Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-05-11
KINDNESS AND APPLES
Go Good Way Toward Teaching Cir
Gus ZIOrses Curious Tricks.

W =" NOON ~
Gus ZfOrses Curious Tricks.
Cincinnati Enquirer.
A shelt, black-moustached gentleman,
with long whip in his hand, was stand
ing in the centre of circus ring talking
TO gray stallion. The animal stood fully
sixteen hands high, was powerfully built
as a Flemish draught horse, and had
coat that glistened like satin. It's white
tail swept the sawdust in the ring, and its
head and neck were as clean cut and
graceful as a swans.
''Whoa, there. Whoa, my beautyl'
Then he approached and strOked the
creatures neck, while it whinnied softly
and paved the sawdust with its off fore
foot. The man was Hiram Marks, ring
master with John RobinsOn's show, and
this was his school of horses.
Il am Just giving this stallion his les
son now,'' he said. 'EHe is beginner,
fairly well advanced in the First Reader
we may say. l advanced him from the
Primer last week, and l find that he has
so much intelligence that it is pretty clear
l will be able to carry him through the
High School and graduate him as No. /
trick horse. When he came to me he had
been handled enough to bear the girth and
the bit. / satisfied myself that he was
beauty, and had a certain degree of intel
ligence before ] began to handle him, as it
is time thrown away to educate an I'M
calmly horse or one that is not exceedingly
bright. put girth on him, slipped a
bit into his mouth, put the bride over his
head, fastened the over-check and side
lines to his glrth, and led him into the
ring. The ring, as you see, is a regular
circus ring, with raised circumference
and centre pole. l buckled this lunge
cord into the ring at his bit, and there he
was, ready to take his first lesson.
''Ihe first thing to teach him is to 90
around the outer edge of the ring. instead
Of running across it, as is his first impulse.
By threatening him with the whip, keep
him from the centre of the ring, and by
pulling on the lunge cord | hold him from
going too far and climbing the embank-
ment. In the course of a week or two, by
working twice day, any horse can learn
to lope or gall0p about the ring, either
way, as commanded. Have you ever
noticed that all circus riders ride around
the ring from right to left? No? Well,
they do. An Italian by the name of Ju-
marney was the only rider l ever knew
who rode from left to right.
''After this stallion bad learned to 90
around the ring when commanded
started in to teach him to come to me at a
motion Of the whip. l have reached that
stage now. You can see Tor yourself how
l 90 about it,"
horse set of on lOpe only to stop short
when the whip was cracked again.
Come said the trainer, pulling gently
on the lunge cord and mOtiOning with the
whip handle. There was a seconds
pause, and then the steady strain of the
cord told the animal what was wanted,
and ne walked slowly toward his master
When he had reached the desired point an
apple and careSs were given him, and
then the entire act was ranaQfa1
"With plenty of apples and candy the
right kind OF horse can be taught any,
thing. No, they neither need nor get any
whipping at all while their education is in
progress. They may be tapped occasion
ally with the whip handle or brushed with
the lash, but the main use of the whip is
to tell them when to move by its cracking
and to tell them how to move by It's mo-
tions. The principal signals to horse
are made with the whip handle; when the
voice is used it is done more to beguile the
audience than to enlIghten the horse. For
instance, when l say Gomez | move nv
whip in a certain manner, and the horse
comes. Without the motion of the whip
he would not understand me, while with
out the word come my wants would he
perfectly clear to him, and he would obey
by the whip alone.
Dan Rice had one of the very few
horses that have been broken to the voice,
and that happened only by accident
When Dan began with him the nag had
perfectly good eyes, and was broken to
the motion of the whip, but while the
training was in progress it went stone
blind. 1t was such beautiful and intel
igent creature that Mr.. Rice did not
want to give it up. and. reasoning that if
a cart horse can be taught to sgee' and
'haw' by sound, his horse could be taught
other things IN the same way, he went to
work and broke the animal over again to
the voice. For the act done by this blind
horse and its mate Dan Rice used to get
$1,000 every week that he exhibited them.
The figures are not exaggerated. / know
this to be a fact"
"You say that with apples the right
horse can be taught anything. viii you
eXDain?p
'Why, it is all clear When say 'the
right horse | mean a nag like this one
here-a horse that moves quickly, that
keeps his eye constantly ON you, and un-
derstands your motions. There are men,
you know, who are sluggish and dull of
eptiOn-what is called fat-witted-
and there are just that kind of horses.
Such nag | could hardly teach to run
around the ring in the same time that |
could give an entire education to an alert
and intelligent animal. Then there is
another kind of horse that may be intelli-
gent enough, but which will never suit
me, and that is a vicious beast.
'Some years ago among the best known
American equestrians was Mr.. Levi j.
North. | think he is living in retirement
in New York State now. He was breaking
cream-cOlOred stallion in the ring one
morning, while | was standing outside
chewing straw and talking to some of
the boys. The beast was handsome and
quick enough, but it was as vicious as a
hyena, and that morning something had
disturbed it in the stable, so that when it
danced into the ring its little black ewes
glittered like Il snakes. l expected trOu-
bic, but North knew his business, and the
rest of us cOntented ourselves with look
ing on. l had turned my head to say some
thing to one of the boys when | heard a
shrek. l wheeled around, and there was
North Whirling around that stations
head as boy Whirls basket. The beast
had caught him with it's teeth by one
wrist, and after a couple of whirls it sent
him crashing through the ropes on the
other side of the ring. His wrist was
broken, and he is crippled to this day. No,
l thank you; no vicious stallion for me.
''Now. in teaching an animal to pick up
a handkerchief for instance, let me show
you now the apple works. That act is
pretty well alOng-in the Sixth Reader
say-but my beginner here will do it for
you this once"
The trainer broke small russell apple
in two pieces, and wrapped one of the
pieces in his handkerchief This he placed
to the horses nose long enough for it to
get the scent Of the apple, and then. walk
ing to the other side of the ring, he placed
the handkerchief and apple together on
the sawdust there. The alert animal
watched him like cat, and no sooner was
the handkerchief on the ground than he
trotted to it, picked it up, and shook it
until the apple became disengaged from
its folds.
"Horses are taught to fire a pistol in
precisely the same way. An apple is fas-
tened to the end of a line attached to a
pistols trigger. The animal tugs at the
line to get the apple, and fires the charge.
In the course of time the apple is disc0n-
tinued; but, Juggling at the line has be-
come second nature with the horse, and
he pulls it as a matter of course"
Mothers Dream Saves Her Child.
N0r5cicA (CoaR.) BulIetin, Nag 8.
About ] O'Clock Friday morning DR.. G..
r. Stark was called To attend erirI Win