Year: 1887

page_text: I, FRANÇOIS ARSÈNE THOUVENIN, of 23, Boulevard de Strasbourg, Paris, in the
Republic of France, Captain of Artillery in the French Army, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in head-gear chiefly designed for use with
cavalry horses, the object of the invention being to allow of successively and
simultaneously converting the said gear into a halter, snaffle and curb without it
being necessary to remove the head-stall; by this means saving of time and great
security are afforded to travellers and huntsmen as well as to military riders and a
portion of the usual harness is dispensed with. The improved head-gear is light,
elegant and very strong besides which it allows of dispensing with the neck strap
(collier d'attache) for picketing purposes and of replacing, by a practical arrange-
iment, the watering-bridle which will be no longer required.
The head-gear comprises only the combined halter, snaffle and curb and the
martingale; the former term is used because the head-gear can serve the three
purposes simultaneously or successively; it can also be employed as a stable halter.
It is well known how difficult it is with some horses to obtain a good and con-
sequently graceful position of the head. Many of them for example stiffen the
shoulders, contract the jaw, place the canons or mouthpiece of the bit obliquely in
the mouth, take one cheek or branch of the bit between the teeth, incline the head
on one side and become completely insensible to the action of the reins. The rider
has no power over the horse so long as these parts remain refractory or contracted,
when once they have been rendered supple or flexible the rider can control his horse
as he pleases.
I have devised two means for connecting the bit to the bit-carrying-rings which
have for object to obviate the above objections, to always ensure the proper horizontal
position of the canons or mouth-piece of the bit on the bars and to thus easily
prevent with the most unmanageable horses the contraction of the shoulders and
jaw and obtain a proper and graceful position of the head.
Upon the least movement of the lips the horse easily champs the bit.

page_text: The said two arrangements can be employed either with a saddle or with a carriage.
By reason of the employment of the underpart of the noseband the curb with
many horses, can be advantageously dispensed with, particularly the hook-curb.
The bit can also be held in place by a bridoon button adapted to the bit-carrying-
ring. Hook-bits can also be applied to the same gear, the bit-carrying-ring being
slightly altered.
In the first mentioned arrangement the curb-bit is hooked to the bit-carrying-rings
by means of bridoon buttons on the latter; in the other arrangement the bit is
attached to the rings by hooks which form part of the same. Above the said hooks
and (in the case of the rings with bridoon buttons) in the openings, sufficient space
is left to allow the horse, at the least movement of the lips to champ its bit.
In this case the canons of the bit are constantly in movement in the horse's mouth.
In order to convert the complete gear into a bridle it is only necessary to remove
the curb bit.
For this purpose, in the case first hereinbefore referred to, the curb-bit must be
moved forward so as to bring the opening of its branches to correspond with the
bridoon buttons, these buttons are placed obliquely so that the bit cannot become
unhooked by the movement of the horse's mouth.
f
In the case of a hook-bit, the bit must also be moved forward so as to bring the
hooks over a thin portion of the bit-carrying-ring. For the same reason as that
before referred to, this thin part is in front and placed obliquely with regard to
the branches of the bit.
The snaffle-ring is connected to a ring on the cheek-strap by a chain which can be
easily placed in position or withdrawn as it is only held by a bar at its end bearing
against the side of the said ring by removing the driving rein. This is effected by
simply disengaging the chains from the rings on the cheek-straps, only the gear,
properly so called, remaining, which then forms a halter.
Instead of placing the usual ornaments on the brow-band they are employed to hold
together the cheek-straps and the throat-lash; brass keepers which can be easily
opened and closed replace all the usual adjusting devices.
The martingale is attached to the nose-band by means of a bar which is passed
through a ring on the chain after having been passed through a ring on the nose-
band.
D
171
T
CAT
1
1007
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in Head-gear for Horses.
I, FRANÇOIS ARSÈNE THOUVENIN, of 23, Boulevard de Strasbourg, Paris, in the
Republic of France, Captain of Artillery in the French Army, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to improvements in head-gear chiefly designed for use with
cavalry horses, the object of the invention being to allow of successively and simul-
taneously converting the said gear into a halter, snaffle and curb without it being
necessary to remove the head-stall; by this means saving of time and great security
are afforded to travellers and huntsmen as well as to military riders and a portion of
the usual harness is dispensed with. The improved head-gear is light, elegant and
very strong besides which it allows of dispensing with the neck strap (collier d'attache)
for picketing purposes and of replacing, by a practical arrangement, the watering-
bridle which will be no longer required.
The head-gear comprises only the combined halter, snaffle and curb and the
martingale; the former term is used because the head-gear can serve the three
purposes simultaneously or successively; it can also be employed as a stable halter.
It is well known how difficult it is with some horses to obtain a good and con-
sequently graceful position of the head. Many of them for example stiffen the
shoulders, contract, the jaw, place the canons or mouthpiece of the bit obliquely in the
mouth, take one cheek or branch of the bit between the teeth, incline the head on
one side and become completely insensible to the action of the reins. The rider has
no power over the horse so long as these parts remain refractory or contracted,
when once they have been rendered supple or flexible the rider can control his horse
as he pleases.
In the accompanying drawing,
Figures 1 and 2 are side views of a horse's head with my improved head-gear
applied thereto the two figures serving to illustrate two means for connecting the bit
to the bit-carrying-rings which means have for object to obviate the above objections,
to always ensure the proper horizontal position of the canons or mouth-piece of the
bit on the bars and to thus easily prevent with the most unmanageable horses the
contraction of the shoulders and jaw and obtain a proper and graceful position of
the head.
With the least movement of the lips the horse can easily champ the bit.
The said two arrangements can be employed either with a saddle or with a carriage.
By reason of the employment of the underpart of the noseband the curb, with
many horses, can be advantageously dispensed with, particularly the hook-curb.
In the head-gear shown in Figure 1 the bit is held in place by a bridoon button
adapted to the bit-carrying-ring. Figure 2 shews the hook-bits applied to the same
gear; the bit-carrying-ring being slightly altered.
In the first mentioned arrangement (Figure 1) the curb-bit A is hooked to the
bit-carrying-rings B by means of bridoon buttons a on the latter; in the other

page_text: arrangement (Figure 2) the bit is attached to the rings by hooks 6 which form part
of the same. Above the said hooks and (in the case of the rings with bridoon
buttons) in the openings, sufficient space is left to allow the horse, with the least
movement of the lips to champ its bit.
In this case the canons of the bit are constantly in movement in the horse's mouth.
In order to convert the complete gear into a bridle it is only necessary to remove
the curb-bit A.
For this purpose, in the case illustrated by Figure 1, the curb-bit must be moved
forward so as to bring the opening of its branches to correspond with the bridoon
buttons; these buttons are placed obliquely so that the bit cannot become unhooked
by the movement of the horse's mouth.
In the case of a hook-bit (Figure 2) the bit must also be moved forward so as to
bring the hooks b over a thin portion e of the bit-carrying-ring B. For the same
reason as that before referred to, this thin part is in front and placed obliquely with
regard to the branches of the bit.
The snaffle ring d is connected to a ring e on the cheek-strap by a chain of which
can be easily placed in position or withdrawn as it is only held by a bar h at its end
bearing against the side of the ring e. By removing the driving rein C which is
done by simply disengaging the chains from the rings e on the cheek-straps, only
the gear, properly so called will be left remaining which gear then forms a halter.
Instead of placing the usual ornaments D on the brow-band E they are employed
to hold together the cheek-straps G. and the throat-lash H; brass keepers consisting
of a plate provided with two eyes or staples (which can be easily opened out or bent
inwards to suit the thickness of the straps employed) are employed in place of the
usual adjusting devices. Figure 3 shows a perspective view of one of these keepers,
the dotted lines showing how the staples may be opened out or bent inwards.
The martingale is attached to the lower part K of the nose-band by means of a
bar which is passed through a ring on the chain after having been passed through a
ring on the nose-band.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what I claim is :-
1. A head-gear for saddle or draught horses which can be converted into a snaffle
by removing the curb-bit or into a halter by the removal of the snaffle-bit as herein-
before described, the said head-gear comprising a curb-bit attached to the bit-bearing-
rings either by hooks or by bridoon buttons. sufficient play being left at the points of
attachment to allow the horse to easily champ the bit at the same time preventing the
bit becoming unhooked by the movements of the animal.
2. The improved head-gear for horses herein before described and illustrated in the
accompanying drawing.
Ր A
. 1000
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London,
Agents for the Applicant.