THE
ART OF TAMING HORSES.
CHAPTER I.
Mr. Rarey’s pamphlet first published in Ohio.—Experience of old system.—Compiled and invented new.—Tying up the fore-leg known many years ago, see Stamford Almanack.—Forgotten and not valued.—Reference to Captain Nolan’s and Colonel Greenwood’s works on horsemanship.—Dick Christian missed the discovery.—Baucher’s plan of laying down a horse explained.—Mademoiselle Isabel’s whip-and-spur plan.—Account of the Irish whisperer Dan Sullivan.—Usual modes of taming vicious horses.—Starving.—Physic.—Sleepless nights.—Bleeding.—Biting the ear.—Story of Kentish coachman.—The Ellis system.—Value of the Rarey system as compared with that of ordinary horse-tamers.—Systems of Australia and Arabia compared.—The South American plan explained.—A French plan.—Grisoné the Neapolitan’s advice.—The discovery of Mr. Rarey by Mr. Goodenough.—Visit to Canada.—To England.—Lord Alfred Paget.—Sir Richard Airey.—System made known to them.—To Mr. Jos. Anderson.—Messrs. Tattersall.—Sir Matthew Ridley’s black horse tamed.—Subscription list of 500 opened.—Stafford tamed.—Description of.—Teaching commenced with Lords Palmerston, Granville, &c.—Cruiser tamed.—History of.—Enthusiastic crowd at Cruiser exhibition.—System approved by the Earl of Jersey and Sir Tatton Sykes.—Close of first subscription list.—Anecdote of Mr. Gurney’s colt.—Personal sketch of Mr. Rarey.
Mr. Rarey is a farmer from Ohio, in the United States. Five years ago he wrote the little book which forms the text of the following complete account of his system, with pictorial illustrations, which are essential for explaining the means he now employs for subduing the most refractory animals. Without these explanations, it would be extremely difficult for any one who had not enjoyed the advantage of hearing Mr. Rarey’s explanations, to practise his system successfully, or even safely. The original work contains a mere outline of the art, since perfected by five years’ further study and practice. The author did not revise his first sketch, for very obvious reasons.
He was living in obscurity, teaching his system for a few dollars in Ohio and Texas. He never taught in the great cities or seabord states of the United States. When he had imparted his art to a pupil, he bound him to secrecy, and presented him with a copy of his pamphlet. He did not dream, then, of becoming the great Lion of the London Season, and realising from English subscribers nearly 20,000l. It will be observed, that in the original American edition, the operation of tying up the foot is described in one chapter, and, at an interval of some pages, that of laying a horse down, in another; and that neither the difficulties nor the necessary precautions, nor the extraordinary results, are described with the clearness their importance requires.
Mr. Rarey has now very properly released his subscribers from the contract which bound them to secrecy; and it is now in every point of view important that this valuable system of rendering horses docile and affectionate, fit for hacks or chargers, ladies’ pads or harness, or the safe conveyance of the aged, crippled, and sick, should be placed within the reach of the thousands whose business it is to deal with horses, as well as of that large class of gentlemen who are obliged to observe economy while keeping up their equestrian tastes. After all, it is to the horse-breeding farmers and grooms to whom Mr. Rarey’s art will be of the most practical use.
As it is, enough of the system has oozed out to suggest to the ignorant new means of cruelty. A horse’s leg is strapped up, and then the unlearned proceed to bully the crippled animal, instead of—to borrow an expressive Americanism—“to gentle him.”
Before entering into the details for practising the Rarey system, it may be interesting to give a sketch of the “facts” that have placed Mr. Rarey in his present well-deserved position, as an invincible Horse-Tamer, as well as a Reformer of the whole modern system of training horses—a position unanimously assigned to him by all the first horsemen of the day.
Mr. Rarey has been a horse-breaker in the United States from his earliest youth, and had frequently to break in horses five or six years old, that had run wild until that mature undocile age.