A New System of Horsemanship

It is very difficult to feel exactly, and perceive these Times of the Gallop; but yet by Observation and Practice it may be done. – The Times of a Horse, who covers and embraces a good deal of Ground, are much more easy to mark than his who covers but little. – The Action of the one is quick and short, and that of the other long, slow, and distinct; but whether the natural Motions and Beats of the Horse are slow or quick, the Horseman absolutely ought to know them, in order to humour and work conformably to them; for should he endeavour to lengthen and prolong the Action of the one, in hopes of making him go forward more readily, and to shorten and confine that of the other, in order to put him more together; the Action of both would in this Case not only be forced and disagreeable, but the Horses would resist and defend themselves, because Art is intended only to assist and correct, but not to change Nature. – In working your Horse upon Circles, it is the outward Rein that you must use to guide and make him go forward; for this purpose turn your Hand in from time to time, and aid with your outward Leg. – If the Croupe should be turn'd too much out, you must carry your Hand on the outward Side of your Horse's Neck; and you will confine it, and keep it from quitting its Line. – I would be understood of Circles of two Lines or Treads, where the Haunches are to be attended to. – Before you put your Horse to this, he should be gallop'd upon plain, or Circles of one Line only. – In this Lesson, in order to supple your Horse, make use of your inner Rein to pull his Head towards the Center, and aid with the Leg of the same Side, to push his Croupe out of the Volte; by this means you bend the Ribs of the Horse.

The Hind-feet certainly describe a much larger Circle than his Fore-feet; indeed they make a second Line: but when a Horse is said to gallop only upon a Circle of one Line or Tread, he always and of necessity makes two; because, were the Hind-feet to make the same Line as the Fore-feet, the Lesson would be of no use, and the Horse would never be made supple; for he only becomes supple in proportion as the Circle made with his Hind-feet is greater than that described by his Fore-feet.

When your Horse is so far advanced, as to be able to gallop lightly and readily upon this sort of Circle, begin then to make frequent Stops with him. – To make them well in the Gallop, with his Head in, and Croupe out, the Rider must use his outward Leg, to bring in the outward Leg of the Horse; otherwise he would never be able to stop upon his Haunches, because the outward Haunch is always out of the Volte.

To make a Stop in a Gallop strait forwards, you should carefully put your Horse together, without altering or disturbing the Apuy, and throw your Body back a little, in order to accompany the Action, and to relieve the Horse's Shoulders. – You should seize the time of making the Stop, keeping your Hand and Body quite still, exactly when you feel the Horse put his Fore-feet to the Ground, in order that by raising them immediately, by the next Motion that he would make, he may be upon his Haunches. – If on the contrary, you were to begin to make the Stop, while the Shoulders of the Horse were advanced, or in the Air, you would run the Risque of hardening his Mouth, and must throw him upon his Shoulders, and even upon the Hand, and occasion him to make some wrong Motions with his Head, being thus surprized at the Time when his Shoulders and Feet are coming to the Ground.

There are some Horses who retain themselves, and don't put out their Strength sufficiently; these should be galloped briskly, and then slowly again, remembring to gallop them sometimes fast, and sometimes slow, as you judge necessary. – Let them go a little Way at full Speed, make a half Stop, by putting back your Body, and bring them again to a slow Gallop; by these means they will most certainly be compelled both to obey the Hand and Heel.

In the slow Gallop, as well as in the Trot, it is necessary sometimes to close your Heels to the Horse's Sides, this is called pinching; but you must pinch him in such a manner, as not to make him abandon himself upon the Hand, and take care that he be upon his Haunches, and not upon his Shoulders, and therefore whenever you pinch him, keep him in the Hand.

To put him well together, and make him bring his Hind-legs under him, close your two Legs upon him, putting them very back; this will oblige him to slide his Legs under him; at the same Instant, raise your Hand a little to support him before, and yield it again immediately. Support him and give him the Rein again from time to time, till you find that he begins to play and bend his Haunches, and that he gallops leaning and sitting down as it were upon them; press him with the Calfs of the Legs, and you will make him quick and sensible to the Touch.

If your Horse has too fine a Mouth, gallop him upon sloping ground, this will oblige him to lean a little upon the Hand, the better to put himself upon his Haunches; and the Fear that he will be under of hurting his Bars, will prevent his resisting the Operation of the Bitt.

If Galloping upon a sloping Ground assures and fixes a Mouth that is weak and fickle, make use of the same Ground in making your Horse ascend it, in case he is heavy in the Hand; and his Apuy be too strong, and it will lighten him.

There are some Horsemen who mark each Motion of the Horse in his Gallop, by moving their Bodies and Heads; they ought, however, without Stiffness or Constraint to consent and yield to all his Motions, yet with a Smoothness and Pliancy so as not to be perceived, for all great or rude Motions always disturb the Horse. – To do this you must advance or present your Breast, and stretch yourself firm in your Stirrups; this is the only Way to fix and unite yourself entirely to the Animal who carries you.

The Property of the Gallop is, as may be gathered from all that has been said of it, to give the Horse a good Apuy.

In reality, in this Action he lifts at every time both his Shoulders and Legs together, in such a manner, that in making this Motion his Fore-part is without Support, till his Fore-feet come to the Ground; so that the Rider, by supporting or bearing him gently in Hand, as he comes down, can consequently give an Apuy to a Mouth that has none. – You must take care, that by retaining your Horse too much in his Gallop, you don't make him become ramingue, and weaken the Mouth that is light and unsteady; as the full or extended Gallop is capable on the other Hand, to harden an Apuy which was strong and full in the Hand before.

The Gallop does not only assure and make steady a weak and delicate Mouth, but it also supples a Horse, and makes him ready and active in his Limbs. – It fixes the Memory and Attention of Horses likewise, who from too much Heat and Impetuosity in their Temper, never attend to the Aids of the Rider, nor the Times of their setting off; it teaches those who retain themselves, to go forward, and to set off ready and with Spirit; and lastly, it takes off all the superfluous Vigour of such Horses as, from too much Gaiety, avail themselves of their Strength and Courage to resist their Riders. – Take care, however, to proportion this Lesson to the Nature, the Strength, and Inclination of the Animal; and remember, that a violent and precipitate Gallop would hurt an impatient and hot Horse, as much as it would be proper and useful to one who retains himself, and is jadish and lazy.

CHAP. XV.

Of Passades

The Passades are the truest Proofs a Horse can give of his Goodness. – By his going off you judge of his Swiftness; by his Stop, you discover the Goodness or Imperfection of his Mouth; and by the Readiness with which he turns, you are enabled to decide upon his Address and Grace; in short, by making him go off a second time you discover his Temper and Vigour. – When your Horse is light and active before, is firm upon his Haunches, and has them supple and free, so as to be able to accompany the Shoulders, is obedient and ready to both Hands, and to the Stop, he is then fit to be work'd upon Passades.

Walk him along the Side of the Wall in a steady even Pace, supporting and keeping him light in the Hand, in order to shew him the Length of the Passade, and the Roundness of the Volte or Demi-volte, which he is to make at the End of each Line. – Stop at the End, and when he has finish'd the last Time of the Stop raise him, and let him make two or three Pesades. After this make a Demivolte of two Lines in the Walk; and while he is turning, and the Moment you have clos'd it, demand again of him two or three Pesades, and then let him walk on in order to make as many to the other Hand.

You must take care to confirm him well in this Lesson. – From the Walk you will put him to the Trot upon a strait Line; from the Trot to a slow Gallop, from that to a swifter; being thus led on by degrees, and step by step, he will be able to furnish all sorts of Passades, and to make the Demi-volte in any Air that you have taught him.

You should never put your Horse to make a Volte or Demi-volte at the time that he is disunited, pulls, or is heavy in the Hand, or is upon his Shoulders; on the contrary, you should stop him at once, and make him go backward till you perceive that he is regulated and united upon his Haunches, light before, and has taken a good and just Apuy.

A perfect Passade is made in this Manner. – Your Horse standing strait and true upon all his Feet, you go off with him at once, you stop him upon his Haunches; and in the same Time or Cadence in which he made his Stop, being exactly obedient to the Hand and Heel, he ought to make the Demi-volte, balancing himself upon his Haunches, and so waiting till you give him the Aid to set off again. It is requisite then that the least Motion or Hint of the Rider should be an absolute Command to the Horse. – If you would have him go off at full Speed, yield your Hand, close the Calves of your Legs upon him; if he don't answer to this Aid, give him the Spurs, but you must give them so as not to remove them from the Place where they were, and without opening or advancing your Legs before you strike.

The high Passades are those which a Horse makes, when being at the End of his Line, he makes his Demi-volte in any Air he has been taught, either in the Mezair or in Curvets, which is very beautiful. – Therefore in high Passades let your Horse go off at full Speed; let your Stop be follow'd by three Curvets; let the Demi-volte consist of the same Number, and demand of him three more before he sets off again. – It is usual to make nine Curvets when you work a Horse alone and by himself.

The furious or violent Passades, are when a Horse gallops at his utmost Speed strait forward, and makes his half Stop, bending and playing his Haunches two or three times, before he begins his Demi-volte, which is made upon one Line, in three Times; for at the third Time he should finish the Demi-volte, and be strait upon the Line of the Passade, in order to go off again and continue it.

This sort of Passades was heretofore used in private Combats, and although it may appear that the Time that is employed in making the half Stop is lost, and only hinders you from gaining the Croupe of the Enemy; yet the half Stop is indispensably necessary, for unless a Horse is balanced upon his Haunches, and they bend and play under him, he could never make his Demi-volte, without being in danger of Falling.

CHAP. XVI.

Of Pesades

The Pesade takes its Name from the Motion of the Horse, which, in this Action, leans and lays all the Weight of his Body upon his Haunches. – To be perfect, the Hind-feet which support the whole ought to be fix'd and immoveable, and the Fore-part of the Horse more or less rais'd, according as the Creature will allow, but the Fore-legs, from the Knee to the Feet, must always be extremely bent and brought under him.

The Property of the Pesade is to dispose and prepare a Horse for all sorts of Manages; for it is the Foundation of all the Airs: Great Caution, however, must be had not to teach your Horse to rise up or stand upon his Haunches, which is making a Pesade, if he is not quite exact and obedient to the Hand and Heel; for in this Case you would throw him into great Disorder, spoil his Mouth, and falsify the Apuy, would teach him to make Points, as they are called, and even make him become restive; inasmuch as the generality of Horses only rise up to resist their Rider, and because they will neither go forward nor turn.

Your Horse then being so far advanced as to be fit to be tried and exercised in the Pesade, work him upon the Walk, the Trot, and Gallop; stop him in the Hand, keep him firm and moderately together; aid with the Tongue, the Switch, and your Legs; the Moment you perceive he comprehends what it is you would have him to do, though never so little, encourage and caress him. – If in the Beginning of this Lesson you were to use Force or Rigour, he would consider the Strictness of your Hand, and the Aids of the Legs, as a Punishment, and it would discourage him. It is therefore proper to work gently and by degrees; whenever then he makes an Attempt to rise, caress him; make him go forwards, try to make him rise a second time, either more or less, and use him by degrees to rise higher and higher; you will find that he will soon be able to make his Pesades perfect, and to make four, or even more, with Ease and Readiness; sluggish and heavy Horses require in the Beginning stronger and sharper Aids.

There are other Horses who are apt to rise of themselves, without being requir'd to do so; drive them forward in order to prevent them. – Some in making the Pesade, don't bend and gather up their Fore-legs, but stretch them out, paw, and cross them one over the other in the Air, resembling the Action of a Person's Hands who plays upon the Spinnet; to these Horses you mush apply the Switch, striking them briskly upon the Shoulders or Knees. – There are others, who in the Instant that you endeavour to make them rise, availing themselves of the Power which they have from being put together, in order to perform this Action, throw themselves forward in hopes of freeing themselves from all Subjection; the only Way to correct such Vices, is to make the Horse go backward the same Length of Ground, that he forced and broke through. – There is another kind of Horses, who to avoid being put together in order to make a Pesade, as well as to resist the Rider, will fling their Croupe in and out, sometimes to one side, sometimes to the other; in this Case, if you perceive that your Horse is apt to fling his Croupe more to the Left than to the Right, you must put him to the Wall, the Wall being on the Left-hand, and there support and confine him with your Right-leg, and even pinch him if there should be occasion; taking care to carry your Hand to the Right, but imperceptibly, and no more than what will just serve to shorten the left Rein.

If he throws himself to the Right, you must put him so as to have the Wall on the Right; you must support and pinch him with your Left-leg, and shorten your Right-rein by carrying your Hand to the Left. – I must however repeat it over and over, that in a Lesson of this kind, in which a Horse may find out Methods and Inventions to resist and defend himself; I say, in giving such Lessons, the Rider ought to be Master of the surest Judgment and most consummate Prudence.

Moreover, you should take care not to fall into the Mistake of those who imagine that the higher a Horse rises, the more he is upon his Haunches. – In the Pesade, the Croupe is pushed back, and the Horse bends his Haunches; but if he rises too high, he no longer sits upon his Haunches, for from that Moment he becomes stiff, and stands strait upon his Hocks; and instead of throwing his Croupe back, he draws it towards him.

Those Sort of Pesades, in which the Horse rises too high, and stiffens his Hocks, are call'd Goat-Pesades, as they resemble the Action of that Animal.

The Aids that are to be given in Pesades are derived from those used to make a Horse go backward. – Place your Hand as if you intended to make your Horse go backward, but close your Legs at the same time, and he will rise. – For this reason nothing is more absurd than the Method which some Horsemen teach their Scholars, who oblige them, in order to make their Horses rise, to use only their Switch; they must certainly not know that the Hand confining the Fore-part, and the Rider's Legs driving the Hinder-parts forward, the Horse is compell'd, whether he will or no, to raise his Shoulders from the Ground, and to throw all the Weight of his Body upon his Haunches.

CHAP. XVII.

Of the Mezair

The Gallop is the Foundation of the Terre-a-Terre; for in these two Motions the Principle of the Action is the same, since the Terre-a-Terre is only a shorten'd Gallop, with the Croupe in, and the Haunches following in a close and quick Time.

The Mezair is higher than the Action of Terre-a-Terre, and lower than that of Curvets; we may therefore conclude, that the Terre-a-Terre, is the Foundation of the Mezair, as well as of Curvets. – In the Terre-a-Terre, the Horse should be more together than in the Gallop, that he may mark his Time or Cadence more distinctly; although in a true Terre-a-Terre, there are no Times to be mark'd, for it is rather a gliding of the Haunches, which comes from the natural Springs in the Limbs of the Horse.

I have said, that the Terre-a-Terre is the Foundation of the Mezair; in effect, the higher you raise the Fore-parts of the Horse, the slower and more distinct his Action will be, and by making him beat and mark the Time with his Hind-feet, instead of gliding them along as in the Terre-a-Terre, you put him to the Mezair, or Half-curvets.

When a Horse works Terre-a-Terre, he always ought, the same as in the Gallop, to lead with the Legs that are within the Volte, his two Fore-feet being in the Air, and the Moment that they are coming down, his two Hind-feet following.

The Action of the Gallop is always one, two, three, and four; the Terre-a-Terre consists only of two Lines, one, two. – The Action is like that of Curvets, except that it is more under the Horse; that is, he bends his Haunches more, and moves them quicker and closer than in Curvets.

To work a Horse Terre-a-Terre upon large Circles, take care to keep your Body strait, steady and true in the Saddle, without leaning to one side or the other. – Lean upon the outward Stirrup, and keep your outward Leg nearer the Side of the Horse than the other Leg, taking care to do it so as not to let it be perceived. – If you go to the Right, keep your Bridle-hand a little on the Outside of the Horse's Neck, turning your little finger up, without turning your Nails at the same time; although if need be you must turn them, in order to make the inner Rein work which passes over the Little-finger. – Keep your Arms and Elbows to your Hips, by this means you will assure and confine your Hands, which ought to accompany, and, if I may so say, run along the Line of the Circle with the Horse.

In the Mezair, use the same Aids as in working upon Curvets. – Give the Aids of the Legs with Delicacy, and no stronger than is just necessary to carry your Horse forward. – Remember when you close your Legs to make him go forward, to press with the Outward in such a degree as to keep your Horse confin'd; and to assist the other in driving him forward; it is not necessary to lay so much Stress on the inner Leg, because that serves only to guide the Horse, and make him cover and embrace the Ground that lays before him.

CHAP. XVIII.

Of Curvets

Of all the high Airs, Curvets are the least violent, and consequently the most easy to the Horse, inasmuch as they require nothing of the Horse but what he has done before. In reality, to make him stop readily and justly, he has been taught to take a good and true Apuy; in order to make him rise, he has been put together, and supported firm upon his Haunches; to make him advance, to make him go backward, and to make him stop, he has been made acquainted with the Aids of the Heels and Hands; so that in order to execute Curvets, nothing remains for him to do, but to learn and comprehend the Measure and Time of the Air.

Curvets are derived and drawn out of the Pesades. – We have already said that Pesades ought to be made slowly, very high before, and accompanied a little by the Haunches. Curvets are lower before, the Horse must advance, his Haunches must follow closer, and beat or mark a quicker Time; the Haunches must be bent, his Hocks be firm, his two Hind-feet advance equally at every Time, and their Action must be short quick, just, and in exact Measure and Proportion.

This Action, when suited to the Strength and Disposition of the Horse, is not only beautiful in itself, but even necessary to fix and place his Head; because this Air is, or ought to be founded, upon the true Apuy of his Mouth. It likewise lightens the Fore-part; for as it can't be perform'd unless the Horse collects his Strength upon his Haunches, it must of consequence take the Weight off from the Shoulders.

It is well known, that in working upon every Air, the Strength, the Vigour, and the Disposition of the Horse should be consider'd; the Importance of this Attention to these Qualities is sufficiently acknowledged; and it is granted and allowed, that Art serves, and can serve, to no other end than to improve and make Nature perfect. – Now it will be easy to discover to what Air a Horse should be destin'd, and to what he is most dispos'd and capable of executing, by seeing his Actions, and by the greater or less Degree of Pains which will be requisite to supple him. When you design a Horse for the Curvets, take care to chuse one, which, besides having the necessary Disposition to that Manage, will have likewise Patience enough in his Temper to perform them well. – A natural Disposition alone will not suffice; there are Horses who will present themselves to them, but being by Nature impatient of all Restraint, from the Moment that they feel any Pain or Difficulty in furnishing what you ask of them, they will disobey and deceive you in the very Instant that you thought them gain'd. – It requires much Skill to know how to begin with such Horses, and to confirm them in their Business. – Take it for a certain Truth, that you will never succeed, if your Horse is not perfectly obedient to the Hand and Heel; if he is not supple, and able to work upon one Line or Path, with Freedom and Ease; and if he is not likewise very well seated upon his Haunches in his Terre-a-Terre, which he ought to be able to execute perfectly well.

Curvets are improper, and never succeed with Horses which have bad Feet, or any Weakness or Complaint in their Hocks, whatever Powers and Qualifications they may otherwise have. – They are likewise apt to encourage a Horse that is ramingue in his Vice, and are capable of teaching one which is not so by Nature, to become ramingue, if he is not adjusted and brought to this Air with great Prudence. Indeed, Impatience and Fretfulness often make a Horse desperate when put to this Manage; and not being able to endure the Correction, nor comprehend the Aids, he betakes himself to all sorts of Defences, as well as that being confounded through Fear, he is bewilder'd, and becomes abject and jadish. – It is almost impossible to say which of these Imperfections are the most difficult to be cured. – Before you put a Horse to make Curvets, he ought to work Terre-a-Terre; and if he can do this, he ought to be able to change Hands upon one and two Lines, to go off readily, and to make a good Stop. After this he should be able to make Pesades easily, and so high before as to be held and supported in the Hand, and always make them upon a strait Line at first, and not on a Circle. – After this ask of him two or three Curvets; let him go then two or three Steps, then make two or three Curvets; and so alternately. – If you find that your Horse is well in the Hand, and that he advances regularly, is patient, and don't break his Line, but keeps even upon it, he will dress very easily, and soon; if he presses forward too much, make him curvet in the same Place, and make him often go backward. – After he has thus made two or three, demand then more of him, afterwards make him go backward, and so successively.