(1) Lit. "by which the horse is tied to the manger"; "licol d'ecurie."
(2) Al. "in nine cases out of ten he rubs his head... and ten to
one will make a sore."
It is desirable that the groom should be ordered to carry out the dung and litter of the horse to some one place each day. By so doing, he will discharge the duty with least trouble to himself, (3) and at the same time be doing the horse a kindness.
(3) Al. "get rid of the refuse in the easiest way."
The groom should also be instructed to attach the muzzle to the horse's mouth, both when taking him out to be groomed and to the rolling-ground. (4) In fact he should always muzzle him whenever he takes him anywhere without the bit. The muzzle, while it is no hindrance to respiration, prevents biting; and when attached it serves to rob the horse of opportunity for vice. (5)
(4) Cf. "Econ." xi. 18; Aristoph. "Clouds," 32.
(5) Or, "prevents the horse from carrying out vicious designs."
Again, care should be taken to tie the horse up with the halter above his head. A horse's natural instinct, in trying to rid himself of anything that irritates the face, is to toss up his head, and by this upward movement, if so tied, he only slackens the chain instead of snapping it. In rubbing the horse down, the groom should begin with the head and mane; as until the upper parts are clean, it is vain to cleanse the lower; then, as regards the rest of the body, first brush up the hair, by help of all the ordinary implements for cleansing, and then beat out the dust, following the lie of the hair. The hair on the spine (and dorsal region) ought not to be touched with any instrument whatever; the hand alone should be used to rub and smooth it, and in the direction of its natural growth, so as to preserve from injury that part of the horse's back on which the rider sits.
The head should be drenched with water simply; for, being bony, if you try to cleanse it with iron or wooden instruments injury may be caused. So, too, the forelock should be merely wetted; the long hairs of which it is composed, without hindering the animal's vision, serve to scare away from the eyes anything that might trouble them. Providence, we must suppose, (6) bestowed these hairs upon the horse, instead of the large ears which are given to the ass and the mule as a protection to the eyes. (7) The tail, again, and mane should be washed, the object being to help the hairs to grow—those in the tail so as to allow the creature the greatest reach possible in brushing away molesting objects, (8) and those of the neck in order that the rider may have as free a grip as possible.
(6) Lit. "The gods, we must suppose, gave..."
(7) Lit. "as defences or protective bulwarks."
(8) Insects, etc.
Mane, forelock, and tail are triple gifts bestowed by the gods upon the horse for the sake of pride and ornament, (9) and here is the proof: a brood mare, so long as her mane is long and flowing, will not readily suffer herself to be covered by an ass; hence breeders of mules take care to clip the mane of the mare with a view to covering. (10)
(9) {aglaias eneka} (a poetic word). Cf. "Od." xv. 78; xvii. 310.
(10) For this belief Schneid. cf Aristot. "H. A." vi. 18; Plin. viii.
42; Aelian, "H. A." ii. 10, xi. 18, xii. 16, to which Dr. Morgan
aptly adds Soph. "Fr." 587 (Tyro), a beautiful passage, {komes de
penthos lagkhano polou diken, k.t.l.} (cf. Plut. "Mor." 754 A).