Los Angeles herald., 1906-12-23
WILL EDUCATE
PARIS CABMEN
LESSONS IN EoUIN0L0GY PRO
POSED AS A COURSE
viii Be Sent to School to Learn How
to Look After Horses-Beeause of
Ignorance Animals Are
often Treated Cruelty
speclal Cahle to The IIernld.

Special Cable to The Herald.
PARIS. Dec. 22.-There seems at last
some hope for the Paris cab horse. A
serious effort Is being made to anchor
ate its lot This time an effort is being
made to go to the very root of the mat
ter and instil some notions of how a
horse should be treated into the young
cabman about to start on the "metier."
The heads of the movement are the
Societe Protectrice des Animaux and
nj. Alphonse Lamy, president of the
Federation of Paris Cab Proprietors A
sort of school for cabmen is about to be
instituted at the Marche de Chevaux in
the Vaugirard quarter at which they
will be instructed in all that appertains
to the Profession.
1t is curious, but absolutely true, that
the Paris cabman is, to a great extent,
recruited from a class of men that
knows nothing whatever about horses.
The Department of the Correze and
Auvergne furnish a large contingent.
They are for the most part stonemasons
who come to Paris to seek work.
In the spring and summer months
they work at their trade and in the
autumn return home for the harvest.
III winter, when 1t freezes, the masons
are unable to work, and, in order to
tide over the dead season, they become
cabmen. AS NJ. Lamy picturesquely re-
marked, half of them don't know a
horse from a cow"
Ignorant of Horses
But they know nothing about the
horse. For them it is a machine into
which certain amount of corn is put,
a drink of water given, and then, with
the help Of whipcord, these ingredients
are turned into kilometres. If the horse
lives or dies, is well-treated or miser-
able, is to them matter of indiffer-
ence. 1t is there to cover so many
miles of Paris streets, converted into
francs and centimes for the cabman.
But many of these sin by ignorance
and not by Intentional cruelty. They
know nothing whatever about a horse;
they do not know how to harness him
when his harness sets well or when 1t
gals the unfortunate beats. They do
not know when to feed or give him
water and when to abstain.
1t is to instruct them in this that the
new cabmans school is being founded
M. Lamy has presented it with cab
and horse to be used in giving the
the course is to train the men in the art
of harnessing and embarrassing a
horse, to know when everything sits
well, to see that every buckle and strap
is in it's proper place, and is neither too
loose nor too tight. When this has
been learned the veterinary surgeon
will come on the scene.
The cabman will be instructed re-
garding the anatomy of the horse and
the various maladies to which it is sub
ject and how they should be treated.
On a hot day, when the cabman is per.
| spring in the heat, his one idea gen.
| orally Is to betake himself to the near
est wineShop and Slake his thirst. He
thinks that the same treatment is good
for his horse and proceeds to admin
lister to 1t big bucket of water, pre-
ferably ice water.
He is very much astonished when, a
quarter of an hour later his horse is
seized with violent collie. He can only
look at him helplessly, being as ignor-
ant of what to do to help him as he
was to prevent it's happening. Half an
hour later the horse ambulance carries
it off, and there is another dead horse
added to the list of victims of cab
mems ignorance. The same holds good
in regard to feeding, the man stuffing
fatigued and prespiring horses with
corn and then being surprised to find
that the unfortunate animal develops
congestion.
Course Will Be Free
The foundation of this new school for
cabmen has now been energetically
taken in hand.
OF course, no charge whatever is to
be made to the cabman for this course
of instruction. On the contrary, the So
ciete Protectrice des AnimauX proposes
to give series of prizes for the men
who are most regular in their attend
ance and to give them certificates Of