Saddlecloth

“ The riding-master, I presume, still insists, with civilian and recruit alike, on feet parallel with the horse, heels down, toes in, knee grip, and a hold of reins utterly unknown in the hunting-field. And with a certain reason, though indeed the old whip's rule of "'eels and 'ands down, 'ead and 'eart 'igh," is the whole of the story, after all. For the man who begins with a knee grip will never forget what his knees are for, and will not, like the good little dude we passed a while ago, show daylight between them and the saddle-flap at every rise. ”

“ Suppose you were riding with a lady, on her left,—which is the safe and proper, if not the fashionable side,—and her saddle should begin to turn, say toward you, as it is most apt to do. If your horse minds the indication of your leg, you can keep him so close to your companion's as to afford her suitable assistance, even to the extent of bodily lifting her clear of her saddle. If your horse is only half trained, you cannot, perhaps, bring him to the position where you want him in season to be of any service at all. ”

“ The naturalist at length completed his equipment of Lizzy, who looked more like a rhinoceros than a cross between a horse and a donkey. In front of the saddle hung the two bales of blotting paper over the large bearskin holsters, which, in addition to two pistols I had supplied, were crammed with biscuit, coffee, pepper and salt, snuff, &c. Over the saddle hung two leathern bags, fastened together by a strap, on which the rider had his seat. Behind the saddle, a frying-pan, coffee-pot, and tin mug, produced a far from pleasing harmony at every movement of the animal. ”

“ It is rather a stunning thing to be mounted on the fashionable type of horse who "won't stand a curb, you know,"—and there are some such,—but, as a fact, ninety-nine American horses out of one hundred will work well in a port and bridoon bridle properly adjusted.
Always buy good things. Cheap ones are dear at any price. Your saddle should fit so that when you are in it you can thrust your riding-whip under the pommel and to the cantle along the horse's backbone; otherwise you may get sore withers. The bits should hang in the mouth just above where a horse's tush grows. ”

“ To get the saddle on him he is next blindfolded. A strong man grasps the left ear and another man slowly approaches and, after quietly and kindly rubbing and patting him, gently puts the saddle blanket in place; then the huge and heavy saddle with all its loose strings and straps is carefully hoisted and adjusted, and the cinch drawn up. In placing the blanket and the saddle there will likely be several failures. He will be a poor-spirited horse that does not resent it. ”

“ A horse to have good conformation should show a niceness of proportion in all his parts. Conformation in a saddle horse calls for a nice head, and a long, flexible, and crested neck—never a ewe-neck. Looking from the withers downward he should present a narrow appearance, for sharp, well-defined withers are most necessary for the proper carrying of a side-saddle, while gradually sloping shoulders hold the saddle in place and go with good gaits and general handiness and quickness. ”

“ There lies the proof. At West Point, and in fact at every military school, the cadets are sometimes practiced to ride with a scrap of paper held to the saddle by the knee while they leap a bar, and at the same time thrust or cut with the sabre at a convenient dummy foe. I have seen a silver dollar so held between the knee and saddle. But the bar is not a succession of high stone walls, nor is the cadet riding a burst of several miles. And with a longer stirrup it is more natural to keep the foot parallel with the horse's side. To-day, the best riders do not so hold their feet. ”

“ To procure a saddle such as I describe you must have it made to order, for those of the present day are all made with something of a dip, which is most objectionable. I do not like the appearance of much stitching about a saddle. It has always appeared to me absurd to see the amount of elaborate embroidery which every old-fashioned saddle carries upon the near flap. Nothing could be more unnecessary than an outlay of labour upon a portion of the article which is always concealed beneath the rider's right leg. ”

“ For riding, it is better to carry your own saddle and bridle and to buy a saddle horse upon leaving the railroad. You can look to the guides for all the rest, such as pack saddles, pack animals, etc.
My saddle is a strong but light-weight California model; that is, with pommel and cantle on a Whitman tree. It is fitted with gun-carrying case of the same leather and saddle-bag on the skirt of each side, and has a leather roll at the back strapped on to carry an extra jacket and a slicker. ”

“ The saddles of the horses are peculiar, having a high peak before and behind. We can readily understand how William, when he had become corpulent, received a mortal injury by coming down with violence upon the pommel of such a saddle. No horse armour is used, neither have any of the horses a saddle-cloth. “On the seal of Henry I. is the first representation of a saddle-cloth, and either during that reign or the preceding one, the high peak behind the saddle was altered for a back of greater breadth.” ”

“ When assisting his companion from the saddle, the gentleman should stand about a foot from her with his face toward the horse, while she, after taking her foot from the stirrup and disengaging her right leg from the pommel, must turn her body so as to face him. After putting the stirrup over the shield of the saddle, as in mounting, he should then extend his hands so as to support her by the elbows, while she rests a hand upon each of his shoulders. ”

“ No sooner do they feel their rider vaulting into the saddle with his knees firmly inserted under the "croppers," or large pommels which you see in all colonial saddles, than they rise up into the air, and descend with their fore-legs stiffened straight out, and, tucking their head between them, kick viciously out behind. One horse always tried to kick the spur, which has to be pretty freely used, for if once they stood still, they would buck their rider out of the saddle in a trice ”

“ I remember riding a steeple-chase horse called Emigrant, which placed quite enough strain both on me and my girths when he was first called upon to carry a side-saddle. If a horse has any buck in him, the side-saddle will be almost certain to bring it out; for with it the animal requires to be girthed up extra tightly; the balance strap “tickles and revolts” him, the lady’s weight is farther back than on a man’s saddle, and the unusual feeling of carrying a rider whose legs are placed on one side, tends to irritate a highly sensitive horse. ”

“ Only that the same law holds good here: the more the front bulges in the saddle the more the horns shrivel, developing a tendency to rake forward and upward; the stirrups also dwindle in size. The saddle, which the writer possessed, has stirrups made of iron rings covered with leather and the caps were lined with sheep's wool. We read that now the narrow half-round oval stirrup is a favorite with the cow-punchers, which the cowboy uses with his foot thrust all the way in so that the weight of the rider rests upon the middle of the foot. ”

“ So long as you can walk your four full miles an hour, you will have to curb your ardor for many a long stretch, while your master chews the cud of sweet and bitter fancies.
As we saunter along, the reflections bred of thirty odd years in the saddle come crowding up. From a Shelty with a scratch-pack in Surrey a generation since, to many a cavalry charge with bugle-clash and thundering tread on Old Dominion soil now twenty years ago, the daily life with that best of friends,—save always one,—the perfect saddle horse, brings many thoughts to mind. ”

“ It is made of a plated straw matting, on which is fastened a strong wicker-work saddle, and a properly folded blanket, for you must be careful that the animal's back does not get sore. The saddle is fastened by pliant ropes, or broad belts of leather, called in the West "cinches," to fasten which securely requires some skill, as they pass through a circular ring and are secured by a hitch or peculiar knot that holds well and can be unfastened with a quick jerk. ”

“ In making a common saddle, the workman first extends two strips of straining web from the pommel to the hinder part of the tree, and fastens them with tacks. The tree is then covered on the upper side with two thicknesses of linen cloth, between which a quantity of wool is afterwards interposed. A covering of thin leather, usually made of hog's-skin, is next tacked on, and the flaps added. Under the whole are placed the pads and saddle-cloth; the former of which is made of thin cotton or linen cloth, and thin leather, stuffed with hair. ”

“ If you don't, some time the rope end may catch between the rocks or become tangled in some way and cause trouble.
"When you stop to rest after a hard ride, always unsaddle, whether you unbridle or not, and then wipe the dirt and sweat from where the saddle has been. It rests a pony more than anything you can do.
"At night, when you are on the plains, always use your saddle for a pillow, then no one can steal it from you. ”

“ I wish to draw particular attention to the necessity of tightening the girths of a side-saddle, even when a horse has been led to a meet; because I have found from long experience of riding young horses with tender backs, as well as hunters in hard condition, that, given the most perfectly-fitting saddle, trouble will arise sooner or later if this precaution is neglected. Some ladies are so careful [325] about the fit of their saddles, that they have a separate saddle for each of their hunters. I know of a lady who has fourteen hunters so equipped. ”

“ The plate illustrating this nice performance shows that the man had to stand with his left leg in the stirrup and put his weight on the saddle with his hands, while he raised his right leg over the lady’s head. Having lived in the East, I am aware that Oriental women ride astride, but I have not seen any of them voluntarily go out of a walk. It is not difficult to trot and canter in a man’s plain hunting saddle, but I think our conformation requires the assistance of knee rolls for jumping. ”

“ We may see even fair horsemen thrown by a horse suddenly stopping dead at a fence, an accident that rarely occurs to a woman in a side saddle, as the grip afforded by her crutches gives her greater security of seat.
A large number of men’s saddles have recently been purchased in London for the use of American ladies who desire to adopt cross-saddle riding. They intend wearing frock coats and breeches made exactly like men’s hunting breeches, and top boots ”

“ The objection to too long a stirrup-leather is that, when the foot is pressed upon it, the leg at the same time is straightened, and extends down so far as to cause the rider to sit too much to the left of the saddle. As the pressure and weight are thus thrown wholly upon the left side, the saddle is very likely to turn, and if this faulty position be persisted in, it will be certain to injure the horse's back and may give rise to fistulous withers. ”

“ The saddle must have the head, or what is called, the pummel, to begin upon; and the further that can be carried forward the better; but the nearer it is got under the seat, the more likely is it to seriously injure the rider.
In side-saddles there is great variety; but the requisites for a first-rate side-saddle, to my idea, and one I would not hesitate in recommending, should be length (indispensable) , a leaping-head, no off- [64] head, and it should be cut as nearly level as possible. ”

“ With these cords dangling along side of them the horse is put to his full speed without fear of falling, and when he is turned to graze the noose is merely taken from his mouth. The saddle in formed like the pack-saddles used by the French and Spaniards, of two flat thin boards which fit the sides of the horse, and are kept together by two cross pieces, one before and the other behind, which rise to a considerable height, ending sometimes in a flat point extending outwards, and always making the saddle deep and narrow. ”

“ There have even been instances of a serious nature, where expectoration of blood has been occasioned by horseback riding, when the rider was tightly laced.
The naturally slender, symmetrical figure, when in the saddle, is the perfection of beauty, but she whom nature has endowed with more ample proportions will never attain this perfection by pinching her waist in. Let the full figure be left to nature, its owner sitting well in the saddle, on a horse adapted to her style, and she will make a very imposing appearance, and prove a formidable rival to her more slender companion. ”

“ The ordinary chuppering kit of saddle, rugs, and bags is well suited for this kind of travelling, but we had besides a led horse, a tin cocked-hat case, a leather hat-box, and a sword and umbrella of the Colonel’s. Our shargird, after many attempts to manage differently, fixed the tin cocked-hat case to his saddle, en croupe, tied the leather hat-box on as a knapsack behind his shoulders, and carried the sword under the surcingle of his saddle.
We kept on at a smart canter, only stopping to fix or shift the loads of the various animals. ”