confidence in her guidance that a word from her will be quite sufficient to assure him that all is well. When riding bad horses at my husband's breaking classes abroad, I found it best not to speak to them; for a bond of friendship had not been established between us, and I noticed that the sound of my voice often stirred up their angry passions by reminding them, I suppose, of some former rider who had scolded them while ill-treating them. It was unsafe even to pat and try to be friendly with such spoiled horses. I remember a very violent animal in Pretoria which showed resentment in this respect by rushing at me after I had dismounted, simply because I endeavoured to pat and say a kind word to him. I have no doubt that he would have accepted my well-meant advances if we had had time to mutually understand each other. A show jumper named Mons Meg was so terrified of the man who used to ride her that, on hearing his voice, even from a distance, she would break out in a perspiration and stand trembling with terror. The mare was really so kind that we had her for a time at Ward's Riding School, and she was ridden without reins over jumps by several of our pupils. I took her to ride in a jumping competition at the Agricultural Hall; but, unfortunately, the rider she disliked came to her stall and spoke to her, with the usual result, and when I got on her back she was violently agitated, and refused the second fence, which was a gate. At one moment it seemed as though she would have brought us both to grief, for she tried to jump out of the ring among the people--a feat, I was afterwards told, she had performed on more than one occasion. She would always jump kindly when away from the hated show ring, where she must at some time or other have been badly treated. When animals get into a state of nervous excitement, a few pats on the neck and a soothing word or two often act like magic in calming them down. A mare which was lent me in Calcutta by a horse importer, and on which I won a cup in an open jumping competition, was in such a state of nervousness that she would not let me take the trophy until I patted and spoke to her, and the presentation was then effected without a scene. This animal, which was a well-bred Australian, was a stranger to me, and had never carried a lady before that day. Nevertheless, she passed successfully through a terribly trying ordeal, and I am certain that she would not have made the great efforts she did in jumping, if I had not soothed and encouraged her with my voice. She was only 14-2 in height, and was competing against big horses, some of which were ridden by steeplechase jockeys. The competition took place at night in a circus which was lighted by electricity, and which was open at each end. The object to be jumped was a white gate placed midway across the arena, and raised each time that it had been successfully cleared. From the glare of electric light in this crowded place, we had to go into outer darkness and carefully avoid the tent pegs and ropes in finding our way to the other entrance. While we were waiting our turn to jump, we had to stand near a cage of lions which growled savagely during the whole time, and also in the vicinity of two camels. My mount disliked the camels far more than the lions; in fact, she hated the sight of them, and would have done her best to escape, if I had not turned her head away from them and patted and soothed her. Mr. Frank Fillis, who was the proprietor of the circus, told me that horses have such an antipathy to camels that they will not drink, however thirsty they may be, from a bucket which has been used by one of these long-necked animals. By-the-bye, my acquisition of this cup caused me to be branded as a "circus rider" by the ladies in a Little Pedlington village in this country; for when the local society leader called on me, I was out, and my son, by way of entertaining her, showed her "the cup that mother won in a circus!"

In order for the voice to be effective, the word of command must be given at the moment when a horse is about to play up in any way, not after he has committed a fault, and therefore a knowledge of horses and their ways is necessary before we can use the voice properly. It is always advisable to keep an eye on our mount, because if we do not do so, we shall be unable to seize the generally brief moment which exists between the thought of evil in the animal's mind and its execution. Those who have lived much among horses must have frequently noticed this preparatory period before a horse plays up, and no doubt have profited by the warning their experienced eyes gave them; for if we see what is about to come, and know how to avert it, we are often able to save ourselves from disaster.

In order that the animal may thoroughly understand our words of command, we should have as few of them as possible, employ them only when necessary, and always in the same respective tone of voice, whether it be a soothing word of encouragement accompanied by a few pats on the neck, or the word "steady" given in a determined tone, and accompanied by a restraining pull on the reins as may be necessary. The word "whoa" is best uttered in rather a high key and in a drawling tone, when we begin to pull up a horse during movement; but we should reserve "steady," like the curb, for use in emergency, and should utter it in a threatening tone of voice. The words of command which an inexperienced rider will find most useful are a click of the tongue for a walk, trot, and canter; "whoa" to pull up; "steady" when he is going too fast, or indulging in unnecessary leaps and bounds; "go on," with a few pats on the neck, if he is nervous about passing any object, or shying; and a quiet word or two of encouragement, with more pats on the neck, when he is in a state of nervous excitement, as, for instance, on his first day with hounds.

When visiting a horse in his stable to give him a carrot or other tit-bit, his mistress should call him by his name, and he will soon neigh on hearing her voice, if she always gives him something nice; for horses, like poor relations, don't appreciate our visits unless they can get something out of us. Lady Dilke had a horse which she had trained to lick her hand. On going up to him in his box she would put out her hand and say "Lick her, dear," and the animal would give her his mute caress like a dog: it was very pretty to see how well the pair understood each other. We may see the power of the voice exemplified in cart horses, which will turn to right or left, go faster or slower, or pull up, according as they receive the word of command from the wagoner who walks beside them. The voice is also greatly used by polo players. Horses are very catholic in their admiration for tit-bits. They like all kinds of sweets and fruit, and will even crunch up the stones of plums and peaches, which require good teeth to crack. An old favourite of mine was particularly fond of chocolate and jam tarts!

WHIP.

The chief uses of a hunting whip are to help the rider to manipulate gates, and to be cracked; the former being much more necessary to a horsewoman than the latter. The crop should therefore be of a serviceable length. It is the very silly fashion at present to have hunting whips that are less than two feet long. Many are made of whalebone, and are covered with catgut, their special advantage being that their flexibility greatly facilitates the process of cracking. A more serviceable crop for a lady is one of stiff cane, the thick end of the handle of which is made rough, as in Fig. 85, or is provided with a metal stud, so that the handle may not slip when it is pushed against a gate. Formerly, two feet three inches was the usual length of a hunting crop for both sexes. Three feet is a much better length for ladies, who cannot "get down into their saddle" like men. Besides, a fairly long crop is very useful for keeping a horse straight by the rider touching him with it on the off flank when he wants to run out to the left, which is his favourite side for refusing in the large majority of cases. A short crop is useless for this purpose, as the right hand will be fully occupied on such trying occasions in keeping the animal's head toward the obstacle, and the crop should be able to perform its share of the work by a turn of the wrist, care being taken that no jerk is communicated to the rein.

The thong is about three feet ten inches long, is furnished with a lash, which is about a foot long, and is attached to the keeper, which is a leather loop at the end of the crop. Men generally like a thong of white pipe-clayed leather, but as the colour is apt to come off and soil one's habit, a brown leather thong is best for ladies.

The keeper of the modern hunting whip has a slit, near its end, through both thicknesses of leather. In attaching the thong, the loop at its upper end is placed over the end of the keeper, and it is then passed through the slit and drawn tightly (Fig. 86). The old-fashioned keeper, which is still greatly in use, is a simple loop of leather, over which the loop of the thong is put, and the remainder of the thong is threaded through the opening at the end of the keeper (Fig. 87). A wrong way to put on the thong is, in the first instance, to pass the loop of the thong through (instead of over) the keeper (Fig. 88). Some authorities might take exception to the way the thong is put on in Fig. 89.

To facilitate the use of the thong, it is well to have a long keeper, as in Fig. 86. The keeper of the whip which is shown in Fig. 85, and also in Fig. 87, is too short.

The chief use of the thong in hunting is to recover the crop if it happens to be pulled out of the hand when opening a gate, before doing which, one or more turns of the thong are consequently taken round the hand. It also enables us to warn off hounds who approach too near our horses' legs, on which occasions the whip should be held at arm's length, with thong and lash vertical. A touch of the lash may aid in encouraging a friend's horse to go through something to which he objects, but a man would doubtless be handy to do the needful in such a case. It would be well for a lady to know how to crack her whip, if her help were required in turning hounds, or in hurrying up a laggard hound; but this art should first be learnt on foot, under the tuition of a competent man, in much the same way as Mr. Frank Ward teaches his pupils to catch the thong with precision for four-in-hand driving; and the lady's hunter must also be trained to stand having a whip cracked on his back, before any experiment of that kind is performed in the hunting field. It is a good plan to first accustom hunters to the cracking of a whip in or near their stables, letting them see the performance, and, after a ridden horse will quietly stand the whip being flicked, his rider may safely crack it, supposing, of course, she is able to wield her flail correctly, and without touching the animal; hence the necessity of acquiring precision in this art before attempting it on horseback. An experienced hunting woman tells me that women should be as useful in the field as men; but I fear that is impossible, for we cannot get on and off our horses as easily as men, to render prompt help in cases of emergency; hold open a gate on a windy day, or perform the numerous kindly acts which fall to the lot of the mere male. Besides, however active and well-intentioned we may be, we are hampered by our dress, and still more so by the want of it, in the case of an apron skirt. If a crop is used for hacking, say in the Row, the thong should be taken off, for it would look as much out of place there as a pink hunting coat. The whip should be always carried handle downwards, on the off-side, as if we were trying to conceal its presence, and not as though we were riding with "a rein in each hand, and a whip in the other."

In a country of hedges, like the Shires, it is well to acquire the habit of holding the whip in such a way that the handle of the whip will point directly backwards; for if it is inclined outwards, it will be apt to catch in a branch or twig, when going through a bullfinch (Fig. 90) or straggling hedge.

SPUR.

The spur is inapplicable to the requirements of ordinary side-saddle riding; because, in order to use it properly, it should be applied, as nearly as practicable, at right angles to the side of the horse, so as to touch him only on one spot, in which case the knee would have to be brought well away from the flap of the saddle, and the toe of the boot turned outwards. This would necessitate the use of a long stirrup leather, which would bring the rider's weight too much to the near-side, and would also render her seat insecure; because, instead of being able to get grip by the play of her left ankle joint (p. 149), she would have to draw back the left foot, and press the upper part of the thigh against the leaping head. Her forced adoption of this feeble attempt to obtain firmness of seat is due to the fact that if she raised her left knee to put pressure on the leaping head, her foot, in all probability, would come out of the iron, owing to the long leather being slack at that moment. Besides, with a leather at that length, it would be impossible for her to press her leg strongly against the leaping head by the action of the ankle joint. A lady who rides with her stirrup leather at the correct length (Fig. 79), can use the spur only in a more or less parallel direction to the animal's side, in which case, the spur, if it is sharp, will be almost certain to tear the skin, instead of lightly pricking it.

The entirely wrong system of handling, feeding, and leading horses almost always on the near side, teaches them to turn much more easily as a rule to that side, which is a lady's weak side, than to the right. Consequently, when they "run out" at a fence, they almost invariably swerve to the left. In such a case, a man has his hands to turn the animal's head and neck, and his drawn back right leg to straighten the hind quarters; but the handicapped lady can supplement the action of her reins only by the whip, which she cannot use very effectively, owing to her perched-up position on the saddle. If she used a spur she would be at a still greater disadvantage, because, in order to escape the pain of the "persuader," the animal would naturally swing his hind quarters round to the right, and would consequently bring his fore-hand still more to the left, by the action of this misapplied "aid." If the lady's whip is not sufficiently long to give her mount the requisite reminder on the off flank, either by being pressed closely against it, or by the administration of a sharp tap, it will be useless for straightening him. Lady Augusta Fane, who is one of the best horsewomen in Leicestershire, and who certainly rides a greater variety of hunters during a season than any other lady in the Shires, is strongly opposed to the use of the spur. She tells me that "if a horse is so sticky as to require a spur, he is no hunter for this country; and if he is a determined refuser, no woman, spur or no spur, can make him gallop to these big fences and jump. I consider a spur a very cruel thing, and feel certain that many men would find their horses go better, and jump better, if they left their spurs at home, and many accidents would be avoided." Lord Harrington, who is well known as a fine horseman, also dislikes spurs, and has advocated their abolition in the Yeomanry. In this he should receive the support of all good riders, as they know that placid-tempered horses have better paces, higher courage, superior staying power, and greater cleverness and tact in times of danger than excitable ones. In polo, where the legs are far more required for guiding the horse than in hunting, the use of sharp spurs is forbidden, except by special permission. Whyte-Melville points out that my sex are unmerciful in the abuse of the spur. He says:--"Perhaps because they have but one, they use this stimulant liberally and without compunction. From their seat and shortness of stirrup every kick tells home. Concealed under a riding habit, these vigorous applications are unsuspected by lookers on." I have seen more than one poor animal's side badly torn and bleeding from a lady's spur. A lady who rides a horse in the ordinary way with this instrument of torture, which she is unable to use correctly, brands herself in the eyes of her more experienced sister as an incompetent horsewoman. I have heard hunting men advocate the spur for ladies; but they would probably change their opinion if they were to try the effect of riding with one spur, and that on the left foot, especially in a lady's hunting saddle. Very few men who wear spurs are able to use them properly; Whyte Melville says not one in ten, and "the tenth is often most unwilling to administer so severe a punishment." The late George Fordham wholly repudiated "the tormentors," and said they made a horse shorten his stride and "shut up," instead of struggling bravely home. My husband, in _Riding and Hunting_, says it is the fashion to wear spurs with top-boots, but many good horses go much better without them. Whyte Melville remarks that "a top-boot has an unfinished look without its appendage of shining steel; and although some sportsmen assure us that they dispense with rowels, it is rare to find one so indifferent to appearances as not to wear spurs." Men wear spurs in hunting because it is fashionable to do so, but there is no such arbitrary law laid down for ladies, and the presence of the spur certainly adds to the danger of dragging by the stirrup; for, as Whyte Melville points out, its buckle "is extremely apt to catch in the angle of the stirrup iron, and hold us fast at the very moment when it is important for our safety we should be free."

In Continental high school riding, a spur is a necessity, as, without its aid, the _ecuyeres_ would not be able to perform many of their _airs de manege_. These ladies, in order to apply the spur with freedom, have the stirrup leather so long that they are deprived of the immense advantage, which the play of the ankle-joint gives us, of applying pressure with the leg against the leaping head, and with the flat of the knee against the saddle flap. The "school" rider seeks to strengthen her weak seat by the employment of a very long and greatly curved leaping head, which serves to support her leg while her knee is removed from the flap of the saddle when using the spur. This leaping head, which almost encircles the left leg, would, of course, be a most dangerous thing to use when hunting. The spurred lady also has a spur clamped on to her whip, in order that she may be able to prod her horse equally on both sides. The whip-spur (Fig. 91) is like a wheel with sharp spokes and no tyre. The application of the spur by Continental _ecuyeres_, especially in obtaining the more difficult _airs_, is more or less constant, so as to keep the animal in a continued state of irritation. I went behind the scenes in a well-known circus in Paris, where I saw a lady mounted and waiting to go on and give her performance. A man was holding her horse's head, and a second attendant, with a spur in his hand, was digging the unfortunate animal on the near side under her habit, which he was holding up for the purpose. He took care to inflict the cruel punishment on a part of the horse's body which would not be seen by the public! The animal, being unable to advance, was lifting his legs up and down (doing the _piaffer_), and sighing and groaning in agony. When the circus doors were opened and relief thus came to him, he bounded into the arena like a fury, amidst the thunderous applause of the audience! I should have liked to have seen that spur-man punished for cruelty to animals, for if the performance went on, as I believe it did, every night, that horse's near side must have been in a shocking condition! It is by no means an unusual occurrence for high school lady riders to be securely tied to their saddles.

We must remember that a hunter has to carry his rider for several hours. Hunting is not steeplechasing, and if a reluctant fencer cannot be sufficiently roused by a touch of the whip, I fail to see what is to be gained by spurring him on the near side, and thus giving him a direct incentive to refuse to the left. Besides, as it is the opinion of some of our best horsemen that nine out of every ten men who hunt would be better and more safely carried if they rode without spurs, I certainly think that no lady should subject her hunter to "the insult of the spur," especially as she can inflict the punishment only on the near side, and thus provoke a defensive attitude which she has no compensating power to successfully resist.

Some years ago I rode in a jumping competition at Ranelagh. There were about twenty men and one lady besides myself among the competitors. The lady found at the last moment that she had forgotten her spur, and a servant was sent to her trap for it, as she said she could not ride without it. She used her spur, but was unable to get her horse over even the first fence! Lufra, a well-known prize winner at the Agricultural Hall and elsewhere, won the Cup, after a strong contest against my horse Gustave, who was given a red rosette for being second. Gustave had never jumped in a competition before. He was ridden in a plain snaffle, and the only mistake he made was in just tipping the raised gate with his hind legs. He was evidently unaware that it had been raised, for when I took him at it again, just to show the ladies that he could jump it, he cleared it beautifully, and his temperate style of fencing was greatly admired.