Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-12-05
HOW TO SIT A HORSE.
An Old Cavalryman's Pointers to an In
experienced Rider.

An Old Cava!rymans Pointers to an In
experienced Rider.
From the Washington Star.
''The best riders in the world" said
an old cavalryman, who was giving q
greennorn some points on equestrian
ism, "are the Mexicans. Buffalo Bills
cowboys are splendid riders, but the
MeXicans are better still. And their
superiority is in part que to the kind OF
saddle they use. That low English sad
die you've got there" he continued, 81
couldn't ride in. Now the great beauty
of the Mexican saddle is that a man sit
ting in it has his legs almost strais ht,
down beside the horse, like clothes
pin. A Mexican on horseback keeps
his heels and shoulders nearly IN line,
his feet planted firmly in his stirrups
underneath him and pointing straight
ahead. parallel with the horse. Our
Mcclellan saddle would be as good as
the Mexican saddle if it only had the
stirrups placed a couple of inches further
back. As it is, man riding in a
Mcclellan saddle has to bend his leg at
the knee in the English style. Now,
with the knee bent it is almost i'm posi-
bic to keep your feet pointed straight
ahead.
This position of the feet" the i'm
promptu ridingmaster continued, after
pausing a moment to allow his casual
pupil t. absorb what he had already
said, lisa very important thing in learn
ing to ride properly. In fact, it is the
thing. And yet nine-tenths of the rid
ers you see about the street and coun-
try roads have their toes turned at an
angie of 10 degrees from the sides of the
horse. AS consequence these riders
can't have firm seat, and don't enjoy
Il
If they rode properly"
How is it the way the toes point has
SO much to do with good riding ?" a Star
reporter vino happened to be on hand
inquired.
To sit firmly on a horse and at the
same time to have the body erect and
free to give with the horses notion"
the cavalryman said, you must grip
the animals sides with your knees. Not
with the calves of the legs, mind, nor
with the thighs, but with the knees
alone. Now, it you don't keep your
toes pointing straight ahead, or nearly
SO. 1t is impossible to get the grip with
the knees. Turn your toes out and you
will find at once that you grip the horse
with the calves of your legs and that
your BODY is thrown forward from the
hips instead of being erect. Expert
ment little when you get on your horse
and you'll see 1t works just as [ say.
But if you keep your feet straight, hold
tight with your knees and sit erect, you
will find you can accommodate yourself
to the motions of the horse more read
lily and gracefully, your seat will be
frmer and riding will not tire you near
so quickly. Ifyou will Enotice old cav
alrymen when they walk" the gentle
man continued, You will see that in
stead of spreading their feet apart they
keep them parallel. This is the result
Of their habit of riding, and it often
makes them very ungraceful on their
feet. The best and most graceful rider
] knew was Gen. Ashby, who was killed
during the war. [ never saw any man
who looked so handsome on horseback.
Off a horse, however, he walked like
a duck and was so clumsy that
he couldn't get into parlor without
falling over all the furniture in
sight. A Mexican astride his high
curved saddle with his legs hanging
straight down, rides as easily as if he
were sitting in a rocking-chair, and at
the same time it is almost impossible to
unseat him. He is clothes pinned on
the horse. and the latter can't get from
under him. But man riding on fat
English saddle with short sti1rups, his
legs bent at the knee and his toes turned
out, has no chance when his horse
jun ps suddenly. He is in cramped
position, and is almost sure to be thrown
forward on the horses neck or over his
head"