Exercises of pupils in private lessons—Words of command—Walking—Turning to the right or left—Voltes and reversed voltes—Trotting.

Although private lessons can not begin to take the place of exercises in class, it is advisable that the pupil should have some lessons by herself first, in order that she may learn to manage her horse to some extent at the walk, trot, and canter.

Words of command in the riding-school are of two kinds; the first being preparatory, to enable the pupil to think over quickly the means to be employed in order to obey the second or final order. Example: "Prepare to go forward"—preparatory. "Go forward"—final order, given in a loud voice, with emphasis on each word or syllable. Between the two orders, the teacher should at first explain to the pupil what is wanted, and the means of obtaining it, and later should require her to repeat it herself, so that she may learn it by heart. The teacher commands the pupil, the pupil demands obedience from the horse, and the horse executes the movement; but this triple process needs time, all the more because a novice is likely to hesitate, even if she makes no mistake. By giving the pupil time to think, she will gain the habit of making progressive demands on her horse, through means which she has calculated, and she will thus gradually become a true horsewoman, able to make her horse know what she wants him to do; for, in almost every case, obstinacy or resistance on the part of the horse comes from the want of due progression between the demand made of him and its execution.

When the teacher is satisfied that the pupil is in a regular and easy position, before allowing her to go forward, he will give her the directions necessary to stop her horse, and will make sure that his explanation has been understood. To stop: The horse being at the walk, to stop him, the pupil should place her leg and whip in contact with his sides, lift her hands and bring them close to the body, and lean her body back, drawing herself up. When the horse has come to a stand-still, she should resume the normal position. To go forward: The whip and leg should be placed in contact, the hands moved forward, and the body inclined also forward.

When the pupil has a clear idea of these movements, the teacher will give the orders:

1. Prepare to go forward.—2. Forward.

And, after some steps have been taken,

1. Prepare to stop.—2. Stop.

While making his pupils advance at a walk, the teacher will explain succinctly the mechanism of locomotion.

The horse at rest is said to be square on his base when his four legs are perpendicular between two parallels, one being the horizontal line of the ground, the other the corresponding line of his back. If his hind legs are outside of this square, he is said to be "campÉ," or planted, because he can neither move forward nor back unless he changes this position. If his fore legs are outside this line, he is "campÉ" in front, as, for instance, when kicking; if, on the contrary, his fore legs are inside his base, he is said to be "under himself" in front; and it is a bad sign when a horse takes this position habitually, as it shows fatigue or weakness in those limbs.

The horse goes forward, backward, trots or gallops, by a contraction of the muscles of the hind quarters, the duty of the fore legs being to support his weight and get out of the way of the hind ones; and the whole art of riding consists in a knowledge of the means which give the rider control of these muscular contractions of the hind quarters. The application of the left leg and of the whip on the sides of the horse serve to make him go forward, backward, to the right or left, and the reins serve to guide and support him, and also to indicate the movement required by the whip and leg.

1. Prepare to turn to the right.—2. Turn to the right.

To turn her horse to the right, the pupil should draw her right hand back and to the right, incline her body also to the right, turning her head in the same direction, and use her whip lightly, without stopping the pressure of her left leg. When her horse has turned far enough, she will cease pressure on the right side, and carry her horse straight forward.

In the beginning, regularity of movement is not so important as that the pupil should understand the means by which she executes it; that is to say, that she disturbs the equilibrium of her horse by carrying the weight of her body to the right; and, while her hand and whip combine on that side, the left leg prevents him from stopping or straggling over the ground.

Riders in a school are said to be on the right hand when the right side of the body is toward the middle of the ring; and this is the easier way for inexperienced pupils, because they are less shaken when their horses move to the right, as they sit on the left side of their saddles.

It follows, naturally, that to be on the left hand is to have the left side toward the middle; and, when riding on the right hand, all movements are executed to the right, and vice versÂ.

The teacher must watch carefully that pupils do not allow their horses to turn the corners of their own accord, as a regular movement to the right should be executed by the pupil at each corner when riding on the right hand, and to the left when going the other way.

If left to guide himself around a school, the horse will describe a sort of oval, rounding the corners, instead of going into them, and thus much valuable practice is lost to the rider.

The pupil being at a walk, and on the right hand, the teacher will give the word of command:

1. Prepare to trot.—2. Trot.

To make her horse trot, she must advance her wrists, lean the body forward, and use the leg and whip, resuming the normal position as soon as her horse obeys her.

In order not to fatigue the pupil, the teacher will only allow her to trot a short distance, and will remind her to keep her right foot well back and close to the saddle, and to sit close without stiffness. He will also take care that she passes from the walk to the trot gradually, by making her horse walk faster and faster until he breaks into a slow trot.

Each time that a pupil changes from a slow to a faster gait, she should accelerate the former as much as possible, and begin the latter slowly, increasing the speed gradually up to the desired point; and the same rule holds good, reversing the process, if she wishes to change from a fast to a slower gait.

As the pupil gains confidence, and feels at home in the trot, the teacher will let her practice it at shorter intervals, and for a longer time, taking care, however, that she does not attempt to rise to it; if she loses the correct position, she must come to a walk, and, having corrected her fault, resume the trot.

In the intervals of rest, in order not to lose time, the pupil should repeat at a walk the movements which she has learned already, the teacher becoming gradually more exacting in regard to the correctness of the positions and effects, adding also the three following movements, which are more complicated, and which complete the series, dealing with changes of direction.

The volte is a circular movement, executed by the horse upon a curved line, not less than twelve of his steps in length. The pupil being at a walk, and on the right hand of the school, the teacher will say:

1. Prepare to volte.—2. Volte,

explaining that the pupil should direct her horse to the right, exactly as if she merely meant to turn him in that direction, continuing, however, the same position, and using the same effects, until the twelve paces have been taken, which will bring her to the point of beginning, when she will resume the normal position, and go forward on the same hand.

The half-volte, as its name implies, comprises the first part of the movement, the pupil coming back to her place by a diagonal line.

1. Prepare to half-volte.—2. Half-volte.

The pupil uses the same effects as in the volte, but, when she has described half the circle, she returns to her starting-point by a diagonal, using the same effects, but with much less force, since, to regain her place by the diagonal, she will only have one fourth of a turn to the right to make; then, at the end of the diagonal, she must change her effects completely, in order to execute three fourths of a turn to the left, which will bring her back to her track, but on the left hand.

1. Prepare for the reversed half-volte.—2. Reversed half-volte.

To make her horse execute a reversed half-volte, the pupil uses the same means and effects as in the preceding movement, exactly reversing them at the end; that is to say, when on the diagonal, about six paces from her track, she makes a half-circle to the left, following the rules prescribed for the volte.

The teacher must be careful to explain that, in the voltes, the pupil does not change the direction in which she is going, because she describes a circle; but in the half-volte, if she is on the right hand at the beginning, she will be on the left at the end. He must also see that her horse executes all these movements at a steady pace; and, if she will practice faithfully these different changes of direction, with the positions and effects which govern them, she will, in time, acquire the habit of guiding her horse promptly and skillfully in any direction.

To go backward.—The pupil, being at a stand-still, the teacher will give the word of command:

1. Prepare to back.—2. Back.

Explanation.—To make her horse go backward, the pupil should draw herself up and lean back very far, using her leg and whip together, in order to bring the horse's legs well under him, and at the same time raise both wrists and bring them near the body. As soon as the horse has taken his first step backward, the pupil should stop the action of her leg, whip, and hands, only to resume them almost immediately to determine the second step; to stop backing, she will stop all effects, and resume the normal positions.

After a few steps, the teacher should say:

1. Prepare to stop backing.—2. Stop backing.

The movement is only correct when the horse backs in a straight line, and step by step. If he quickens his movement, he must be at once carried vigorously forward with the leg and whip.

When the pupil begins to have a firm seat at the trot, the teacher will gradually let her pass the corners at that gait, and, at his discretion, will also let her execute some of the movements to the right and left. To do this, she will use precisely the same means as at the walk, the only difference being that, as the gait is quicker, the changes of equilibrium are greater for both horse and rider, and the effects should be lighter and more quickly employed and stopped.

I have given most of the movements to the right, to avoid useless repetition, but they should be frequently reversed; and care must always be taken to avoid over-fatigue.

When the teacher is fully satisfied that his pupil has advanced far enough to profit by it, he may begin to teach her to rise at the trot; but he must not be in too great a hurry to reach this point, and he must make her understand that to rise is the result of a good seat, and that a good seat does not result from rising.

For the last fifteen years I have looked in vain, in all the treatises on riding, for the reason of that rising to the action of the horse known as the "English trot," and yet I have seen it practiced among races ignorant of equestrian science, who ride from childhood as a means of getting from one place to another. The Arabs, Cossacks, Turks, Mexicans, and Apaches, all employ it, in a fashion more or less precise and rhythmical, rising whether their stirrups are short or long, and even if they have none. It is certain that this way of neutralizing the reaction spares and helps the horse; and it was calculated, at the meeting of the "Equestrian Committee" at Paris, in 1872, that each time a rider rises he relieves the horse's back of one third of the weight which must rest on it permanently if he sits fast; and since that time rising at the trot has been practiced in all the cavalry of Europe.

After the siege of Paris, in 1871, I was obliged to undertake the training of the horses of my regiment, which was then stationed at Massy. These horses were all young and unbroken; and, as a result of their youth and the fatigues they had undergone, they were in poor condition, and nearly all had sore backs. I directed all the teachers who were under me, and the men who rode the horses during their training, to rise at the trot; and, three months later, the young horses were in perfect health, while their riders, who had been exhausted by a severe campaign, had gained on an average seven pounds in weight; and it was this experiment which was submitted by me to the "Equestrian Committee."

I was tempted to make this digression, which I hope will be forgiven me, because I have heard in this country a great deal of adverse and, in my opinion, unjust criticism of the English trot, which I ascribe to the neglect of teachers, and the indifference of ladies brought up in the old school of riding to prefer horses which cantered all the time, or were broken to artificial gaits, like racking and pacing.

The rider who wishes to rise to the trot should be careful that the stirrup is not so short as to keep her left leg in constant contact with the third pommel, or leaping-horn, as, unless there is the space of three or four fingers between the pommel and the leg, the latter may be bruised, and the rider forced down too soon.

In order to explain this movement, the teacher may proceed as follows: Placing himself at the left side of the horse, he will ask the pupil to take the reins in her left hand and put her right hand on the first pommel, with the thumb inside and the palm of the hand on the pommel; he will then take her left foot in his left hand, in order to prevent her from pushing it forward, explaining that, by pressing on the stirrup, she will develop the obtuse angle formed by her leg, of which the knee is the apex; whereas, if she pushes her foot forward, the angle will cease to exist, and she can not lift herself. With his right hand placed under her left arm, he will help her to lift herself perpendicularly; while she is in the air he will count one, will let her pause there for a short space of time, and will then help her to let herself slowly down, continuing the pressure on the stirrup, and, when she has regained her saddle, he will count two; then he will recommence the movement of rising, and will count three while she is in the air, and four when she is again seated; and this may be continued until he sees that she is beginning to be tired. The foot must only be one third of its length in the stirrup; for, if it is pushed home, she will lose the play of the ankle, which will tend to stiffen the knee and hip. When the pupil begins to understand, the teacher will let her go through the movement rather more quickly, still counting one, two, three, four; then he will allow her to practice it without his help: all this preparatory work being done while the horse is standing still. It is important that she should not drop into her saddle, but let herself down by pressing on the stirrup; and on no account should the right knee cease to be in contact with the second pommel, as this is the sole case in which the lower part of this leg is motionless while the upper part moves. As soon as the pupil can rise without too much effort, and tolerably quickly, she may practice it at the walk, and then at the trot, counting for herself, one, two, three, four; and she must put a certain amount of energy into it, for all the theory in the world will not teach her to rise in time with the horse unless she also helps herself. The theory of the rhythmical cadence is easy enough to give: the rider rises when the horse takes one step, and sinks back at the second, to rise again at the third; but the cadence itself is not so easy to find; and to rise at the wrong step is like beginning on the wrong beat of a waltz. Many young persons get into the bad habit of lowering the right knee when they rise, and lifting it when they regain their seat; but this is a mistake, as the right knee should be immovable, and in constant contact with the second pommel.

As soon as the pupil has struck the cadence (and, once found, it comes easily afterward), she should discontinue the use of her right hand on the pommel, and the teacher may be more exacting as to the regularity of her position than is necessary in her first efforts. During rising to the trot, the upper part of the body should be very slightly bent forward; and, if the teacher notices that the pupil is rising from right to left, or left to right, instead of perpendicularly, he should make her put the fingers of her right hand on the top of her saddle behind, and thus give herself a little help in rising, until she gets used to it. Each time that the rider wishes to make her horse trot, she should sit close while he changes from a walk to a trot, and until he is trotting as fast as is necessary, because he does not arrive at that speed instantly, but by hurrying his steps, so that there is no regular cadence of the trot to which she can rise; and she should follow the same rule when she makes him slacken his pace before coming to a walk.

The teacher must be careful to see that the hands do not follow the movements of the body, as they must keep quite still, the arms moving at the elbow.

There is not, nor can there be, any approximate calculation of the height to rise, as that depends entirely upon the gait of the horse. If he takes short steps, the rider must rise oftener, and consequently not so high; but, if he is long-gaited, she must rise high, in order not to get back into the saddle before he is ready to take his second step.

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