Riding and Driving for Women Part 15

Of equal importance with the proper adjustment of the bits and of the reins in the cheek or bar is the adjustment of the coupling reins. These are the two shorter inside reins by which the near horse is coupled with the off rein and the off horse with the near rein. The coupling reins should be so adjusted that the pressure on the reins of each horse will be the same; that is, the off horse should have the same pressure from the off rein as he has from the near coupling rein, and the near horse should have the same pressure from the near rein as from the off coupling rein.

If it happens that the two horses go absolutely together and have the same mouths and the same dispositions, which, as I have said, is almost never the case, then the coupling reins will be buckled in the same hole on each rein. If the two horses have different mouths or different dispositions, the buckles will have to be shifted accordingly. That is, for instance, if the near horse has more life or a harder mouth, the off coupling rein must be taken up so that there will be more pressure on him than on the off horse. The coupling reins are also adjusted for the purpose of bringing the two horses nearer together, and for keeping their heads together or apart as may be necessary.

The two horses of a pair should have their bodies and heads straight and parallel to the pole, but it will be found that some horses are inclined to carry their heads to one side or the other, and the coupling reins should be taken up or loosened accordingly. For example, if the near horse carries his head to the near side, the off coupling rein must be taken up, which compels him to straighten his head.

If you have two horses that seem to be perfectly matched, but the off horse carries his head a little out to the front and has a light mouth, and the near horse carries his head close to his chest and has a hard mouth, to get them to pull together and keep them well in the traces the coupling rein of the off horse should be two or three holes shorter than that of the near, and consequently the off coupling rein will be let out and the near coupling rein taken in, and in such case the off horse, if he has a light mouth, should be driven in the cheek and the hard-mouthed near horse down in the bar.

A common fault of coachmen and grooms lies in buckling both coupling reins too tightly, which makes the horses carry their heads in toward the pole instead of going away straight. This looks very badly, makes the horses' mouths hard, and either keeps the horses going diagonally or causes them to carry their heads crooked.

If horses have acquired, through wrong coupling, the habit of turning their heads in toward the pole, or their quarters out from it, it is sometimes a good plan to change their positions instead of always driving them on the same side. Then, on the other hand, horses sometimes get into the habit of leaning in against the pole. This is a difficult habit to break, but by changing their positions or by adjusting the bits and the coupling reins, and steady and careful driving, this habit can be broken.

Bearing reins are required in the appointments for ladies' traps except for runabouts and pony carts, and I believe generally in their use with nearly every kind of trap, and with single horses as well as with pairs.

It is only the abuse of bearing reins, and not the use, which has led to the outcry so generally made against them by persons ignorant of the principles and practice of driving.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PROPER ADJUSTMENT OF BEARING REINS]

Bearing reins should be just tight enough to keep the horse's head up in its natural position. When so adjusted they prevent a horse from putting his head down and getting the bit in his teeth; they prevent him from putting his tongue over the bit and do a great deal toward preventing him from kicking.

Bearing reins are particularly necessary in pair driving, for however well matched two horses may be in general appearance, they seldom carry their heads naturally at just the same height. In that case the horse who naturally carries his head high should have his bearing rein quite loose and the other quite tight, so that their heads may be at the same height. Nothing looks worse than to see two horses in a pair carrying their heads one low and one high. Most of the best authorities on driving also say, and I have no doubt that it is true, that bearing reins keep a tired horse up and make his going easy; they also keep him from nodding.

Of course, many thoughtless grooms draw the bearing reins altogether too tight, so as to force the horse's head up and make him almost ewe-necked. This naturally frets a horse, especially when he is standing still. The bearing reins should be fastened to a bridoon and not to the bit, as, if fastened to the bit, they raise it too high and are apt to spoil the "feel" of the horse's mouth.

For runabouts, at all times, bearing reins should be dispensed with, and they may be dispensed with for informal country driving in any kind of carriage, especially with a single horse. When bearing reins are used they should generally be loosened if the horses are to stand for any length of time.

The overhead check-rein should never be used, except with roadsters or trotting horses.

CHAPTER XVIII

HARNESS

The use of silver-plated instead of bra.s.s-plated harness for formal occasions, such as the show ring and park, is optional, but bra.s.s-plated harness is more suitable than silver-plated for informal occasions and for country driving.

The correct appointments for a woman's trap in the show ring are given in a separate chapter, page 245. For other occasions the buckles, etc., may be either square or round, according to the owner's fancy. Square buckles are more appropriate for formal occasions and perhaps for four-wheel traps; round buckles are rather for carts and sporting vehicles. There should be as little metal about the harness as practicable, and the ornaments should be confined to crests, engravings, or initials, which should be small and inconspicuous and placed only on the winkers, rosettes, face pieces, standing martingale, and pad.

Breechings may be used for heavy traps, but are not suitable for light traps such as runabouts or for carts. They sometimes make a nervous horse kick, and in such cases they should, of course, be dispensed with. Kicking straps, as I have said elsewhere, should generally be used for a kicking horse both with four-wheel traps and with carts.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SINGLE PHAETON HARNESS

May be used with runabout, when breeching need not be used, and Dutch collar may be used instead of Kay collar]

The harness should be made of the best quality of leather and hand sewn, and should always be kept soft and pliable, and never allowed to become hard or mildewed.

Russet harness is perfectly correct for informal country driving and with runabouts or any kind of light country trap, whether two or four wheeled, particularly with traps finished in natural wood.

For all heavy traps, whether four or two wheeled, collars and harness should be used, and it is essential that the collar should fit the horse. In fact, it is most important that each horse in the stable should have his own collar, which should be carefully fitted to him by a competent harness-maker. Collars come in standard sizes, varying from 19 to 22 inches, and are made to fit by altering the stuffing. The Kay collar is the type generally used.

The weight of the harness is in proportion to the weight of the trap; for heavy traps, such as phaetons or dog-carts, the heaviest harness should be used, while with runabouts, basket phaetons, and light carts, lighter harness is correct.

For country use, and especially in summer with all kinds of light country traps, such as runabouts, Hempstead carts, and breaking carts, a Dutch collar is quite correct and is much more comfortable and cooler for the horse than a collar and hames. The Dutch collar, however, should not be used with any kind of a heavy or formal trap, as it is not so well adapted for pulling, nor does it look well with them.

The lining of the collar should be black for all except sporting carts, where russet lining looks very smart, though almost too sporty for a woman.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SINGLE ROAD HARNESS

Note the light Dutch collar]

Driving reins for a woman should be thinner and lighter than for a man, and should be very pliable for the same reasons, as I have explained on page 145, that apply to riding reins.

The general principle to be observed in driving, as well as in riding, is to have as little harness on the horse as practicable, and, above all things, not to have the harness overloaded with ornaments.

For country use, and for all informal occasions, it is not necessary to use patent-leather harness, as it scratches and becomes shabby very quickly. Plain black pigskin is therefore more appropriate and perfectly correct for such occasions. For rainy weather special harness should be used, as the rain injures the leather and tarnishes the metal of the regular harness, and entails a great deal of unnecessary work on the grooms. Rainy weather harness has all the buckles covered and is made of oiled leather.

When the owner is in deep mourning, everything about the harness should be black, all of the bright metal should be covered with black leather.

It looks quite inappropriate to see the servants with wide c.r.a.pe bands but the harness with all the bright metal showing and colored rosettes and saddle cloths; or, what is even worse, colored saddle cloths and black rosettes. While it is not necessary to use black harness when the owner is in mourning, all colors should certainly be avoided in the rosettes and saddle cloths, and the servants should be put in mourning also.

What I have just said in the chapter on harness for single horses applies generally to harness for a pair.

Kay collars should be used for pairs with all traps, except that Dutch collars may be used for a pair with runabouts or any other light country trap. There is a very light station trap, finished in natural wood, with which russet harness with Dutch collars, for a pair, looks very smart and may be used in the country.

[Ill.u.s.tration: DOUBLE ROAD HARNESS

Note the yoke]

The horses may be coupled to the pole with either pole chains or pole pieces; the former with oval links are correct when the owner drives, but are never permissible in any trap driven by a servant. The chains should fasten at the pole and no extra links should be allowed to hang.

The pole chains, if used, should be of burnished steel and not of bra.s.s. Oddly enough, for some reason which has never been explained, pole chains and pole pieces are regarded as belonging to the trap and not to the harness.

[Ill.u.s.tration: ENGLISH PHAETON PAIR HARNESS

Note the loin straps, which are correct only when servant is driving]

Loin straps should be used with a lady's trap only when a servant drives.

The winkers should be square when square buckles are used, but round winkers may be used, as well as round buckles with sporting traps, for which they are quite appropriate.

Metal rosettes should be used with a single harness and may be used with pair harness, or for ladies' traps. Silk rosettes may be used of any color the owner may fancy, and should match the liveries. In the show ring and park flower rosettes are worn, but with pairs fancy rosettes are worn on the near side of the near horse and the off side of the off horse; that is, one on each horse on the outside, while on the inside the rosettes should be plain metal.

[Ill.u.s.tration: A HEMPSTEAD CART]

Double harness should fit the horses just as single harness does, except that the belly-bands should be looser, so as to admit two or three fingers between them and the girths.

A whip with a lash should always be used, except with roadsters or trotting horses, when a straight whip is correct. The whip should be of a length proportionate to the trap and the distance of the horse from the driver. The same kind of whip should be used for driving a single horse as for a pair. The shaft should be straight and may be of any color the owner fancies, and may be mounted in gold, silver, or bra.s.s.

The best whips in general use are made of holly. For a woman's use a whip should be lighter and more slender than for a man's. A heavy whip is very tiring to the hand, and quite unnecessary for the kind of horse that a woman drives. The handle of the whip may be covered with leather or plain, and, if leather covered, may be of any color which goes well with the shaft. While colored snappers are used, plain white is always correct, and I consider it much smarter.

The lash of the whip should always be kept white and very pliable, and, of course, should be pipe-clayed when necessary.