Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1886-12-29
HORSE HABITS.
Something About Equine
Ways and Peculiarities.
Horses Disposed to be Gentle or Savage
According to Treatment.

A gentleman who has made a study Of
horses and their characteristics for years
and who is the owner OF a number OF fine
animals, was shown by q New York
Mail and E1press reporter, an item that
has been going the rounds of the press
about a horse becoming insane.
81 do not believe there is any such
thing as insanity among horses" he said.
"a horse may become wild and urmanage-
able from pain, such as the toothache, or
because of cruel and brutal treatment or
fright, but it is only a temporary affection.
But l will not deny that many horses
are natural fools. | have in fact seen
many such on which there was no
dependence, and a characteristic OF
which is the taking up of mouthrul OF
hay and tossing it about, making fire.
quently no headway in eating. Such
horses show no affection, and stranger
can drive them as readily as one who has
handled them for years, which is not the
case with an intelligent horse. One
thing that makes horse nervous are
these fancy curb bits, which hurt n horse
considerably, and attribute n great deal
of this so-callcd viciousncss to these con-
trivances. No, sir; l do not even be-
lievc in natural viciousncss in horse.
To ill.trcntment this is all due. Take a
high-strung, nervous horse and it does
not require much il-trcatmcnt to
make him vicious. | have seen
horses and owned them which would
be perfectly gentle in harness and in the
stable, but the moment they would
sec me take up a stick or whip would at
once seem to change their dispositions
and try to jump upon me and otherwise
do me harm. Out West last summcr !
came across a black horse which had
killed three men, and which worked six
mates to death. lie was worked twelve
years day and night on stage coach.
He would tramplc both men and his
mates to death the moment they came
too near him. But lie was il,-trcAted,
brutally treated, all the time. Why,
every time they put q harness on him
they would keep him goadcd with
pitchfork SC that he trcmbicl with fear
all the time. 1t was quite sight to see
him harnesscd. After the harness was
snapped about him u heavy iopc was
lied about his neck and then lie would
be dubbed over the head and backed
out of the stall. Then the rope would
be thrown over Il beam and the men
would take the bride and club him with
it on the head 80 us to stun him before
they could get it on. Ic was large,
powerful animal, and fine looking. Yet
to-day that horse is as gentle as kitten.
Why so1 Because he passed into other
hands from which he received kind
treatment; that is all he needed.
81 have a light sorrel horse named
Rowdy, which have owned about two
years. lie was very high strung and a
notorious runaway when got him. The
man who sold him 10 me confessed that
no impression could be made on the
horses mouth. | began with gentle
treatment and letting him know that !
was his master and drove him with Il
straight bit. At the start he kicked
straight out OF the traces. Now
he is subducd and gentle, and
the moment speak to him he obcys and
will come everywhere to me at the sound
of my voice. He has trait that causes
much amusement. We allowed him to
run in pasture with mate. Rowdy was
always great fence jumper, but his
mate was not on the start. When to-
gcther, Rowdy would leap fence and
then seeing his mate decline TO follow,
would at first coax by jumping it over
sevcra. times back and forth, and a,
last, seeing this would not succeed,
would begin biting the other one an
pushing it with his nose until he COM
PEELED it to jump.
While west noticed that frequently
horses arc guided the same as oxen,
without rcins, and that it is very easy
to teach them to obey in this way. 1t is
like everything else about horse-lct
HIM have conf lcncc in his master and
he will do anything. saw an odd in
stance of balky horse out there. 1t
was in Michigan and he was attached to
a light buggy. The horse was very
large, and would weigh /, 700 to 1900
pounds. They were on level and after
going about eighty rods the horse
stopped short and would not bulge. He
was beaten, knocked and whipped but
without avail. Then yoke of cattle
was brought up and fastened, to which
was chain which was fastened about
the horses neck. That horse was
dragged half mile by the cattle, and
then was rs stubborn as at first. JIe
was finally left alone and after standing
seven hours started up all right of his
own accord. The trouble is that when
horse gets balky people lose their tenn
pers, and this only makes matters worse.
The only sure remedy for a balky horse
is to blindfold him by banding his eyes.
| never knew this to fail, as it seems 10
take away the animals attention from
the subject over which he is stubborn.
Cure OF SOmnambulism.
| A forpipn medical 1hurnnl mentions