Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-12-11
THE RIDING SCHOOLS.
WHERE SOCIETY SPENDS PART OF
ITS TIME WHEN SUMNER is OVER.

IL 1--WE WI 10 SNCns |
Careful Training OF the Horses-Mounting
from the Ground - Nervous Women.
Habits Fitted While on tho Horse-Rid-
ing to Music.
The base of all riding lessons for beginners
is the safety and careful training of the
horses. Only horse of strong will power,
wide intelligence and disciplined nerves can
bear with equanimity the succession Of sur
prises sweet girl manages to arrange for
him when she mounts for the first time The
first mounting is from block, and rider
has only to sit down with little spring to
be in her place, but there are something like
a hundred ways girl manages to take that
little spring and take it exactly wrong before |
she is il the saddle. Then it takes an artist |
to arrange girls skirts and two grooms to |
hold the horse while it is done. When she |
doesn't forget to unhook the little loop that |
holds her dress in the back she sits down |
squarely on the fulness that should go over |
the pommel or gets so helplessly wound up |
in the skirts that no one but the fifteen puz- |
Zle man can ever get her out alive. Her sad |
die is never exactly right, her stirrup either
too long or too short, and she fidgets and
fuses and nestles and giggles and gets
pink in her cheeks and lot of imprecation
and profanity in the heart of the groom be-
fore she is finally satisfied and rides into the
ring, only to come back again in nine cases
out of ten for another horse or saddle or
something.
Mounting from the ground is yet more
difficult feat, and usually the first few trials
end in disaster, One hand on the saddle, the
other on the shoulder of the master, his arm
about her waist, her foot in his hand. and
then count one, two, three, and she springs
only to land where she least poets, while
the horse quivers and shivers in patient sub
mission and bears it. The favorite mode of
| riding is after the English style, and the
master rides round and round with the pupil
| correcting, criticising her position, and sug-
| gesting such ideas as she may find beneficial
| Suddenly, without warning, he chirrups to
her horse, and away they go, his hand under
| meath her elbow to teach how and when TO
| rise from the saddle as the horse bounds.
Faster and faster they hy, and winter and
winter grows the girls face through the
naneless fear that will come and must be
dispelied by heroic treatment.
A naturally graceful woman who is not
| afraid OF a horse and understands how to
manage one, can learn to ride well in a verv
few lessons but timid, nervous woman re-
quire considerable practice to accustom her
self to the to her terrifying motion of the
powerful animal she rides.
Il practiced months and months,1 said a
pretty young girl in gray striped habit, Ito
learn to rise in the saddle according to the
masters teaching, but just couldn't do it at
all, and was lame all over, until one day
papa said: Why, just sit still and let the
horse throw you,' and in ten minutes l had
it and have never had any trouble sincen
All this time that the young riders had
been Topping and tossing and jerking around
in the rink, tall, vigorous young woman
had been drawing on her gloves, and pini
checked girl in the corner was reading Low,
letter, waiting for their horses and scoldine
because some one whom they called Ber
couldn't come and ride with them, so the,
could go out in the park, and when tn
horses finally came, two handsome, whit
faced, slender necked beauties, they fev
down the steps, one foot in the hand of tn
groom, spring, and they were in the sad
dies, every fold of their habits falling int
| btAO NcllcGA PAOtti HiASt Wibh II
fidgeting, and into the rink they dashed o
the prancing, dancing horses, flying roun
and round and across the circle, striking tel
ror to the hearts of their tinid sisters, Will
the fresh, soft color sprang to the rider
cheeks and the pretty brightness to thei
eyes with the swift exercise.
"How is it that you seem to have so muc
less trouble with your dress in mountin
1. than the othersFr asked an inquisitive matro
as the girls came painting up the stairs
- "Oh, don't know, unless it is because the
were fitted on real live horse up here at th
stable. A great many of the ladies insist o
their tailors coming to the stables to fit tn
dresses now. A wooden charger isn't like
live horse to mount, you know
When the beginners lessons are ended fc
the day comes the glorious dashing mus
ride by all the school together. Suddenly
crash of music, a trampling of hoofs, tos
ing of silky names and glossy curving neck
:, and sixty horses, all saddled and bride,
dash out into the rink, and half as man
women are trying to mount the eager, paw
ing, Quivering steeds, and twice as man
men are helping them to the best of the
poor skill The ladies fuss and twist an
wrestle. stirrups are shortened or lengthene,
girths are tightened, the music crashes o.
the pretty horses stand impatiently, wit
quivering ears and dilated uostrils II
queenly beauty goes out to mount, but pou
in the prettiest imaginable way as she is ID
along the block, but smiles with lips ar
eyes as a fair haired Adonis ansicipatir
her wish to mount from the ground, sprinl
down from the block and holds up bis arr
invitingly TO her. Twenty horses a
crowded together in little space cavorti1
and paving in impatience and excitemer
but down among their tramphng hoofs s.
flies fearlessly, and with quick, light sprir
she is beaming down into his face as he 4
her foot into the stirrup and tightens b
saddle girth, then filings himself on hors
and round and round the big rink they
revolve in steady measured pace to the quic
Vt throbbing music.
Sweet girls ride into the rim e alone all fe
lessly, but hardly are they inside the ga
before some mounted knight with uphft
hat joins them, and two and two they dizzi
=, wheel now to the right, now to the lie
divide into two circles meet and come
the center four abreast, wheel again into t
circles of four, meet and march up eig
g abreast, separate once more, wheel, me
~ and sixteen horses heads come tossing up
his line, as unlike in expression as the slxte
bright faces above them, and round til
wheel again in pairs.
Then they all form In one straight lii
while the music beats the time, dash fl
ward, the whole seventy of them, in salt
- to the leader, and the lesson is over only
few of the bravest of the ladies remaining
ride for the rings, and only two Drawing
hurdleS-New York Sun