A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF CONTENTS.
| [INTRODUCTION.] | |
| PAGE | |
| Utility, health, and enjoyment, in horseback riding.—Affectionof the horse for a kind mistress.—Incorrect viewsentertained by ladies relative to horses and horseback riding.—Tightlacing incompatible with correct riding.—Advantagesof good riding-schools.—Instinct not a sufficientguide.—Compatibility of refinement and horsebackriding.—Importance of out-of-door exercise. | 1 |
| [CHAPTER I.] THE HORSE. | |
| Origin and countries of the horse.—Earliest Scriptural mentionof the horse.—Caligula's horse.—Horseback ridingin the Middle Ages.—The Arab horse and his descendants.—Selectionof a horse, and points to be observed.—Suitablegaits for the several conformations of riders.—Thefast or running walk.—Various kinds of trotting.—Thejog trot undesirable.—Temperament of the horse to betaken into consideration.—Thorough-bred horses.—Low-bredhorses.—Traits of thorough and low bred horses.—Purchasinga horse; when to pay for the purchase.—Kindnessto the horse instead of brutality.—Advantages ofkind treatment of the horse.—Horses properly trainedfrom early colt-life, the best.—Certain requirements intraining a horse for a lady.—Ladies should visit theirhorses in the stable.—Ladies of refinement, occupyingthe highest positions in the civilized and fashionable world,personally attend to their horses.—Nature of the horse.—Unreliablegrooms; their vicious course with horses intrustedto their care.—Care required in riding livery-stablehorses. | 13 |
| [CHAPTER II.] THE RIDING HABIT. | |
| Riding habit should not be gaudy.—Instructions concerningthe material for riding habit, and how this should bemade.—The waist.—The basque or jacket.—Length ofriding habit.—White material not to be worn on horseback.—Ridingshirt.—Riding drawers.—Riding boots.—Ridingcorset.—Riding coiffure or head-dress.—Ridinghat.—Minutiæ to be attended to in the riding costume.—Howto hold the riding skirt while standing.—Ridingwhip. | 52 |
| [CHAPTER III.] THE SADDLE AND BRIDLE. | |
| Saddle of ancient times, and the manner of riding.—Planchette.—Catherinede Medici deviser of the two-pommeledsaddle.—M. Pellier, Sr., inventor of the thirdpommel.—English saddle.—Advantages of the third pommel.—Saddleshould, invariably, be made and fittedto the horse.—Seat of saddle.—Kinds of saddles for differentladies.—Proper application of the third pommel.—Saddlerecommended and used by the author.—Points tobe attended to in procuring a saddle.—Girths.—Newmode of tightening girths.—Stirrups and stirrup-leathers.—Safetystirrups.—How to attach the stirrup-leather.—Thebridle and reins.—Martingales.—Snaffle-bits.—Curb-bits.—Curb-chain.—Tricksof horses with bits, andtheir remedy.—Adjustment of the bit and head-stall.—Careof the bit.—How to correctly place the saddle on thehorse.—Remarks concerning girthing the horse.—Greatadvantages derived from knowing how to saddle and bridleone's horse. | 67 |
| [CHAPTER IV.] MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING. | |
| Timidity in presence of a horse should be overcome.—Firstattempts at mounting.—Mounting from a horse-block.—Mountingfrom the ground.—Mounting with assistancefrom a gentleman; how this is effected.—What the gentlemanmust do.—A restive horse while mounting; howto be managed.—Attractiveness of correct mounting.—Todismount with assistance from a gentleman; what thegentleman must do.—Attentions to the skirt both whilemounting and dismounting.—Dismounting without aid;upon the ground; upon a very low horse-block.—Concludingremarks. | 99 |
| [CHAPTER V.] THE SEAT ON HORSEBACK. | |
| The absolute necessity for a correct seat.—Natural ridersrarely acquire a correct seat.—The dead-weight seat.—Thewabbling seat.—Essential to good and graceful ridingthat the body be held square and erect.—The correct seat.—Properattitude for the body, shoulders, waist, arms,hands, knees, and legs, when on horseback.—Uses andadvantages of the third pommel.—Lessons in positionshould always be taken by the novice in horseback riding.—Faultypositions of ladies called "excellent equestriennes,"pointed out at an imaginary park.—Remarks concerningthe improper use of stirrups and pommels.—Pupilsand teachers frequently in erroneous positions toward eachother.—Obstinacy of some pupils, and wrong ideas ofothers.—Ladies should not be in too much haste to becomeriders before they understand all the elementary andnecessary requirements; but should advance carefully, attentively,and thoroughly.—Suggestions to teachers ofladies in equitation. | 114 |
| [CHAPTER VI.] HOLDING THE REINS, AND MANAGING THE HORSE. | |
| A thorough knowledge of the management of the horsehighly necessary for a lady.—Position in the saddle hasan important influence.—Horses generally more gentlewith women than with men.—Position should be acquiredfirst, and afterwards the reins be used.—How to holdthe hands and snaffle-reins, in first lessons.—To turn thehorse to the right, to the left, to back him, to stop him,with a snaffle-rein in each hand.—Manner of holding thesnaffle-reins in the bridle-hand; to turn the horse to eitherside; to back, and to stop him.—To change the snaffle-reinsfrom the left to the right hand; to reinstate them inthe bridle-hand.—To separate the snaffle-reins; to shortenor lengthen them.—To hold the curb and bridoon, ordouble bridle-reins; to shorten or lengthen them; to shortenthe curb and lengthen the snaffle-reins; to shorten thesnaffle and lengthen the curb-reins.—To tighten a reinthat has become loose.—To change the double bridle fromthe left to the right hand; to return it to the left hand.—Managementof reins when making quick turns.—Europeanmanner of holding the double bridle-reins, a pair ineach hand.—The equestrienne should practice and perfectherself in these various manœuvrings with the reins.—Theproper rein-hold creates a correspondence betweenthe rider's hand and the horse's mouth, and gives supportto the animal.—Give and take movements—The dead-pull.—Incollecting the horse the curb must be used.—Thesecret of good riding.—The management of the reinswith restive horses.—Liberty of the reins sometimes necessary.—Movementsof horse and rider should correspond.—Horseunited or collected.—Horse disunited.—Toanimate the horse.—To soothe the horse.—What todo in certain improper movements of the horse.—Concludingremarks. | 145 |
| [CHAPTER VII.] THE WALK. | |
| The movements of the horse in walking.—A good walk is acertain basis for perfection in other gaits.—A lady's horseshould be especially trained to walk well.—Every changein the walk, as turning, backing, and stopping, should bewell learned, before attempting to ride in a faster gait.—Thewalk is a gait more especially desirable for some ladies.—Theadvance, the turn, the stop, the reining back,in the walk.—Remarks on the reining back. | 181 |
| [CHAPTER VIII.] THE TROT, THE AMBLE, THE PACE, THE RACK. | |
| The movements of the horse in trotting.—The trot a safegait for a lady.—The jog trot.—The racing trot.—Thetrue trot.—The French trot.—The English trot; is desirablefor ladies to learn.—Objections to the French trot.—Howto manage the horse and ride the English trot.—Whichis the leading foot of the horse in the trot.—Tostop a horse in the English trot.—Trotting in a circle.—Circlingto the right, to the left.—The amble.—The pace.—Therack. | 197 |
| [CHAPTER IX.] THE CANTER. | |
| Leading with the right foot, with the left foot.—The rapidgallop.—The canter.—The true canter.—To commencethe canter; position of the rider, and management of thehorse.—To canter with the right leg leading.—To canterwith the left leg leading.—To determine with which legthe horse is leading in the canter.—To change from thetrot to the canter.—To turn in the canter, to the right,to the left.—Management of the horse while making aturn in the canter.—To stop in the canter.—Remarksconcerning position in the canter. | 221 |
| [CHAPTER X.] THE HAND GALLOP, THE FLYING GALLOP. | |
| The hand gallop, a favorite gait with ladies.—Position andmanagement of the reins, in the hand gallop.—Cautionsto ladies when riding the hand gallop.—To manage a disobedienthorse during the hand gallop.—Turning whenriding the hand gallop.—Position of rider while turningin the hand gallop.—The flying gallop an exercisefor country roads.—Cautions to ladies previous to ridingthe flying gallop.—Holding the reins, position of the rider,and management of the horse, in the flying gallop.—Tostop in the flying gallop.—Concluding remarks. | 238 |
| [CHAPTER XI.] THE LEAP, THE STANDING LEAP, THE FLYING LEAP. | |
| Advantages of learning to leap.—Requisites necessary inleaping.—The standing leap.—Position of the rider, rein-hold,and management of the horse, in the standing leap.—Pointsto be carefully observed in the leap.—How tomake the horse leap.—Management of the reins and ofthe rider's position during the leap.—Counsels whichshould be well learned by the rider before attempting theleap, and especially as to the management of the horse.—Howto train a horse to leap.—A lady should never attemptthe leap, except with a horse well trained in it.—Horsesdo not all leap alike.—The flying leap.—Importantpoints to know relative to the flying leap. | 249 |
| [CHAPTER XII.] DEFENSES OF THE HORSE, CRITICAL SITUATIONS. | |
| A lady's horse should be gentle, well-trained, and possess novice.—Shying, and its treatment.—Shying sometimes dueto defective vision, and at other times to discontent.—Balking,and its treatment.—Backing, and its treatment.—Gayety.—Kicking,and its remedy. An attention tothe position and motions of the horse's ears will determinewhat he is about to do.—Plunging; bucking; what to doin these cases.—Rearing, and the course to be pursued.—Runningaway, and the course to be pursued.—Unsteadinessof the horse while being mounted, and how to correctit.—Stumbling, and its treatment.—What to do whenthe horse falls.—Remarks concerning the use of the whipand spur.—Be generous to the horse when he yields tohis rider. | 271 |
| [ADDENDA.] | |
| Thirty-four points necessary to be learned, and to be well understoodby equestriennes.—Conclusion. | 301 |
| [GLOSSARY] | 313 |
| [INDEX] | 319 |