The duration of any of these lessons should at first be carefully proportioned to the strength of the learner, and gradually increased as to time day by day, until she can stand an hour's work without fatigue; but be the lesson long or short, it should be practised every day.
It will be found that, with plenty of fresh air and walking exercise, the pupil, by the aid of these suppling and extension practices, will develope rapidly in elasticity of movement and in general health, and that a couple or three months of such preparation will help her very much as an introduction to her course of equitation.
Any good drill master who might be employed to "set up" a young lady would most likely teach her all the above, and much more; but I have ventured to detail these practices, assuming that a family may be located in a neighbourhood in which no such man is available, in which case the exercise can be imparted and superintended by the governess of the family. These ladies are always clever and intelligent enough to master in a few minutes such very simple details as those above described.
Before quitting this subject a word about gymnastics may not be out of place. Many heads of families consider them highly beneficial when practised with bars and similar apparatus. My experience induces me to differ from this notion, and I believe my view of the matter would be borne out by the highest medical authority.
For boys even, gymnastic exercises should be most carefully watched, in order that no undue strain should be thrown upon the yet unset muscle and cartilage of the frame. For young ladies I believe gymnastics to be not only unnecessary, but injurious, and that every practical result desirable can be arrived at by the use of such exercises as I have endeavoured to describe, varied occasionally by the moderate use of the dumb-bells, a few minutes of which at one time is always sufficient. Where there is a number of young people together, there is sure to be a tendency to outdo each other whenever physical exercises of any kind are introduced; and, while it is easy enough to control the pupils in the simple suppling practices I speak of, it is very difficult for any but the most experienced persons to determine how far a young lady may go without injury to herself in the exercises of the horizontal bars or trapeze ropes. If any kind of gymnastic exercises are allowed for a young lady, the best, in my opinion, are those practised with the "Ranelagh," because no hurtful strain can possibly be thrown upon the pupil; and for boys I believe the Ranelagh to be a first-rate invention, as is also the "Parlour Gymnasium," and several others on similar principles, which ignore the practice of the bars.
The full practice of the gymnasium, however, for young men whose frames have attained a certain amount of maturity, is no doubt good if not carried to excess. I speak, however, only of young ladies of tender age.
Assuming then, that our pupil has been prepared for riding as above described, let us proceed to consider the style of dress most suitable for her early attempts in the saddle. For very young ladies, say under twelve years of age, I believe in hair cut short in preference to flowing locks, because the latter are very apt to blow into the eyes and seriously interfere with riding. For the very juvenile equestrian tyro, the hat should be one that fastens under the chin with ribbon or something that is not elastic. Nothing is more important in beginning with young people on horseback than to give them confidence, and nothing so completely puts them out as anything loose about the head. For young ladies over fifteen or sixteen, hats which are fastened to the hair may be worn. But, having regard to the progress of the pupil rather than to appearance, I recommend every beginner, no matter what her age, to leave no doubt about the security of her headdress. As regards riding habits, to begin with, while they should fit sufficiently to indicate the outline of the lady's figure, all tightness should be avoided. Tight habits are very sightly to the eye; but, in common with tight corsets, steel or whalebone anywhere about the dress is fatal to that perfect liberty of movement so essential to success in a beginner.
Loose jackets of course should not be worn, because the instructor would be unable to see in what form his pupil was sitting. Nothing is better, in the first place, than a jacket, of any coarse material the rider chooses, made in the ordinary form, with plenty of room, especially about the waist and shoulders. The skirt should not be too redundant or too long, as in the latter case it is apt to get trodden on by the horse, and in windy weather blows about, to the great annoyance of the rider. A skirt that reaches about 12in. below the foot is amply long. As to breadth, it should be just large enough to give space to move easily in. A more voluminous garment is unsightly. The skirt, made independent of the jacket, should fasten under it with a broad band. No clothing should be worn under the skirt except riding trousers. Under-skirts of any kind will utterly spoil the appearance of the fair equestrian, and render her ride one of discomfort.
Riding trousers, the making of which should only be entrusted to people who are well accustomed to it, may be made of cloth or chamois leather, booted with cloth.
The boots, whether Wellingtons (if they are not out of date), side springs, or lace boots, should be made purposely for riding. Fashion is imperious, and that of the present day dictates a boot with a very high, narrow heel, and a waist which is almost triangular; both are quite unsuited for riding. The heel of a riding boot should be quite as broad as the foot of the wearer, and should come well forward into the waist, after the manner of a man's hunting boot, and the waist itself should be perfectly flat, so as to give a firm level bearing on the stirrup-iron. A sharp, narrow-waisted boot will be found not only impossible to keep in place in the iron, but will hurt the sole of the foot very much.