The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-08-28
RIDING "MAN-FAsHIoN."
vIndication Of tho side-SaddIe-A5
Lady Who Knows Ali About Il Gives
Her Experience. sn- .a:,

=
Lady Who Knows Ali About Il Gives
Her Experience. 80, -a.,
[Elizabsth Dudley in the New York MaiLI ,!i2ss
The fashion Of ladies' sIde-ssddes for horse
back riding was, no doubt, Introduced for q !
good and sufficient physical reason, andmy
experience In equestrian exercise leads me to
believe that the majority OF women will
always find the side. saddle most comfortable
for them. It is claimed that II the girth gives
way the lady will have no possible hold upon
her horse, but will be thrown 20 the ground.
She will, however, land upon her feet, or at
least upon one of them; while II the girth
gives way when che is using mans saddle,
she will fall head downward, with one leg
bent under her body and the other elevated
over the back of the horse. In this positlon
she is more likely to break some bones
than 10 the other. We are told, 10 be
sure, that in riding astride lady would
be able to keep ~ horseman's grip son
her horse, and in case of loose gtrth could
hold her saddle in place. Idoubt this. Our
slender women and our fat women alike
have no muscle. fancy even wfry.len-
doned ballet girl would be unable to control
The powerful muscles by which Vicious horse
strives to burst the grin or lake advantages OF
It's becoming loosened 10 escape from his
rider. A Well trained animal, In event Of such
an accident, will siacken his pace at orcei or
even stop of his own will. Aud the majority.
of our women are TOO short to look Well In Z
rldlug aslrIde; they have not sufficient length
OF limo ior the cheeseman's grip" Any ono 1
who has seen q boy of len on the back Otta@ :.
i0h with htS l0UH Hnr8adF In
right angles, can imagine the ridiculous ap-
psarance which most Of our ladies Will pre-
sent al riding astride, and If they practice this
position much it will affect their gait. They
will then, when walking, present the comical
appearance of an old sailor just Of 9 long
VOYAGE. who rolls along In tue most absurd
way, with his legs wide apart. We shall have
some hearty tun at the expease OF
these Amazons. When hear 9 lady
complaining of the Uncomfortable" and
.stwisted" position Of sideways riding,
Of feeling tnat her back 1s crooked. oE
properly. III the brst place che mutt get g
side-saddle which fits her. As some women
are thin, aud some robust, some With long
limbs aud apma Wilh short " iollo "A fnat es.aa
every woman. Then she should lake her seat
firmly aud evenly In tne centre OF the sadie,
as III about to Ride aslriie, and adjust the right
leg in the most comfortable position possible;
1t must not be too much strained over TO lne
LETT. ana may indeed be shifted q little more
10 the right after riding short distance apd
geLliug accustomed TO the motion or Lne
Iiolse. was once visiting some friends VINO
lived on an isolated hillside iarm, Wnen my
host in using some machinery met wltn,a
serious accident. While his wife remained ae
his side applying cold water to the woliAd,
saddled horse with mans SADDLE (tnere
was no other at handy and dashed OF torthe
docter. Tne road was deserted, 80 naturai-
ly rods astride; but sich ride va q
liard.trottlpg, madIy galloping plough-norse
i went up aud down the strong hui roads,
thinking that I should never come up
with tue doctor, who had left his nome
and started on his rounds. caught MIN at
last q I'd turned him back, fortunately 10 Time;
but hardly knew whether the patient OF my
self suffered most for day or Two. l was tnen
an accomplished equestrlenne On slae.sau-
die, and resoveu never to use auy otner.
| When living on The Cumberland Mountalo,' ~
| Tennessee, I rode constantly on horse oacK, u.
ways with side-suddlr, ana my nelghoors olo
The same. One girl whom knew tnere rooe
on ner brothers. saddle Frequently, whenever
her sister OF mot her was with her, ana never
rod. astrlde. She placed her right ley IL tns
same position as when she used her own sad.
die. When ! asked the reas II for ibis she re-
piled on.y: "'Pears like q gal couldn't ride
iuan-ashion nowayW Now, this nraltny, mar
DIV mounlaineer had beaul1ul wOmaniy iGrm,
anu WIS Cl6S6lCdNy FAOHSAs'odSe'
neither cursets, papiers, nor hoop sk1rls. her
figure could not be disguised, and she conlo
not ride astride, what woman eau! fancy
| that twenty miles experiences on mab's sao-
| die over rough road will conViacs almost any
| of our ladies' that she can't 90 eVerytnlns
nv pabe in nv arms up and down mountain
roads 40 steep that when my horse was cnm9.
| ing up I had to lean forward un.h my cnerk
| tonched his name, and when he was canll0us'
| lv creeping down / ~as obliged 10 Lean oacK
mill The strain became Almost lnsuppoItao ..
| In both positions fund lhe norm VI Tue sao-
ole y great help. But the most irylnR situa-
lion Of all was when, In The same cuuHiry,l
reached the ford OF the little Colllos H. Vel, Two
| hundred fact wide, where usually Lne water
was hardly up TO the knees OF horse, and
found 1t swollen by late rains, ana dasning
along 80 swiftly that the horse couio scalcs,
| ly slrupgle through. One Of our party crossed
| tirst. and we saw that the water rose tO his
saddle in the middle of the ford. II would be
| necessary to kueel on our saddles, ana RISK
being swept of. Every man IN ;the parry
begged 10 relieve me Ut my oaby; lhey Iearso
| that could not possibly noio MIN auo eteauy
myselI: but he Was too precious 10 be trusted
oliI of INV arms, and knew was good
swimmer. had my saddle changed tor Que
! of theirs 10 have room Ior kneellng, and
louked well to tue glrLh, The buckles and the
straps. had my boy firmly bound TO me- With
shawl; then kneellng upon The saddle, my
riding skirt tucked about me, my baby
irmly clasped In my left arm, and my rikht
hand twisted In the name OF my horse, we
safely made the perllous journey. The intel
ligenr animal had always been used TO 'ack
rein and needed no control. She picked her
way with the utmost care, and when at LAST
we reached the bank hung like a rag over
her neck and kissed her, aud felt 6eltrr.
have not space now TO give olher experience
on this subject, but shall await with great ~,
terest the result OF The experiment. Wn!c9
some of our ladies' mean 10 Try IN CenlIN
Park. am anxious to know ii they enjoy
| r,dino man.fashOn