The Barb and the Bridle / A Handbook of Equitation for Ladies, and Manual of Instruction in the Science of Riding, from the Preparatory Suppling Exercises

by active 1866-1874 Robert Henderson

In circling to the right, the horse to be well bent to the right, so that the rider can see his inward eye; fore and hind legs moving exactly on the same track, the horse not throwing his haunches out. The great use of this circling is, that as the horse changes his direction no less than six times in a small space, to keep him up to his work the lady must bring up her left shoulder as many times as the horse alters his direction. To do this, she must be quite supple in the waist, and circling is therefore a capital practice to insure this freedom of action at that portion of the figure. To render the lesson still more easy to the pupil, I have found it answer well, after walking over the ground, to mark it out on the tan with a stick. In military schools the circle to the right or left is followed by the "circle and change," in which, when arrived at the boards, the pupil, instead of turning the horse's head to the hand he is working to, changes the bend, and turns to the reverse hand. This, however, cannot be executed at a canter with due precision without the use of the right leg, and is therefore (in my opinion) better omitted in a lady's course of equitation, an additional reason being that, when she is taught to make the change at a canter, she can do it much more effectually and elegantly by the "half passage."

The circles having been neatly done, the pupil should rein her horse back, put him well upon his haunches, and strike him off at a collected canter, about five miles an hour, the cadence true, the position of the rider correct.

It is at this point that the instructor should begin carefully to get his pupil to supple herself in the saddle, while she still rides her horse well up to his work. It should be borne in mind that a horse cannot make turns or circles at the "pace of manœuvre" without considerable danger to himself and his rider, because at such a pace it is next to impossible to keep him fairly balanced, and he is liable, even on well-kept tan, to slip up, whereas at a very collected pace, with his haunches well under him, there is no danger whatever, although at first it will call very much upon the energy and close attention of the rider. Having her horse well into his bridle, the give-and-take action of the hand should now come gradually from the shoulder joint, and the pupil should be frequently reminded to avoid resisting the action of the horse in his canter, but to endeavour, on the other hand, to accompany him in his short stride. This is to be done by simply keeping both heels well down, the hands back, the waist bent slightly forward and perfectly supple, and avoiding too strong a grasp with the right leg upon the upper crutches of the saddle. The figure from the waist upwards, however, should be perfectly erect, leaning neither backwards nor forwards, either position being both unsafe and ungainly.

Nothing is more common than to see a lady sitting with the upper part of her figure bent forward in a canter, and, if not overdone, the effect is by no means ungraceful to the eye of a looker-on. But it is a habit likely to increase in degree, and unsafe in any case, because it is opposed to the principle of true balance.

With the shoulders well back, the body, neck, and head upright, the waist slightly bent forward, the hands well back, and acting by an easy play of the upper arm at the shoulder joint—sitting, in fact, with freedom in the saddle—the action of the horse at a collected pace will give the rider a slightly gliding motion from the cantle towards the pummels, and gradually she will thus acquire the habit of suppling herself on her horse; ready, however, at any moment "to seize her seat" (to use the expression of old Sam Chifney) by muscular grip if the horse flirts or plunges, which, however, it is difficult for him to do when going well within himself and up to his bridle.

The left leg at a canter should not be drawn back, as in trotting, but kept close to the horse's side, with the heel down, and the foot as nearly as possible under the knee. Of course, the above-described easy deportment in the saddle is not to be acquired in a single lesson; it requires considerable practice and close watching by both master and pupil. Once learnt, however, the lady has gained another important step in her equitation.

The length of time requisite to insure complete souplesse at this point is dependent upon several circumstances, over which the master has only a moderate amount of control.

The figure of the pupil is an important point in the matter. If she is naturally lithe and has been well suppled on foot, the task will be considerably easier. If, on the contrary, she is of a square figure—short in the neck and waist, and stiff in the shoulders—considerably more time is requisite. But with care, attention, and perseverance it can be acquired by all in early youth.

I know a lady who rides with both dash and judgment with hounds who is anything but a good figure; but she began under proper tuition when she was very young, and, although no longer so, she has preserved the souplesse and true balance acquired in her early days. Natural aptitude, too, is of great assistance to both master and pupil, and should be energetically developed by the former; at the same time, care should be taken that the pupil does not overrun her lessons.

As an instance of what can be accomplished even at a first essay by a lady gifted with natural talent for riding, I cannot refrain from relating the following:—Some years ago I chanced to be at the school of a fashionable riding master in London, when a class of young ladies was going through a ride. In the gallery from which I was observing them was also the mother of one of the young ladies who was riding, and of another much younger, who was standing by her side watching with the most intense interest the riding below. The younger lady was not more than ten or eleven years old, but of a form and figure exactly fitted for performing well in the saddle, being tall of her age, and lithe and supple in her movements. She did not speak, but I could see from the excitement of her manner, the glitter of her large dark eyes, and her changing colour, that she was heart and soul with the fair equestrians. The ride finished with a leaping lesson, and there was some capital jumping over a gorsed bar, hurdles double and single, and an artificial brook. The last performance completely overcame the little spectator in the gallery. Bursting into a violent fit of sobbing and weeping, she clutched her mother's dress, and cried convulsively, "Dear mamma, let me ride, let me ride." The lady, quite surprised and very much affected by the emotion and excited state of the child, nevertheless, refused, declaring she was too young. But the young supplicant for equestrian honours was not to be denied; she continued to implore and weep, and, the riding master coming to her aid, the mother gave way. Her little daughter was put on a quiet horse, and the master himself led him round the school at a walk, but this by no means satisfied our ambitious little tyro. "Let me trot," she said; "I am sure I can trot." The professor was quite sure she could not, and told her so; and, to convince her, he started the horse trotting, and ran by his side. He was never more mistaken. The lessons the pupil had been witnessing from the gallery must have made a strong impression on her mind; for, to the surprise of all of us, she caught the action of the horse at the first step, and made the best attempt at trotting I ever saw for a beginner. Feeling that trotting fatigued her, she asked to be allowed to canter, and this she did in very good form. But the crowning part of the thing was, that when we were about to take her off her horse, she begged to be allowed to have a jump. I confess, I thought the riding master wrong in consenting to this. But again our little friend electrified us all. A hurdle was put up, well sloped, so as to make the jump a very moderate one, the little pupil's hands placed, and her position rectified. No sooner had the horse turned the corner of the school, and before the riding master had time to check her, than the girl's eye lit up just as I had seen it in the gallery. She caught the horse fast by the head, hit him with her heel, put down her hands, and sat as though she had been hunting for years. It was too late to stop her, and any interference at the moment would have done more harm than good. With my heart in my mouth, I saw the horse go at the hurdle. He was one that had "an eye in every toe," and did not know how to make a mistake. But his daring little rider had roused him thoroughly, and he jumped high enough to clear a big fence, and far enough to take him over a small brook. Just as the horse took off, I shouted involuntarily, "Sit back;" and the little enthusiast answered as though my voice had been inspiration. Her lithe little figure was bent from the waist, precisely at the right moment; and she landed safe, except that the concussion threw her slightly up in the saddle. Her marvellous aptitude (talent the professionals would have called it) induced the riding master to let her make another attempt, and this time, putting her horse at the hurdle at the same dashing pace (which, by the way, with her wonderful nerve and confidence, made it easier for her), she sat in the saddle, as the old groom who tended the hurdles said, "as if she had grown there," and landed fair and true without jolt or concussion.