The Horsewoman Part 7

Having arrived on the saddle, the lady places her right leg over the crutch, while her attendant puts her left foot in the stirrup, adjusts any elastic loops that may be present, and straightens her skirt, as may be required. She then takes up the reins. It is advisable for the lady not to touch the reins until she is securely placed in the saddle and is ready to use them, because the act of placing her right hand on the crutch while holding the reins in it, is liable to render the horse unsteady, and the reins are of no use to her until she is firmly seated.

If there is only one man to help the lady to mount, he should place his left arm through the snaffle reins, so as to prevent the animal from getting away while putting her up.

I think all hunting men should know how to put a lady up, because accidents in the field are constantly occurring, and some poor Diana who has had a tumble is always grateful to any good Samaritan who renders her this small service. A well-meaning sportsman who kindly offered me his help on such an occasion, knew so little about the mysteries of side-saddle riding, that he attempted to give me a "leg up," as if I were a man!

It would be well for every school where riding is taught to be supplied with a wooden horse, on which pupils could learn the method of getting into the saddle, and would thus avoid becoming flurried or nervous when mounting, especially if the horse is a stranger. Also, a dummy horse would be an admirable subject on which to do preliminary practice in other details of riding, such as grip, length of stirrup, leaning back (as when going over fences), position of the hands, holding and handling the reins, etc. In this way, beginners would learn what they had to do, before getting on a horse.

_Mounting from the ground unaided_ depends for its success chiefly on the respective heights of horse and rider, although a lady can be helped considerably in this attempt by letting out the stirrup leather, which she will have to shorten after climbing into the saddle. Unless a lady is tall and athletic, it will be almost impossible for her to perform this feat on a full-sized horse. This method of mounting should, as a rule, be avoided, because, apart from its not being very graceful, it is apt to disarrange the position of the saddle, by pulling it to the near side, and the animal would then be liable to get a sore back, especially if he had to go through a long day with hounds.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 69.--Dismounting without help.]

_Mounting from a block_, low wall, or other suitable object, may be done without help, if the animal is "confidential" and accustomed to the work. If a man be present, he may stand in front of the horse and hold him in the way already described for the groom to do (page 125). If the animal shows unwillingness to approach the mounting-block, the man should hold the off cheek-piece of the headstall of the bridle with his right hand, and, with the flat of his left hand, prevent the horse from swinging his hind quarters out. When the horse is sufficiently close, the lady should take the whip and reins in her left hand, put her left foot in the stirrup, take the upper crutch with her left hand and the cantle with the right, and spring lightly between both hands into the saddle. The right leg is then put over the upper crutch and the skirt arranged.

DISMOUNTING,

in the days of voluminous skirts, was a far more serious business than it is now; for the "knee recess" had to be carefully freed from the crutches of the saddle, and the skirt gathered up in the hands of the rider, so that she might not tread on it. Riding women of to-day generally prefer to dismount without a.s.sistance, for they are no longer hampered with an early Victorian skirt. While a man holds the horse, the rider releases her foot from the stirrup and loop, removes her right leg from the crutch, and placing her right hand on it and her left hand on the leaping head to steady herself (Fig. 69), springs lightly to the ground. If help is required from a male attendant, it is best for him to offer his right arm, on which the rider places her left hand (Fig. 70), as she leaves the saddle. If there is only one man present, he should take the snaffle reins in his left hand, before offering his right arm to the lady. Another plan is for the lady to give her hands to the man who a.s.sists her to dismount, but that would not be pleasant in the case of an ordinary groom. An old-fas.h.i.+oned way of helping a lady to dismount, was to put an arm round her waist and lift her from the saddle!

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 70.--Dismounting with help.]

CHAPTER VII.

HOW TO HOLD THE REINS.

Principles--Holding Single Reins in Both Hands--Holding Single Reins in One Hand--Holding Double Reins in Both Hands--Holding Double Reins in One Hand--Shortening the Reins--Military Method of Holding the Reins--Respective Merits of One-Handed and Two-Handed Riding.

As there is but little difference between the respective ways men and women should use their reins, I have taken the most of this chapter from _Riding and Hunting_.

PRINCIPLES.

The following are the usual principles to be observed in holding the reins:--

1. A secure grip of the reins should be maintained, with as little stiffness as possible, because stiffness implies continued muscular contraction, and consequent defective manipulation from fatigue.

2. When both hands are used, we should hold the reins so that we can freely use our hands, either separately or together, in any required direction.

3. When both hands are used, the manner of holding the reins by one hand should be the same as that by the other, so that the feeling of the hands on the reins may be the same on both sides.

4. When a horse which has an "even" mouth is going in a straight direction, the action of one rein should be the same as that of the other rein.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 71.--A rein in each hand.]

HOLDING SINGLE REINS IN BOTH HANDS.

Pa.s.s the near rein between the little finger and the ring finger of the left hand, bring it out between the forefinger and thumb, and take up the off rein in the same manner in the right hand (Fig. 71). The reins thus held will be in the best position for general use, especially as the hands can then be readily separated, if we wish to turn the horse to one side or the other.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 72.--Single reins crossed in one hand.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 73.--Single reins crossed in one hand.]

HOLDING SINGLE REINS IN ONE HAND.

While holding the reins as in Fig. 71, pa.s.s the off rein into the left hand between its forefinger and thumb, and across the portion of the near rein that is in the palm of the left hand (Fig. 72). On letting go the off rein with the right hand, we close the fingers of the left hand, turn the left hand inwards, and let it fall from the wrist in an easy manner (Fig. 73). When holding the reins in one hand, we should not keep the knuckles in a vertical position, because, by doing so, one rein will come up higher on the horse's neck than the other rein. On the contrary, both in one-handed and two-handed riding, the knuckles should be held more or less horizontally, as they would be when the hand is allowed to fall without stiffness from the wrist.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 74.--Double reins held separately in two hands.]

Whether the reins are held in one hand or in two, we should avoid "rounding the wrists," not only on account of the consequent stiffness imparted to these joints, but also because that action tends to make us carry the elbows outwards, and thus diminishes the force which the arms are capable of exerting on the reins.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 75.--Holding double reins crossed in one hand.]

HOLDING DOUBLE REINS IN BOTH HANDS.

We may hold double reins in both hands in the same way as we hold single reins, except that the little fingers separate the reins on each respective side (Fig. 74). The question as to which rein should be on the outside may be decided by the amount of control which is required to be obtained over the horse; because, by the rotation of the hand, we can work the outward rein more effectively than the inward rein. If the snaffle is to be the predominant bit, its reins should be on the outside, and the curb-reins slack.

HOLDING DOUBLE REINS IN ONE HAND.

The forefinger of the left hand separates the two off reins, the little finger divides the two near ones, and the reins are crossed in the palm of the hand (Fig. 75), as with single reins. It is convenient to have the reins on which we want to have the stronger pull on the outside. If the rider wishes to use only one rein, she may hold it crossed in her hand, and may hook up the other on the middle finger, and let it loose (Fig. 76), or draw it up to a greater or less extent.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 76.--Double reins in left hand: one crossed, the other hooked up on middle finger.]

SHORTENING THE REINS.

In shortening the reins we should alter the feeling on them as little as possible, and should carefully keep them at the same length, so as not to interfere with the horse's mouth. If a rein is in each hand (Fig.

71), we had best pa.s.s the off rein into the left hand (Fig. 72); close the left hand on both reins (Fig. 73); slip the right hand forward on the off rein till the proper length is obtained; take up both reins in the right hand; let go the slack of the reins with the left hand; take up the near rein with the left hand; and separate the hands.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 77.--Reins held in one hand in military fas.h.i.+on.]

If the reins are held in one hand (the left, for instance), take them up in the right hand; slip the left hand forward on the near rein; and, when the desired length is obtained, take up both reins with the left hand.

MILITARY METHOD OF HOLDING THE REINS.

In almost all riding schools, ladies are taught to hold the reins in military fas.h.i.+on, which enacts that they should be held in the left hand, with the little finger dividing them, and their ends brought up between the finger and thumb (Fig. 77). Thus, the hold on the reins is chiefly maintained by the lateral pressure of the fingers and by the downward pressure of the thumb on them. As the muscles which draw the fingers laterally together, are far weaker than the muscles which cause the hand to become clenched, it follows that this method of holding the reins is much less secure and a good deal more tiring than the crossed plan (Fig. 73), which has the further advantage of utilising the friction between the opposing surfaces of leather. This method is also unsuitable for two-handed riding, because it violates the principle laid down on pages 136 and 137, that the manner of holding the reins by one hand should be the same as that by the other hand (compare Figs. 71 and 78).

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 78.--Off rein taken up by right hand from position shown in Fig. 77.]

RESPECTIVE MERITS OF ONE-HANDED AND TWO-HANDED RIDING.