8. When a horse's powers are fully

taxed, he should get as much suitable corn as he may choose to eat.

9. The corn should never be increased to an extent that will cause irritation of the intestines, which will be evinced by the dung becoming loose and sticky, on the contrary, it should be fairly formed, brittle, and devoid of bad smell. When gram and kúlthee alone are used, these conditions cannot be properly complied with. The offensive odour is due to torpor of the liver, while the diarrhoea is generally the result of an effort of the system to expel an excess of nutritive matter, which is absolutely deleterious to the health. In such cases, withdrawal of the corn, bran mashes, and, may be, a mild purgative are indicated.

10. When the amount of grain is limited, say to 8 or 9 lbs, and when the animal has to do hard work, gram, or kúlthee are more suitable than other grains.

11. Foods rich in fat and sugar, such as linseed, Indian corn, milk, goor, &c., are the most suitable for putting a lean horse into lusty condition.

12. Horses that get a full amount of corn should, as a rule, get a bran, or a bran and linseed mash once or twice a week-say on Wednesday and Saturday nights. It will tend to remove any irritation of the intestines caused by the grain.

13. In cold weather, if horses be not warmly clad, they should have an increase to the amount of their

corn.

14. A horse should have a constant supply of salt, say two ounces daily; or he may be allowed a lump of rock salt in his stall.

15. If boiled food be given, salt should be previously mixed with it.

16. A horse's corn should be given at frequent and regular intervals. Say as follows, supposing 9 lbs. to be the daily amount :—

17. When an animal's powers of digestion are impaired, spices or condiments may be given, in order to stimulate the system to take up an increased amount of nutriment from the food. Such articles have not the slightest dietetic value of their own.

18. In order to induce the horse to eat slowly, it is desirable to feed him from a broad box, or trough, placed not much above the level of the ground. On the bottom of the box, the corn may be spread out in a thin layer.

19. Greedy feeders may have a quantity of chopped hay mixed through their corn.

20. A horse should not be worked for at least an hour and a half after feeding.

21. A horse should always have a supply of hay, or dried grass before him while he is eating his corn, so that, by inducing him to vary his food, he may not consume it in too concentrated a form.

22. Horses, that are inclined to "scour," should have some hay given to them before being fed.

23. Unless in cases of enforced idleness, depraved appetite, &c., a horse should have as much hay, or dried grass, as he may choose to eat.

24. If procurable, the grass which is called doob in Bengal, and hurryalee in Madras, should be used in preference to all other kinds. It ought to be dried a day or two in the sun, before being given.

25. If possible, a horse should get daily, at least 2 or 3 lbs of green food, such as lucern, carrots, &c., as the time of the year may permit.

26. On a journey, a horse should be baited about every three hours, giving him, say, a couple of gallons of water-if he chooses to drink it-followed by about 2 lbs. of corn, with a little hay each time; or the corn may consist of suttoo mixed in the water.

27. The best plan, regarding the watering of horses, is to allow them a constant supply of that fluid in their stalls.

28. If this cannot be done, they should be watered before being fed, at least twice a day.

29. Immediately after violent exertion, a horse should have a moderate amount of water to drink, say, one gallon, and, if he be thirsty, another gallon in five or six minutes.

30. However hot and perspiring he may be, he should get this water at once, before he cools down; but if this cannot be done, he should be given a smaller amount, and some more at intervals of five minutes

or so.

31. The "chill" need not be taken off water, except when the horse is very thirsty and the water unusually

cold.

32. On long journeys, a horse should be allowed to drink very frequently, in fact, whenever he wants to do so. Taking an immoderate amount, at one time, should of course be guarded against.

33. Soft water should be used in preference to hard.

CHAPTER VII.

Grooming and Stable Routine.

ON THE THEORY OF GROOMING-WASHING THE HORSE-CLIPPINGGROOMING-DRESSING THE MANE AND TAIL-TAPEEING-MOULTING OF THE COAT-CARE OF THE FEET AND LEGS-TRIMMING THE MANE AND TAIL-BOTS-STABLE ROUTINE.

On the Theory of Grooming.-The skin of the horse is composed of two layers. The inner layer, or true skin, is tough and elastic, and is provided with nerves and blood vessels. In it exist a vast number of narrow, minute depressions-hair follicles-which secrete the hair that covers the body. Alongside each hair, where it pierces the skin, a small tube opens, which gives exit to an oily fluid, whose office is to keep the hair and skin soft and pliable. Where there is considerable motion of the skin, as at the back of the pasterns, these oil tubes exist independently of the presence of hair at the part. There are also a great number of other tubes which proceed from the glands that secrete the perspiration, and convey it to the skin which they pierce. The sweat of the horse is composed of a mixture of these two secretions, the former giving it a greasy character when he is fat, the preponderance of the latter, a watery appearance, when he is in poor condition, or when "drawn fine."

The inner layer secretes the outer skin in the form of scales, more or less-according to their distance from the