“MADE” FENCES.
It is necessary for a lady who intends to hunt, to obtain as much practice as possible over the various kinds of fences which she may have to negotiate when hunting, before she appears in the field. Although ladies living in the country may have an opportunity of obtaining practice over natural fences of gradually increasing size, it is generally more convenient, and perhaps safer, to utilise “made” fences in a field or paddock. These obstacles need not be very high to commence with, but they should assume various forms, due prominence being given to the most common kind of fence encountered in the country in which the rider desires to hunt. Two or more specimens of this particular obstacle may be included in the artificial collection. To imitate Leicestershire fences we may make, for the first jump, the nearest approach we can to an ordinary hedge; the second, a hedge with a ditch on the taking-off side; the third, a post and rail fence; and the fourth, another hedge, with a ditch on both sides. We may follow that with a “cut-and-laid” fence with a ditch on the take-off side; and a stone wall, made up of loose stones or bricks. In the middle of the field, where the rider can obtain a good run at it, we may construct a water jump. The other fences should be built by the side of the boundary fence of the paddock or field, which may have to be artificially heightened for the purpose, but not supplied with wings; for in hunting, fences are not protected for us in that way. The pupil should first learn to jump them riding from left to right, as horses generally refuse to the left, and that side being blocked by the boundary fence, the horse will be more liable to go straight. The animal should, of course, first be ridden over them by the teacher in the presence of the pupil, who will see exactly at which jump her mount may be likely to give trouble. She should also observe the pace at which the animal is ridden, especially at the water jump. If he is sluggish, it would be wise for the lady to give him a touch with the whip when riding at timber, which he must not chance, and at cut-and-laid fences, which must also be jumped cleanly; for if a horse gets a foot in the top binder, the chances are that he will fall. Besides, he must exert himself to clear the ditch on one or both sides. He should be ridden over the course at a canter, and allowed to jump the fences without interference from his rider, for he will try his best to avoid falling. He should be ridden fast at water, as a certain amount of speed is necessary for jumping length; but he should not be taken at full gallop, as he would then be too much extended to raise himself in his spring. If the correct pace could be gauged to a nicety, I should say it is just a shade faster than a hand gallop. Horses, as a rule, jump water badly, perhaps for the very good reason that they seldom get schooled at this kind of obstacle.
A line of “made” fences in a field or paddock would have to be comparatively close together, say, with intervals of not less than 30 yards between them; although double that distance would be much better. A lady riding over these obstacles could hardly help going at the same speed, and, therefore, there would be but little opportunity for teaching her how she ought to regulate her pace for each of them, which would not be the case if they were a quarter of a mile or so apart. One advantage of riding over a line of “made” jumps is, that it strengthens a rider’s seat, for no sooner has she landed over one fence, than she must be ready to negotiate the next one. She should remember to keep her hands low down and as steady as possible, carefully avoiding shifting in the saddle, flourishing her whip, checking her mount with the reins, shouting to him, or committing any other act which is likely to distract his attention from the fence in front of him. The horse given to the pupil to ride should be an experienced hunter, and, in that case, she may safely trust him to carry her over the various leaps without any interference whatever. If he takes them a shade faster than did the animal on which she rode over her first fence, she should not try to check him. As it is impossible for her to know the exact moment he is going to take off, she should give him his head, when he is coming up to the obstacle, and be ready to lean well back as he is landing over it. If a lady is riding with her reins too short, and the horse, in jumping, makes a sudden snatch to get more rein, she should at once let them slip through her fingers, and learn, from that experience, to ride with the reins sufficiently long to enable her to have an easy feel of her horse’s mouth, without in any way hanging on to his head. Some inexperienced ladies get alarmed when a horse is about to take off, and check him with the reins, which is a most dangerous proceeding. I have known the safest of jumpers pulled into their fences and caused to fall by the adoption of such tactics. A lady should remember that when her mount is going straight for a fence, with the intention of getting safely to the other side, any interference on her part will cause him to either blunder badly, or, if the jump is a fixture, to fall. If a horse slackens speed when near a fence, and suddenly runs out, his rider should let him refuse and take him at it again. I once got a very bad fall through turning a horse quickly at a fence which he was in the act of refusing. We were close to the jump, he had no time to take off properly, so he breasted the obstacle, a stiff timber jump, and blundered on to his head. That taught me a salutary lesson, and therefore I would warn all ladies to let their horses run out when the animals have taken the first step in the wrong direction, as it is then too late to keep them straight with safety, and a sudden turn, with the object of trying to do so, is very apt to make a horse blunder.
When a touch with the whip is given to remind a horse that he has to clear a big ditch on the landing side, or when riding at timber, it should be used on the off flank by a turn of the wrist, but without jerking the reins. The whip, as I have before remarked, should be employed as an aid and not as a means of inflicting pain. A lady should not bustle her horse at his fences, except perhaps at water, for every horse has his own pace at which he prefers to jump, and the clever sort will always manage to put in a short stride, or take a longer one at the last moment, if they find that the strides they are using will not bring them up to the correct spot from which to take off. In hunting, the fences are generally taken at a canter, and the pace is increased in galloping over the open ground. Horses are thus what is called “steadied” at their fences, but the pull should not be made nearer the fence than 30 yards. When a lady has made up her mind to ride at a fence, she should think of nothing else but getting over it. Some women go at their fences in such a half-hearted, irresolute manner that their horses learn to refuse. Too much practice over “made” fences is monotonous to the rider and hateful to her horse, who is only too apt to become “reluctant” in such cases. Hence, if the lady has ridden over the fences nicely, from left to right and from right to left, and taken her artificial brook at a good pace, she should not be required to do any more jumping on that occasion. The ground near the fences should be laid down with tan, stable litter, or anything else which will make the falling soft, in the event of the pupil having a tumble. It would be better for a lady not to be given a lead in riding over these “made” obstacles, because it is necessary for her to have as much practice as possible, at first, in controlling her mount without assistance.