The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-10-03
WOMAN TRAINS
RIDING HORSES
How a Western Girl Pays COL
Iege Expenses
EXCITING POSSIBILITIES
This Girl Sometimes Develops Good
Horse Show Winners-Some
Points of the Good
Saddle Horse.
EXCITING POSSIBILITIES

Saddle Horse.
From the New York Sun
Aren't we lucky? You look like
Japanese and L ride like a cowboy" a
western girl who is working her way
through college exclaimed after COM
pairing notes with another girl In sim
liar situation. II pay expenses by break
ing riding horses, and you wait in d
Japanese tea room looking so natural in
a kimono that everybody thinks you a
genuine little Japanese girl.
Il have been particularly excited dur
ing the last month because at least two
of the horses 1 trained during the sum-
mer are to be in the next horse show
That is one of the excitements about
breaking riding horses-they may turn
out to be winners in the horse show.
"A well trained riding horse sells for
about $500 unless it be brought to
develop horse show form. In that case
the price goes up to $1,000 and over. The
two horses l referred to were selected for
riding animals, one for a combination
horse and the other for park hack.
'iOh, yes, there Is a lot of difference.
The one point in common between the
two classes so far as l can see Is that
they are both just horse. l mean by
that they do not claim to have any spe-
cial breeding The thoroughbred saddle
horse is type all by itself 1t has been
produced by careful breeding and should
always be good enough to win a ribbon
in show.
1.-THE combination horse is the most
popular both in the north and the west,
but l understand that in the south it Is
not so good a seller. The combination
Is the riding horse for country life. 1t
goes well both in harness and under the
saddle.
I'm selecting such a horse 1t is better
to get riding horse that goes well in
harness than a driving horse that will
do well under the saddle. More is ex-
pected of a saddle horse than of horse
that Is to be driven. According to .he
present standard such horse must have
good walk and trot, be not too rough
in gallop and be bride wise. Bride
wise means being guided by the pressure
of the reins on the side of the neck. II
the horse is to be harness animal only
all that is essential is that it should
have a good trot and a good mouth.
THE great majority of horses brought
here are already broken to harness,
all have to do In that line is to drive
horse enough to prevent it from ebecom-
ing exclusively a riding horse while l
am training 1t for the saddle The best
height for such a horse is 1872 hands. As
to length, there is no fixed requirement,
though the general rule that the longer
the horse Is the better holds as we'll with
a. combination animal as with any other.
CHI OH
sary If the horse is to carry its rider with
ease. Narrow shouldered horses nearly
always have rough. uneven gaits and are
given to stumbling. By good shoulders
are meant long shoulder blades, fiat and
we'll placed, though 1t is not necessary
that they should slope back provided they
move easily
1.-The neck should be a good length and
the horse should have light head, with
a strong back and quarters and mar
row body; but above all a riding horse
must have strength in its forelegs. Out
west the Indians say the hind legs will
follow where the forelegs lead and I'M
less there is a good pair of forelegs they
will never use a horse for the SO ddle.
THE best leg for the riding animal is
straight and clean looking. The tendons
in such a leg are apt to be we'll devel-
oped and strong A leg that bends sl1ght-
" over in front is much to be preferred
knee This nearly always SHOWS a weak
ness and should be avoided.
eff a horse has never been trained to
the saddle and you want to get COM
bination animal the best plan is to get
your dealer to give you a driving morse
with the points have described and train
him yourself. This is an easy enough
matter if you are a good rider 1t is not
important that horse which has only
been harness broke should have an easy
gallon at first There is nothing in which
a horse improves so rapidly as in gal
Looping All it requires is practice and a
little kindly guidance
Neither is it of Importance that new
horse should guide on the neck. This
also can be taught with little trouble
at is important, however, that a rid
ing horse should be of a quiet tempera-
ment and should lower it's head and lean
on the bit. A high headed horse is dis
agreeable to ride and has uncertain gaits,
while fretful or nervous horse will take
all the nervous energy Of the rider to
keep 1t in check.
s.,rhis is a bad fault in any horse, but
most horses can be broken of it if they
are taught to obey without fearing the
rider. Indeed such horses need to be
taught to have such confidence in their
rider that they fear nothing. horse
of a quiet temperament does this in
stinctively, but the nervous. fretful ami
NAL must have patient teaching.
IT don't believe that any one who cares
for HORSES Is sorry that the ladies' saddle
horse. as it was called a generation ago,
has gone out of style. In the first place
each horse In stable should be so well
trained that 1t can be ridden by either
men or women. In the second place
horses used by both men and women are
much less apt to suffer from sore back
'Of course the use of the side saddle is
not the only cause of sore back. 1t may |
be caused by neglecting to keep the lin
ing and padding of the saddle dry. If
this Is not done the padding becomes |
hard and uneven and the only remedy |
is to have the saddle done over.
ooh, I ride both ways, on the side sad
die and cross saddle. There Is horse |
under me in both positions and that is
the thing that counts. When I am at
home. | mean in the west. I never think
of riding sideways except to keep in prac- /
tice. Riding astride Is not only easier I
for me but is also better for the horses (
back. The only POINT is that a woman
sitting in the side saddle is ever so much |
more feminine looking than when she |
ride astrde.
Il am not a bit sure that couldn't ride |
around the globe without feeling fatigued |
provided | had an even tempered horse
with fairly easy gaits under me and I
rode cross saddle When in a side sad |
die I begin to feel the strain on my back |
before l finish 20 miles. I'm quite sure