number of good souldiours But in the end I being strong and able to go about the house to sée how the rest of my fellow souldiours did which then lay there in great miserie the olde villaine came to me againe and threatned mée as before if I woulde not kéepe my bedde which gréeued me more than all my other misfortunes for that I being of sufficient strength not onelie to walke about the house but also to go to the armie had not one cloth to couer my bodie withall but afterward one Powell a victualler came to sée how I and others did I tolde to him my griefe and lacke who caused presently clothes to be prouided for me And afterwarde comming to the armie which laie within foure English miles of Gaunt where my bloudy flixe tooke me so ertréemly that I was glad to go to Antwarp to séeke remedie where hauing spent all the money that the souldiours of the armie had giuen me I came to Coronell Cotten who commanded my diet to be paid for and also my physicke in his lodging but a cruell scolde that was then hostesse of the same house Coronell Cotten being gone would not suffer me to tarrie there then had I no succour but to lie in Coronell Cottons stable vppon the strawe where hauing not a pennie to buie me meate a poore skinner that dressed Spanish leather and had leaue of the said Coronell Cotton to drie his leather in his yard was to passe through he when he sawe me lie in such great miserie for Gods sake gaue me to eate but it was so little and so bad that I was within short time neither able to go nor stand as Maister Iohn Sentleger can well witnesse who was then there and talked with me Then I desired the said skinner that he woulde bring me to the gest house where I lay tenne wéekes before I was able to go Being recouered I was faine to beg a paire of olde shooes for that I had none to put on my feet Thence I went vnto Bruxels where before I could get entertainment among the Scottishmen I was faine to laie my cloke to gage to buy me meate and afterward hauing gotten entertainment with one Captaine Tomson we came to Filford where I passed the space of sixe moneths with great penurie for that I was glad being then winter to sléepe on the colde ground without a cloake And also I would stand for sintenel al the night for thrée halfepence a night yea so great was my necessitie that I was forced to get olde iron and sell it to the Marriners which though I carried it manie times on my backe thrée or foure English miles yet profited I greatly thereby for that I not onelie recouered my health but also my strength in such sorte that there was not anie man in all Coronell Stewards regiment able to ouer goe me nor take more paines in anie worke than I was moreouer manie times I would breake or cleaue a whole waggons loade of house timber to get my breakefast and a pot of beere With this extreame trauaile hauing recouered my selfe as before I founde an inuention howe to make tenne or twelue waggon loades of woode or timber as before to fléete downe a little brooke which did driue the milles of the towne by selling the foresaide timber to the victuallers I got so much mony as loosed my cloke and also bought me such olde apparell of the souldiors as not onelie kept me from the colde but also was reasonable decent Hauing passed the winter in this most extreame miserie I saide on a daie in the court of Gard openly before all the souldiours Nowe Clifford be of goode héere for before winter come againe God shal not onlie deliuer thée of that neede to stand for sentenell but also thou shalt vndoubtedly haue credite with the Generall of an armie and also haue seruauntes to attend thee which wordes of me were vttered so vehemently that the officers and Gentlemen were thereat astonished saying Surely thou hast deserued it for thy constant enduring of paines and miserie which we neuer knewe anie man doe with such patience But one corporal Coy onelie scorned me who afterward before Bargas had béene hanged for stealing of â—ine if I would But the Marshall sending me to sée who had committed the fact I gallopping before the rest which he sent with mée caused him to hide himselfe by meanes whereof I not onelie saued a verie good and tall souldiour but also got great good will among all the rest of the Scottishmen Let not anie man therefore finde fault with this that I haue saide vntill they haue tried the like that I haue dâ—ne or else set penne to paper to amend the same A most excellent inuention to holde anie runawaâ—e or harde mouthed horâ—e vvith the streÌ„gth of one of your fingers which if they do I shall most gladly embrace their dooings for the only thing I seeke is the profite of my countrie Thus by the waie as touching the tenth part of the miserie of my life But to the purpose thou shalt take a ring of iron and make it fast to the one end of a strappe of strong leather which would be three foote of length and two inches broade â—o kéepe the ring from turning This done make fast the other end of the strap to the point of your saddle trée behinde which you shall easily doe in this sorte take first a strappe of good leather and naile it crossewise vnder the point of the foresaide trée Hauing turned it ouer and the ende forward giue it an other naile on the out side of the trée Then may you buckle your foresaid péece of leather with a strong buckle thereon That being done make fast a little thong of leather to the foresaide ring so long as may come from the fore point of the trée of your saddle to the buckle of his breast plate by this meanes the foresaide strap and ring shall hang so close vnder the couer of your saddle that a man shall hardly perceiue it which being done take a péece of a slippe or fine cord make one ende thereof fast to the foresaide ring and passe the other ende thereof through the great eie of your brake or bit And then passe it through the ring where the end of it was first made fast This being done passe it yet once againe through the eie of your trench noting that there â—e no knottes in your corde but that it run cleare and make the end therof fast to your saddle bowe That done get your horse into some good ground as hath bene before taught if it be a verie fierre and furious horse it shall not be amisse before you take his backe to drawe the cord something straight and make it fast to the saddle bowe This being done go from him and speake to him to the end he may trie himselfe neither shall it be amisse to strike him with your rod to the end that he
knot the turning wil kéep it so close that it is not possible for your horse to vndo the same Kingdon I grant that this forenamed langall is very good to let mine horse that hée shall not strike his kéeper with his fore or hinder féete nor to leape into his manger nor hang himselfe in his halter nor to strike any other horse but yet I haue séene diuers horses will turne their tailes and dung in their fellows roome by meanes whereof the other horse coulde not lie cleane which is a filthie thing therefore I pray you shewe mâ— what I shall do to kéepe him right in his roome Clifford Take the said langall from his foreféete and tie a péece of cord therevnto then make an hole in his taile tree or else must you driue a stake into the ground and make fast the langall thereto This is not onelie good to holde your horse right in his roome but also it is sufficient to kéepe him from striking his fellowes and to let him from leaping into the manger and hanging himselfe in his halter Kingdon How shall I leade such a diuellish horse when I shal bring him foorth to the rider and how shall I take his backe that he hurt neither him nor me Clifford Take a cudgell of thrée or foure foote of length make an holow in each end thereof then sowe a buckle vpon a péece of leather a spanne long with the which thou must buckle the one ende of thy staffe to the eie of thy bit and passe a cord through the other end and make it so fast as you may hold your horse therewith Kingdon I graunt that this is sufficient to holde anie horse if he be neuer so diuelish that he cannot bite me but what shall I doe that hee leape not on me with his forefâ—ete Clifford Take a péece of strong leather hunger two inches broad two foote and a quarter of length or two foote and an halfe if your horse be verie great then make fast to ech end thereof a round ring of yron so big as shall be requisite to serue the foresaide péece of leather then cut two other péeces of leather hunger of like breadth and let one of them be two foote of length and the other two foote and an halfe and make them fast at the one end in the foresaid ring cut the points of the two foresaid péeces of leather so narrow that you may set a stirrop leather buckle on the shorter and that the other end may easily passe the foresaid buckle wheÌ„ it must be made fast And when you would leade foorth your horse put one of your foresaid péeces of leather about his foreleg and then passe the point thereof through the great ring and draw it close to his leg and put the other end thereof about his hinder leg of the same side through the other ring and drawe it close as before which being done buckle the two endes thereof fast with the saide buckle Thus may you leade your horse with your staffe and side langall get vpon him and light from him and the rider being vp you may loose awaie your staffe and also loosing your buckle of the foresaide side langall it will flée all loose without lifting vp one foot of the horse either when you put it on or take it off With this inuention haue I neuer failed to maister anie horse how diuelish soeuer he was and by continuall vsing of the same I haue made them that being in seruice I might at my pleasure get vp or downe hauing one to staie him by the head while I did alight on the one side and make an other leape vp on the other side at the same instant Thou maiest also make two holow péeces of leather much like vnto two great bosses to the which thou maiest fasten a litle strap of leather of such length that it being put ouer the horses head in the place of the headstall the two forenamed bosses may fall iust ouer the horses eies Then take an other peece of leather of such length as the horses forehead is of breadth and make it fast to the fore part of the two forenamed bosses and make other two straps fast so that you buckle them vnder the horses iawes or throat and before his rider get vppe make the same fast that he can not see and after he is mounted take it away and when he hath ridden him and wil alight you must put it on as before vntill such time as you haue brought him into the stable and this is a very good way but nothing comparable to the first for that with the one he is but deceiued but with the other he is ouer maistred Hovv to teach a horse to lie downe flat vpon his bellie that he shal not rise till you bid him Kingdon I Haue forgotten one thing which aboue all things I haue desired to learne that is to teach a horse to lie downe close vppon his bellie for that it is not onelie good in seruice when a man is armed but also it is excellent when you are hurt or maimed and haue not anie bodie to helpe you vp also it is good when you will lay horsemen in an ambuskado I haue long desired that you should teach me the same for that at sir Ihon Tracies in Gloucester shire you did once learne a horse to lie downe in the space of halfe an houre and so that he neuer forgote the same but woulde at all times doe it when his rider should take his backe verie gently euen with the profering of your hand to his legges by vsing this voice Couch couch Clifford You shall teach your horse to lie downe in this sort first shake litter inough vnder him and tread it down or beate it fast so as the horse may not driue it vppon heapes with his féete then put on his head a watring bit and hauing tide him with two cordes to the postes of his roome so low that he may easily put his head to the ground then shall you put a paire of soft pasturnes the one on his hinder foote and the other on his fore foot on the further side and let the cord go betwixt them of a sufficient length to kéepe him that he shal not reare then may you tie a long corde to the foote of your manger on the right side of your horse and make the other end fast to the pasturne of his right hinder foot then shal you put a third pasturne on his néere fore foote and hauing passed a surcingle about his bodie and through the foresaid pasturne then shall you buckle vp his néere foote so neare his bellie as you shall thinke necessarie you must sée that the buckle lie néere to the midle of the horses backe to the end that when he is laid downe you may â—astly loose the surcingle hauing thus tied your horse you shall beginne to strike him faire and softly with a little cudgel vpon his right
foresaide raines are made in â—his order First cut your two raines two fâ—â—tâ— and 〈◊〉 quarter of length and place therevpon a couple of buckles then shall you cut another péece of leather of one foote and thrée quarters long then shall you cut another péece halfe a foote long and hauing marked iust the middle of the two foresayde péeces and stitched them fast together through the two fore taken markes then shall you at each and of your short péece of leather make a great button and sée that those two buttons bée of one selfe distance from the ends of your long péece of leather then must you double your péece of leather and pearse holes in it for two buttons to the endes thereof then shall you buckle your bit raines on the one ende of the foresayd péece and the other raine to the other end thereof and sée that you buckle them of like distaunce from your foresaid buttons so that when you shall take holdâ— of the raines with your hand betwixt the two foresayde buttons you may holde them of one iust length Kingdon But these raines will be so short that if the 〈…〉 kes of my bit bée long I shall not bée able easilie to put the raines ouer my horses head being brideled Clifford Canst thou not put thy raines first ouer thy horses head when thou wouldest bridle him or else put them ouer before thy curbe of his bit for when he is vncurbed thou mayest easilie put them vp and take them downe Kingdon I doe verie well allowe of this headstall and raines but I would faine if I might craue so much at your hande to tell me your opinion as touching the making of my saddle and what saddle is best both for seruice and trauaile and also whether the stoole saddle he good in serâ—uice or noâ— Clifford As touching the making of thy saddle the lighter it is the better it is and as touching the lightnesse thereof the chiefest waie is that you take héede that your trée be not too wide for if your trée be large your saddle will require so much stuffing that it is not possible for it to bée light and as touching the sitting of the trée to the horse backe sée that it beare equallie in all places lyke much sauing on his backe bone and as touching the stuffing of his panell the best stuffing the euer I could find was buffe haire or else fine hay flocks on it but before you stuffe your saddle with flocks you must first ride in it after the the haie is setled some thing fast then may you stuffe it with flockes vpon the haie this is a good waie to stuffe anie saddle for that it shall bée much lighter then if it were stuffed all with haire yea I haue often when my saddle hath béene stuffed with buffe haire or flockes after it hath béene somewhat setled taken out the panells and stuffed it in the contrarie 〈◊〉 with haie Kingdon I doe verie well like that my saddle shoulde be light and also â—ilde to the horses backe for thereby it shall â—it the faster but I would haue you to teach me how I should make the hinder and forebolsters thereof Clifford As touching the height of thy bolsters let them be fiue inches high at the least so that they may saue your thigh from anie stroke of launce or other weapon and as touching the length of your forebolster make it not aboue twelue inches from the middle of your saddle so that when you lay the other end of your measure to the nether point of the foresaide bolster they shall be but twelue inches distance as before wherby your knâ—â— may come a good deale lower than the bolster by this meanes you shall staie your selfe verie wel by your knées which is not possible for you to do by your bolsters being 〈◊〉 and as touching your hinder bolster I would haue you make the ende thereof of such length as betwéene the other and the middle of the seate close to your hinder trée it may be seauentéene inches and an halfe distance and that you place those two bolsters so farre forward at the nether ends as they may kéepe your thigh close to the point of your fore bolster so as your thigh may haue no libertie to moue and as touching the length of your seat from the hinder frée to the â—â—dside of the sore trée let it be sixtéene inches for if you make your saddle short iâ— the seate it shall be verie dangerous when you leape or stirre your horse for 〈…〉 ne breaking of you and it shall not be amisse to cause the vpper ende of your fore bolster to stand behinde the head of your saddle foure inches at the least and that shall kéepe your thigh so farre backeward that it shal not be possible for you â—â— strike the ne 〈…〉 part of your bellie at 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 against the head of your saddle it is good to â—nâ—ke the head of your saddle so as it may leane forward for if it stand vpright it shal be the more dangerous not onelie for hurting of your bellie but also in leaping being armed you shal strike the nâ—ther part of your armour vpon your saddle bowe so as it shal make you belieue your 〈◊〉 are broken in péeces be 〈…〉 that also it may breake the girdle of your armor lâ—â—se the same when you wold break your lance vpon your enimie you shal not be able to leane forward which is a great disaduantage for both best and surest riding when you would encounter your enimie is to leane forward so much as you may conueniently either leaping 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 other exercise being armed the surest 〈◊〉 is to leane forward for feare of hurting the small of your 〈◊〉 which thing I haue well approued by 〈◊〉 experience in Flanders when the Prince of Par 〈…〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 armie then lying afore 〈…〉 it I then riding vppon a â—aie horse of 〈…〉 sieur Villâ—â—rs â—â—â—ed Souldier in mine armour I chaunced to put the horse sodainely in his gallop which hée tooke with such furie and leapt so sodainely forwarde that he had nigh broken my backe that I being laide downe coulde not rise but as I was lifted vppe for the space of fiftéene daies which thing I might easily haue remedied with leaning forward a little Kingdon I grant it is verie good to make the hinder bolsters and the fore bolsters of the saddle in all points as you haue â—â—ught â—â— and also that it is good to l 〈…〉 for 〈…〉 not onelie when I encounter mine enimie with a 〈◊〉 but also with anie weapon whatsoeuer but the thing that troubleth me is how I should holde mine hand close vpon the horses mane which is not onelie good to kéepe in his moâ—ell so as he can not 〈◊〉 it was but also it is verie good to let mine enimie that hâ—â— cannot cut the â—oines of the 〈◊〉 Clifford I do confesse that the saddle that
being verie cold the aire wil vtterly spoile thy horse which can haue no power on him so long as he is going with a man on his backe Also if your horse be stubburne or giuen to reare on end or leap on his kéeper with his fore féete it shal be very perillous to walk such horses in your hand not onely in respect of the kéeper but also of the horse who hauing once beaten his kéeper or broken froÌ„ him he shall therby become so stubburne the no man shall be able to lead him without great danger of the which horses I haue had good experience in Flanders with Monsieur Villiers with Monsieur De la Roshpo one of them being marshal of the camp as aforesaid the other general of the Infancie the army theÌ„ being at Eclow the Erle De la Roshpo had a bayhorse which slew two of his grooms wherwith he became so cruell fiercâ— not only in biting striking but with rearing on end the he would dash out their brains and break their bones whosoeuer he could take hold on Also Monsieur Villiers had a bay horse named Souldier which horse when I had ridden him one daie lighted to make much of him which hath alwaies â—â—n my coÌ„mon vse when my horse hath done wel the horse did leape vpon me rend almost all my clothes of my backe bit off my fore finger to my great griefe feare of the beholders who all ran awaie for feare of the furie of the horse which was so great that not one of them was so hardie as once to help me Kingdon I pray you before I go anie further teach me howe I may without perill kéepe or dresse any such horse for that you told me Monsieur Villiers gaue two horses to MoÌ„sieur de la Roshpo for the same horse and afterward hauing doth the foresaide ill conditioned horses vnder your hands the space of thrée yeares you had neuer anie groome hurt nor your selfe put in hazard with either of them which can hardly sincke into my head for that an horse beginning to bite and leape on his kéeper with his foreféete is hardly or neuer to be reformed Clifford I graunt they are not to be reformed but thou shalt easily maister them with these inueÌ„tions here folowing in such sort that a boy of sixtéene yeres of age may dresse them saddle them bridle them leade them in the hand leape on them and light from them without anie perill either to kéeper or rider First when you woulde bridle your horse you must make fast a strong cord to the noseâ—and of his collar in this sort Goe to the horse on the one side of the barre and drawe his head to you so farre as the contrarie raine will giue you leaue then make fast the forenamed cord which you may easily do without anie daunger then tie him therewith to the racke and then you may bridle him with your watering bit or false trench which false trench is a most necessarie thing for such an horse for that he being brâ—deled therewith you may not onelie dresse your horse without danger but also if occasion serue you may put on your bridle without danger and let the trench remaine on his head noting that you leaue the rains of the foresaid trench so long as you may tie him therewith to the two postes of his roome being turned about Kingdon I graunt that I may thus kéepe mine horse from biting me but what shal I do that he strike me not with his foreféete whiles I thus bridle him Clifford If he be so froward that he will not let thée handle his head then take a good whip and whip him well and hauing so whipped him offer to touch him as before which if he refuse then whip him againe obserue this order so long till he be glad to let you handle his mouth which when he will doe make much of him and bridle him in suffering whereof sée that thou vse him gently if he offer to bite thy hand take a left hand gantlet and dash him in the mouth when he offers to bite thine hand that being done take a long rudgell and begin to touch him therewith vpon his hinder legges and if he strike whip him as before so long till he endure to haue both his legges and féete easily rubbed and touched with the same then begin to rubbe him gently with your hands and after put foure pasturnâ— on his feete and let a cord passe on ech side from the hind foot to the fore foot which would be of a sufficient length by this moâ—ns may you dresse your horse saddle and bridle him without danger either of biting or striking and also your horse may both lie downe rise with the same so easily as though he had nothing on for I haue alwaies vsed in the camp when I must make my stable in a â—â—rne or great house where I had no bars betwixt them to tie all their legs with side langalls made of great haie roapes which I did alwaies carrie with me for that purpose Kingdon I pray you teach me what those side langals are for I know not what you meane therby for that I haue neuer séene any of them Clifford In the north part of England they are coÌ„mon also in Scotland and it is made in this sort first take a péece of a cord of fiue foot of length and make a knot on ech ende thereof then passe the said knot through the two eies of your cord which must be on the ends of the same for the purpose theÌ„ may you shift your knot backward or forward so long til you make the two ends therof fit for your horses féet then put one on his hind foote the other on his forefoot noting that daily you change the foresaid langal putting it one daie on the one side another day on the other for feare of galling him it shal not be amis at the first to line it with cotton or cloth after he is acquainted therwith he wil not hurt himselfe though you make it of rough or hard cord I haue also séene the Albanians vse a much more easier fashion for the euerie kéeper may make it himselfe Cut a péece of cord of such length aâ— may come froÌ„ the hinder foot to the forefoot of your horse a knot being made on ech end therof then take two péeces of smal cord double theÌ„ make a great one make knots vpon both ends thereof let it be of such length as it may méet iust about the horses féet as your pasturn doth then with a great cudgel sharped at the end opeÌ„ the forenamed great cord passe the small cord through the same behind the knot and when you shal put it on your horse wind the loup that wil remaine of your foresaide small double cord til you make the end therof so strait the you can no more but passe the forenamed
was almost full and yet the cruell forenamed wormes dyd hang so fast in the toppe of his stomacke that the medicine could doe them no harme and they had not eaten anie holes either through mawe or guts but what kindes of wormes so euer your Horse haue you shal perfectly cure him as hereafter foloweth the signes to knowe it be these the horse will â—â—iske and beate with his taile he will also looke towardes his bellie and strike at his bellie with his hinder foote some horses will also lie downe and wallowe The cure Take of swéete Milke one quarte and giue it your horse to drinke and hauing letten him stand foure houres brideled then shall you giue him this drench Take of Ale or Béere two quartes and put therein half a pound of Sope as much Butter Brimstone finely pounded or beaten into powder a good handful of Salt two or thrée spoonefulles of chimney Soote finely beaten into powder or otherwise it will cause your horse to cough a long time and hauing molten your Butter and Sope vpon a soft fire and let your drench coole till it be no more than luke-warme then shall you giue your horse a pinte thereof to drinke then bridle your horse and walke him a quarter of an houre Thus shal you giue your horse his drinke at foure seuerall times without anie danger But if your horse be extreame sicke I woulde wish you to make the foresaide things in â—alles with wheate flower and giue it him at foure or fiue seuerall times as before this is much better than to drench your horse if he be extreame sicke Of the griefe in the legs of a horse and first of the wrench in the shoulder THis commeth of some daungerous slipping or sliding sodaine stopping it may also come by falling on the planckes or on some slipperie ground The signes to know it be these the horse wil halt verie much and in his going vpon rough ground you shall perceiue it best for he will be forced to go on thrée legges by reason that hée is not able to lift his legge or to bring it forward but wil bring it after him The cure Let him bloud in the breast veine Then shall you with an yron of two foote of length sharpe at the point with a hole therein like a drawing naile passe a ruell of haire from the fore point of the shoulder vp euen to the top of his withers and then passing it ouerthwart the side of his wythers or spade bone of the shoulder you shall bring it downewarde by the hinder edge of his shoulder euen to the vpper ioint of his forelegge and there hauing put it out the space of two or thrée inches you shal drawe it through forward till you come within two or thrée inches of your first place where you shal make the two endes thereof fast in this sort shal you ruel your horses shoulder round about but you must at euerie eight inches or halfe foote leaue it two or thrée inches without the skinne then must you stirre the ruel once a daie and if the issue become so straight that you cannot thrust out the matter you may with a lancet or point of a razor cut them vnder This being done set a patten shoo on the sounde leg which patten shoo would be turned round so as the horse can not stand on the same but shall thereby be forced continually to stand vpon his fore legge to let the corruption that it shal not be able to enter the ioint of his shoulder let him rest for the space of xv or xx daies with a paire of pasturnes vpon his foreféete and litte vnder him for feare least he slide vpon the plancks at the xv days end begin to walke him once a day the space of halfe an houre faire and softly And hauing obserued this order xv daies more then may you take off his patten shoo and trie whether he go sound or not and if he go not sound it shall be good to set it on againe to erercise him as before stir the ruels euery day once for the space of a moneth or sixe wéekes then may you take out your ruel if he go sound I neuer sawe anie horse dressed in this sort but that he hath béene cured perfectly of his griefe Of the shoulder pight THis commeth of some daÌ„gerous slide or slip backward so as the horses leg slips backward and therby driues his shoulder cleane out of the ioint The signes to know it be these The bone wil sticke out on that shoulder a great deale farther than the other and he will not be able to set it to the ground The cure Laie straw inough vnder him in his râ—mâ— and put a paire of straight pasturnes on his foreféete and another paire on his hindféet then hauing throwne him downe hang him vp from the ground with two ropes to put the bone into his place then hauing let him downe faire and softly lose the fore pasturne of his â—â—und legge and with a cord before you â—et him rise tie the lame leg to the foot of the manger so short as in his rising he shal be forced to holde his legge before him for feare of putting his shoulder out of ioint and let him stand so tied for the space of thrée daies and presently when he is vp burne al the point of his shoulder with a hote yron cheker-wise a ful foot square at the least let euerie stréeke be no more than one inch distant one from another And hauing burned him well charge all these burned places and al the rest of his shoulder with Pitch Rozen and Tar mâ—lten togither and laide on something hote with a cudgels ende and when you haue couered it ouer once then clap presently vpon it Towe or Flaxe being first chopped with a hatchet Then charge him once more vpon the Towe and at the thrée daies end lose his foote and put a paire of pasturnes vpon his féete and let him neither lie downe nor stirre out of the stable for the space of sixteene or twentie daies then may you leade him abroade and sée whether he goe well or no and if he goe not sound you may let him rest as much more Of the spleeting in the shoulder or renting the shoulder from the breast of the Horse THis commeth by meanes of some daungerous slide either vpon the plankes or vpon the side of a banke so as one of the horses legges slips awaie and rents his shoulder from his briscot not on the skinne but on the slesh so as the horse halteth The signes to knowe it bée these he will drawe his legge and not be able to lifte or bring it forward and he will sometime halt so little that you can scarce perceiue it and at other times he wil be verie lame but chieflie when you ride downe a hill or vpon hard ground then he will halt much more than vpon the soft or plaine ground Also when
Skill most excellent His rare conceits in this his Booke he showes How stubborne Iades reformed ought to be And all diseases which by experience he knowes How them to cure you may both learne and see The Sadler and the Smith of thee may find their skil So in their Art thou dost reforme their ill What honors then to Martiall mindes are due What recompence is made for worthie paines What thankes or gifts do Vertue stil ensue And what rewards both Art and Skill obtaines The same to thee for this thy good desart Both strangers friends and countrie will impart Iohn Tracie Knight The contents of this Booke AL the principall points belonging to a good horsman most plainly taught according to my true experience which I haue wel approoued and tried by the space of 30. years that is to saie of the Breeder the Rider Keeper and the Sadler of the Horseleach and Smith Where in the beginning you shall finde certaine briefe notes necessarie to be obserued of the Breeder In the first Booke you shal find the Art of Riding with a treatise how to vse your hand vpon the bridle and cauison so plainly taught that it is not possible for anie man of reason that is willing to learne this Art but that he may make any horse readie of what nature or disposition soeuer he be and after an easier maner than hath beene heretofore taught by any man The second Booke sheweth to reforme al kinds of restie horses or hard mouthed runawaies both easly and plainely The third Booke intreateth of the Kepers office how to make your stable with a standing rack that there may no dust fall neither on the horses mane nor on his head a most rare inuention Also it teacheth you how to diet your horse both when you trauell and exercise him And how to maister all those horses that will bite their Keepers or leape on them with their forefeet at such time as they leade them in their hands or that the Rider would take their backes The fourth Booke intreateth of the Sadlers office how he should make his saddle and what kinde of saddle is best both for seruice and trauell And also how euerie souldior may carrie both his headpeece and pistoll in such sort as it shall not trouble him any more than if he had nothing at al at his saddle Also it teacheth how to make your headstall to serue in steede of a collar when you trauell anie iourney or that you are in seruice a thing verie necessarie to be learned of al souldiers It teacheth you also â—ow to make your cauison curb diuers other necessarie 〈…〉 tions very needful to be vsed of the Rider The fift Booke teacheth how to cure your horse of so many diseases as I haue in al my life had experience of The sixt and last Booke sheweth howe you should shooâ— your horse and how to make that horse that hath euil feet to haue good hoofes in very short space Cliffords experience and opinion of breeding of Coltes and what Stalians and Mares are best to breed vpon and also what ground is best to breed an horse in Of the Stalian THe Stalian woulde be large of bodie for that we sée most commonly the Coltes to followe the Stalian in bignes although they be begotten of little Mares or of Mares a great deale lesse than the Stalian Let him also be of good colour of good courage wel made and aboue all things sée he be sound and well marked and that he be gentle and of an approoued durablenesse in trauel and as touching his colour there is none euill that hath all his outward partes blacke that is to say his legges taile and mane tippes of eares and his mouzel nor none good that hath all his bodie of one colour saâ—e thâ— blacke and white but the blacke is the best of the two 〈…〉 urs last named And aboue al things sée he haue good hoofes that is to say that they be litle and round and hollow for broade footed long footed and narrow héeled iades are nothing worth when they come to seruice or trauel for in seruice the broade foote will neuer kéepe a shâ—â— long and in trauel they will all be lame But if your mâ—re haue very good hoofs then the Stalian with euill hoofes shall be more tolerable And as touching his age the yonger and lustier he is the better for I haue séene an horse of foure yéeres of age get so good a colt as an horse that was eight yeares of age I haue also ridd 〈…〉 â—n horse of the Marshall Byrones begotten of a Turkish Stalian that was 24. yéeres of age and I neuer found in all my life a better horse both for trauel and seruice As touching your mares that you mind to bréed vpoÌ„ the larger they are the better but if you chaunce to haue any yong mares that you mind to breed vpon take héed that you first make them to be ridde and handled the 3. yeare and that you put not them to the horse til they be 4. yeres of age and it shal be good to handle them gently and to let them haue daily erercise in some moderate trauel for if you let them stand long stil you shal greatly weaken their bodies and by sodaine extreme trauelling of them after long rest al fil them ful of diseases so as they shall be verie vnprofitable for a race for it is not possible to bréed sound colts vpoÌ„ vnsound mares and Stalians Let them also be of good shape colour but the shape is much more to be taken héed of than the colour for that it is much holpen by the Stalian when you would put them to the horse the best way is in my iudgement to let theÌ„ run togither at grasse for the space of a month at the least And see that your mares haue no shooes on their hinder féet for feare of hurting your Stalian and let not your Stalian be too fat and he woulde also be trauelled a iourney before you turne him out to the end that he may be wearie so shall he not ouer-heat himself at the first and the best time of the daie to turne him out is in the morning fasting verie early before the heate of the daie afterward when he hath heated himselfe the warmnes of the Sun shal come by means whereof he shall not take any cold if he driue him selfe into any heat it shal be good to cause a boy to folow him vp and downe so as he may not rest till he be throughly colde It shall not be amisse before that you turne your mares and Stalian togither to trie whether they wil stand still or not to the horse by offering them some other nag or stoned iade and if you sée they stand stil theÌ„ are they not in horsing yet haue I séene some iades being mad on horsing that would strike the Stalian and yet after they had béene a little wearie would
he comes without he wil be as farre to séeke as euer he was Clifford Canst thou not remember him in some déep way with thy voice and also by helping him with the calues of thy legs and strike him with thy stirrops vpon the points of his shoulders and with thy rod vpon the right shoulder if néede require and if he will not for all these then vse a footeman standing before him as thou hast beene taught before and when he shall heare and sée the rodde comming towards his breast he shall aduaunce without anie beating at all Kingdon But I haue founde some horses so stubborne that they would not aduance neither for spurre nor rod nor hand neither for footeman nor rider Clifford Marke that when you teach your horse any thing in the stable you giue him litter ynough vnder his féete for with one daungerous slippe or flide you shal vtterly his foolish kéeper or anie other that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the horse causing him to leape and cornet in his roome yet the rider shall beare the blame But to the purpose your horse being tied as before in his roome take â— sticke of â— yard or an ell long with a sharâ—e pricke therin which must â—â— appeare aboue the length oâ— a wheat corne without the end of the cudgell and pricke him in the breast therewith so long til he offer to lift his féete which when he doth make as much of him as thoughe hée had aduanced to the end that you may make him vnderstand your mind with as little correction as is possible and let him rest one halfe houre at the least tâ—en shal you offer it him againe as before which if you find he doth it but vntowardly yet make much of him and let him alone for that daie for the next morning his breast being sore with yesterdaies pricking you shall sée him aduance euen the first time you offer him thâ— cudgell In this sort I made an horse of â—â—r Iohn Tracieâ— to aduaunce which neither he nor I could do by anie beating possible nor whipping vntil such time as I found out this inuention which is most notable for since that time I haue tried it vpon diuers horses Now when you are mounted it the horse refuse to aduance then let the footeman remember him with the cudgâ—â— in some ditch or déepe high way with high â—anâ—es â—â— euery side to holde him in such sort that he can not start out nor leaâ—e aside This is a much better waiâ— than the straining of your hand beating of your horse vpon the shoulders or striking him with your spurres for that to an horse of great courage it is verie dangerous for you may thereby distemper his mouth or cause him take some euill tache or other yet I doe not denie but that it is good to offer your horse to aduance by helping him with the calues of your legges and with your stirrops vpon the points of his shoulders 〈◊〉 with the rod on the right shoulder Hovve and at what time you shal learne your horse to gallop the great ring Chap. 4. Kingdon AFter my horse can do al these lessons before taught I would haue you to shew me in what order and at what age it is best to learne him the field gallop Clifford First as touching his age I would not haue you to gallop anie horse vntill he be fiue yeares olde and the vantage no nor vntill he be fixe if it be possible and as touching the maner that you must obserue in teaching him the same when he can trot his ring perfectly as hath beene before taught then may ye offer to gallop him sometimes a quarter or halfe way about the ring and in his gallop you shall helpe him with your voice and the casues of your legges at which time you must â—earâ— your hand harder than when you trotted him to the end you may make him lift his feete the better and make him goe vpright in his gallop which order obserued you shall most easely teach your horse to gallop Kingdon But in what thâ—e may I touch him to gallop in â—his sorte Clifford You shall most easily doe it in the space of two or three moneths Kingdon But my horse will gallop of himselfe being perfect in trotting the ring in the space of thirtie daies Clifford Yea but if you put your horse to euery lesson as soâ—e as he wil learne it you shal vtterly spâ—ile a youÌ„g horse yea and you shal also by that meanes greatly weaken anie olde horse you must as well in this as in aâ— other your doings haue patience and take great leasure for if thou wilt vse and obserue these rules alreadie by me taught and shall hereafter follow thou shalt finde it but a play to make anie horse readie in comparison of the great tâ—ilâ— that our common riders do take in making of their horses or rather in marring of them Kingdon I pray you tel me what you meane by this patience Clifford I meane thou shouldest spend one whole yeare to learne thy horse to raiâ—â— well to carrie his head steadie to beare light on the hand to trot well to stoppe and to aduance Kingdon Wherefore should I spend a yeare in teaching him these lessons â—â—th I may teach him them in the space of three or foure moneths although I ride mine horse but twice a wéeke Clifford I graunt but one of these horses that thou shalt taâ—e a yeares leasurâ— with in teaching the foresaid lessons shall be more worth than fiue of those which thou shalt marre with sodaine teaching them yea and hâ— shall be at sâ—â—tâ—enâ— yeares of age a more lustie and seruiceable horse than thine shall be of twelue Kingdon If I shall but onelie ride my horse twice in a wéeke in the ring he will become so lustie and perfecte in that lesson that he will gallop whether I will or not Clifford I neuer said vnto you that you should ride your horse but twice a wéeke but that you should rather ride him thrice a wéeke 〈…〉 ing but verie fewe ring turnes after he beginnes to be perfect but rather ride him foorth right in some high way a soft trot two or thrée miles at euerie time by which meanes you shall make your horse not onelie to raine well beare light on the hand and to trot well but you shall also make him strong and disposed to do al lessons that you shall put him to noting alwaies that you giue not the horse such t 〈…〉 ell as may decrease his strength but rather increase the same as is before taught Kingdon By this accompt you will haue me to take vppe my horse at foure yeares and the 〈…〉 tage and not teach him anie thing vntill he be fiue yeares of age and the vantage Clifford Nay in saying so you doe â—e wrong for I haue taught you how to make your horse to trot and to gallop your ring and the field gallop to stoppe and to aduaunce to
teach me what bit I shall giue at the first Clifford You shal giue him a plaine canon without any playing rings or roughnesse in his mouth and let the esses of your curbe be verie great to the end that it may not gall the horses chin for the small curbe shall gall him much sooner than the great besides that you may hold him tenne times better with the great curbe than with the small Also take héede that you take the chéekes of your canon long rather than short for with the long chéekes and great curbe you shall be able to holde your horse not onelie from going away but also from casting vp of his head if you holde your bridle hand close vpon the mane and as touching the hand vppon the bit I woulde haue you beare it so light as is possible so that you kéepe your horse from going away and that he raine with his head in due place without casting his head vp or ducking it downe and I woulde haue you also take great héed that you neuer chocke your horse in the mouth therewith nor pull your hand sodainely at anie time but softly and leasurely for feare of making him to checke vpon the bit which is a most vile vice and commeth most commonly either by plucking your hand too sodainely or by letting the bit hang too side in his mouth or for that the bit is too rough it may come also by holding too hard an hand vpon him which is one of the worst properties that may be in anie horseman for it is not good to let him hang vpon your hand or bridle but also that you feede him with the bit and oftentimes that you let it go so loose the he may rest his necke and mouth Kingdon What meane you by holding his head in his due place Clifford I meane that he should carrie his head in such sorte that when you would make him stand against a wall he may touch the same with his forehead and nose both iust togither Kingdon But by holding mine hand close vppon the mane I shall not be able to féede my horse with the bit nor giue him anie more libertie when he doth well than when he doth ill Clifford By slacking your bridle hande holding the endes of the raines in your right hand you may let your rains go when he doth yéelde to the bit and when he doth offer to cast vp his nose or to go faster than you would haue him then drawe the raines softlie through your left hand so much as shall be requisite And as touching the cauison I would not haue you to put your cordes crosse wise through the rings thereof in such sorte that you may strain it straight to your horses head least you be not able to let it looser when he doth well than when hée doth offend for that shall greatly discourage him for both the godlie and wisest trauaile with greatest pleasure where they gains glorie and praise and so an horse where he findeth most ease after he doth vnderstād what he shall do vnder such a riders hands can as wel I say consider these things and vse them in time and order accordingly Thus you shal hardly euer sée or perceiue any contrarietie of wil betwixt these two bodies although the one be reasonable and the other vnreasonable but that a man would thinke when he shall sée such an horse man ride that both they had but one wil and one mind But to our purpose you shall make fast a strap of leather to the right ring of your cauison and a buckle to the left ring thereof in such sort that you may buckle it so straight as you shall thinke méete but I would aduise you to let it be rather an inch too wide than one wheate corne length too straight for there is not anye thing the doth more disorder an horse than needlesse paine and correction or rather as I may terme it foolish torment procéeding through ignorance of a more presumptuous beast than the horse himselfe for whatsoeuer he is that lacketh reason he differeth nothing from a beast but in name Kingdon Why shall I buckle my cauison with a strap of leather and not rather put the cordes through the rings thereof with the which I may straine it close to his head and also giue him ease inough by letting mine hand go when he doth well Clifford As touching thy demaund I answeare that by meanes of the strap thou maiest make thy cauison serue thée to double vse by putting thy martingall thereon it shall serue thée in steade of a musroll and as touching that which thou saiest thou canst giue him ease inough I answere that that ease which thou shalt giue hym by letting thine hand goe shall be no other than that thou giuest vnto thine owne legge thy boote being too straight gartered by pulling vp thine hose with thine hand But by the vse of the foresaid strappe and buckle it is farre otherwise for that thereby thy cauison shall hang so loose that it shall not gréeue thy horse at anie time but when he doth offend onelie Kingdon By this meanes my cauison shal hang so loose that it shall be readie to fal off my horses nose and also when I would straine the raines thereof it shal come vp so high behind that it shall serue me to small purpose Clifford Thou maiest remedie it for hanging ouer his nose with a small strap of leather made fast at the one end to the middest thereof and the other ende to the headstall betwirt his eares and as touching that which thou saiest it wil vse it is easily remedied by making a little short chaine fast to the two nether sides thereof of such length as the cauison being on the horses head and the chaine in his mouth it may keep it in his due place Kingdon I must néedes confesse that this is the best waie to make a cauison for my horse that euer I did sée or heare of for that it shall not gréeue him but when he doth offend nor shall be able to stirre out of his due place but I woulde desire you to teach me how to vse mine hand vpon the same also whether it be good to ride an horse therewith or not Clifford As touching thy demaund I answere that thou shalt take the left raine thereof so short in thy bridle hand that thou maiest staie thine horse something more therewith than vpon the bit then shalt thou take the right raine in thy right hand and the end of the left also in such sort as thou maiest drawe the left raine with the right hand shorter at thy pleasure without letting thy bridle raines go or opening of either of thy handes noting that thou straine thy right raine equally as much as the left but I would aduise thée to carrie a maruelous temperate hand vpon thy cauison for feare of offending thy horse to◠much therewith vnlesse it be vpon great occasion then
that it is good to beare a temperate hand both vpon my bit and cauison and also how much I should force him with the raines thereof but there yet remaines two things that I had almost forgotten and the first is the due place of the bit the other is how and in what order I shall take the raines of my bit and cauison both in one hand at once and also how I shall hold my hands vpon the raines of my bit when I ride without a cauison what you meane by drawing the raines of my bit softlie and letting it goe againe Clifford To thy first demaund I answere that the due place of the bit is that it hang halfe a â—ingers breadth higher then the tuskes of your horse and to some horses it is not amisse to hang it an inch higher then the tuskes or fanges of his mouth but the generall rule that thou shalt obserue héerein is that thou neuer let it hang so a side that it touch the fore named tuske for if it doe touch his tuske it shall cause him to checke vppon the bit and hurt his mouth so as it shall bleede And as touching thy second demaund thou shalt first take both the raines of thy cauison in thy left hand so close vnder the neather part or roote of your thumbe as you may holde him fast with your little finger and thumbe then shall you take the end of your bridle raines in your right hand betwixt your bodie and your bridle hand then shal you put your ring finger betwixt the raines of your bit without letting your little finger goe which you must holde fast vppon your cauison raines and the neathermost part of your thumbe also Then shall you cloase your thrée fingers so close as you can and hauing turned your bridle raines with your right hande ouer the middle ioynt of the fore finger of your left hande you shall holde your thumbe close vppon the Bridle raines so as you giue them no libertie to slippe through your hande hauing thus taken your bridle raines of a iust length and place the raines of your cauison aboue or ouer them I meane déeper in your fist then the raines of your bit for that you holde the raines of your Cauison in your full fist and the raines of your Bit but in the middle of thrée of your fingers Then shall you let the end of your bridle raines fall out of your right hande take hold of the right raine of your cauison and the end of the left also in your right hand then if your left raine bée too long you may draw it shorter by holding your right hande fast and slaking your left hand a little to let the raines of your cauison passe til you haue drawen it of such length as you may holde him therewith in such order as hath bene before taught Kingdon You teach mée héere how I should holde my right hande fast vpon the raines of my cauison and howe I shall slacke my left hand till I haue let the raines passe through so farre as they come to their iust length which iust length is when I may beare my horse altogether vppon the cauison and yet holde the raines of my bit so short that if I let slippe the lefte raine of my cauison but one inch I must staie my horse altogether vppon the bit but it resteth howe I shall drawe the raines of my cauison shorter at my pleasure without loosing my right hand or letting the raines of my bridle goe Clifford If thou bée not more sencelesse then a beast or more negligent then a Newter that will take neither parte till such time as hée sées which of them will profit him most I haue taught thée sufficientlie But because thou shalt knowe that I had rather loose my life then take in hand anie matter of importaunce and not bée able to ende or bring the same to perfection though not for thy sake who hath negligentlie lefte mining with thy penne whiles the golden vaine of my experience was most ripe and readie by riding into Sommerset shéere to make good chéere when in déede thou mightest haue béene tenne times better occupied in writing of this woorke which I haue begonne with the same purpose of minde that hath made mée patientlie to â—eare all these troubles and miseries as thou maiest read in the tenth part of my life which shall héereafter followe God willing which minde and purpose in mée was is and I trust in Gods grace shall continue so long as the breath is in my bodie onelie to profit my Countrie the true professours of Gods truth and aduauncement of his holie lawe But thou shalt nowe knowe that God whome I haue alwaies serued according to the grace which I haue receiued of him without the which I am not able to thinke one good thought of my selfe hath sent mée helpe where I least looked for it that is to saie by the meanes of that godlie man maister Anthonie Mooreland and by that good and learned man Ioseph Hynxman the one of them béeing Parson of Tortworth the other Butler to Maister Throckmorton which is a verie lowe preferment for a Batcheler of Art in my iudgement who besides his learning is also verie patient in taking paines Also little Anthonie Bowser I cannot héere forget sithence hée hath stoode so manie daies with mée vpon the cold stones in Maister Throckmortons Stable at Tortworth to drawe out the first draught or coppie of this my worke for the which mée thinkes hee deserues praise But to our purpose thou must drawe the raine of thy cauison through thy lefte hande without letting the raines of thy bit goe by letting all thy foure fingers goe loose and by holding thy bridle raines with the ende of thy thumbe and middle of the fore finger and then pulling thy right hand awaie from thy lefte hande that is to saie of greater distaunce in such sorte as thou séest a showmaker draw his thréede with his right hande when he holdes the left hand vppon the shâ—e which thou maiest imitate by holding thy lefte hand fast in his due place without mouing it either when thou drawest thy raines shorter or let them goe longer Kingdon Which call you the due place of the Bridle hand Clifford The due place of thy bridle hande is riâ—â—â— ouer thy horses crest and so high aboue the saddle â—â— thou maiest holde thy elbowe almost as farre backe as the huckle bone and holde it close against thy side without letting thy hand rest or staie vppon the saddle bowe If thy Horse bee readie that hée can raine well and carrie his head steadie this is the best waie but if it be a young or olde horse that wil cast vp his head then I haue taught thée before that thou shalt carrie thy hande close vppon thy horse his crest Kingdon Yet there resteth one thing that I would request at your hands and that is how I shoulde holde the raines
legge or shinne beneath his knée with your right hand and leane your right shoulder close to the horse his left shoulder and with your left hand pull downe his head as hard as you can speaking to him gently saying to him couch couch and if he profer as though he would lie downe make much of him and let him rest a while then beginne to beate him softly againe till he lie downe Thus may you teach anie young horse to lie downe in the space of thrée houres so that with a little exercise the first and second day you shall make him so perfect that he shal lie downe at the first time that you profer your red to his forelegs But if you will teach an olde horse to lie downe that is stubborne and froward of nature then must you put a sharp pricke in the end of your foresaid cudgell and let it not excéede the length of a wheate corne without the cudgel and when with soft striking you can not make him lie downe then may you pricke him in the legge with the foresaid pricke and you shal see him presently fall down vpon his knées you sée that he will not lie downe with his hinder partes then holde the bridle fast and holâ—â— your shoulder close to the horse then shal you strike him faire and softly vpon the elbow of his fore left legge so long til you make him lie down with his hinder parts which when he doth vnbuckle your surcingle take off his bridle and giue him grasse or prouender to eate and flatter him and make much of him but if he start vppâ— sodainely before you would haue him then it shall be good to giue him two or thrée strokes with your rod and presently to force him to lie downe as at the first but if he rise not till you woulde haue him then make maruelous much of him and giue him such things to eate as he most desireth and when you haue made him rise claw and rub him and profer it him no more in the space of an houre In this order haue I neuer failed to make anie horse lie down at my pleasure of what age nature or disposition soeuer he was Kingdon But what if my horse wil start vp sodainely when I would take his backe in the field Clifford Then take him fast by the chéeke of the bridle with your left hand and whip him wel with your right hand behind the saddle and cause him to lie downe presently and by this meanes you shal reforme him Of a horse that yarketh behinde in his gallopping AT euerie time he yarketh in his gallopping whip him well behinde vpon his flancke as néere his coddes as is possible and so continue the correction as often as the horse shall make this fault thus you shall quickly recouer him Kingdon But I did demaund of you in the beginning how I should dresse mine horse after that he was ridden therefore I praie you teach me what order I shall obserue therin Clifford That was wel remembred of thée I giue thée thanks for I had almost forgotten that but now I shall most willinglie shew thée of all the waies that I tried which is best Thine horse béeing walked as before till hée bée thorow colde thou shalt shake litter inough vnder him with the which thou must rub his legges well and also betwixt his fore bowes and hinder legges that béeing done vnbridle him and rubbe his head well and also his necke and brest then may you giue him some hay or strawe to eate Kingdon But were it not good to let him stand halfe an houre on the bit and not to rubbe his legges till he be thorow colde and drie and also to take off his saddle and to put a cloth on him and also stuffe him rounde about with strawe Clifford As touching thy first demaund I answere not with opinion but with experience that it is much better thy horse being colde as hath béene before taught to vnbridle him and let him eate his meate than to stand still vâ—on the bit And as touching thy second demand I answere it is naught to let thine horse stand vnrubbed for that the mire drying on his legges shall not onelie make him stiffe but also cause his skinne to be so drie that it will chap and bréede scabbie and mouldie héeles yea I doe assure thée I haue throughlie tried this waie but I could neuer find anie so good as to rub mine horse till he be drie as touching the vnsadling of him I haue also tried it by the space of tenne yeares together in all which time I could neuer be without the horse léeches helpe but in twelue yeares that I haue obserued this order héere following I haue not had néed of the horse-leech to drench my horse at anie time for anie disease comming of colde no nor seldome of anie other Take had thou vnsaddle him not nor so much as slacke one of his girses but hauing rubbed him well thou shalt couer him with a single cloth making the corners therof fast vnder his girses and take héede thou neuer giue him water nor prouender vntill such time as thou hast dined although thou ride him earlie in the morning but if it be in winter put a good handfull of haie in it to the end it may hinder him and make him drinke leasurelie which also shall some thing abate the coldnesse of the water And it shall not be amisse in colde and extreame wether to let thy horse drinke but halfe his fil and often times to beate him awaie suffering him to take but a little and a little at once by meanes whereof he shall not sodainlie coole his stomacke wherwith he might fall into some extreame feauer and when thou hast done giue him his wet haie in the manger to eate Kingdon I shall marre my horse if I let him not drinke his fill Clifford Thou shalt not hurt him I warrant thée for that at night thou mayest giue him inough without anie daunger Kingdon But at what time I praie you shall I vnsaddle him and dresse him Clifford By that that I haue sayd I would haue taught thée the after thou hast watered thy horse thou shalt first rub well his head and then his bodie and legges first with strawe and then with haire cloth that done combe his mane and put on his coller which thou must alwayes take off when thou rubbest his head the béeing done giue him his prouender and vnsaddle him not till night that the doores windowes of the stable be shut then mayest thou currie and dresse him without anie danger By obseruing this order giuing my horse fenegreke in his Oates after his iourney and not letting him rest but by walking him abroad euerie daie or euerie other day easilie softlie without heating him I haue in thrée yeres and thrée moneths wherein I had charge of Monsieur Villiers horses not giuen one drench or medicine to so much as one of
in such sorte that it may holde the forage and let the dust fall through and also you may make a manger for euerie couple of horses of thrée foote long with a partition in the middle thereof placed iust betwixt your horses so as they may bothe reach their prouender in the same and let the partition thereof stand iust with the end of the barre that is betwixt your horses so as the one halfe may be in the one roome and the other halfe in the other Thus shal your horse haue place inough for his forrage without being letted with the manger note herewith that all suche mangers as these be must haue staues made faste at the one ende in the wall or vppon the side of the manger nexte to the wall and at the other ende you must make them fast to the outside of the manger and let such staues be placed a foot and an halfe one from an other to the end that your horse may easily reach his forrage and yet not be able to cast it out of his manger nor into his fellowes roome with his head The third waie is to make it foure times as bigge as our common mangers are so that the horse can do no more than reach easilie to the bottome and this manger must be all plankes as well in the bottome as on the sides that the horse may both eate his prouender and forrage therein This manger haue I often made in Flaunders being in the campe where I had no stables but was forced to make my horses roomes in a barne or great house in this sort You must first at the one ende of the house or barne where you meane that your manger shall stand digge a pitte in the ground thrée foot and an halfe déepe let it be fiue foote from the wall or end of the house where your horse must stand with his right or left side to it and let the pitts be from the wall that shall be before your horses head so as your manger may be two foote and an halfe wide in the bottome and thrée foote wide in the toppe then shall you put a post therein of such height as you will haue your manger then may you make an other pit in the corner of the foresaid wall and hauing nailed a strong planke at both endes to the foresaid postes then may you make two holes in the wall into the which you shall putte two small péeces of timber and naile them at the other endes fast to the two foresaide postes a foote beneath the neather edge of your plancke then may you set a trough therevppon for the horse both to eate his forrage and prouender in then may you set an other post in the ground behind your horse to hang your barre vpon and the other ende thereof to your first post in this sorte may you make all the rest of your roomes with manger and barre betwixt your horses very commodiously and quickly And as touching your planckes it is a thing not vsed beyond seas and yet haue I kepte my horses there as sounde as euer I did in England vppon the planckes Kingdon How I pray you may that be For if you should let them stand on the grounde it will in short time become all mire and if you paue your stable it will be verie colde and also weare your horses shooes breake them and his hoofes much more than vpon the planckes and your horses also wil spend twice as much litter as vpon the plancks Clifford As touching that thou saiest the grounde will be all mire thou art deceiued for thou must first digge awaie the earth two or thrée foote déepe and fill in vnder your horses grauel sand and stones if they may be had but if thou canst haue nothing but stones then must thou breake them with great hammers and couer them with horse dung and litter vppon it for the space of tenne or twelue daies that your stones may be well fastened with the dung and treading of your horse and at the twelue daies end hauing taken away your dung you shall sée your grauel or stones so hard as a rocke but you must note by the waie that you leaue a gutter right vnder your horses bellies cleane through your stable a foote and an halfe déepe and so wide as the breadth of the planck that you can get to couer the same fitly and sée that you place that plancke somewhat lower than the â—oore of your horses roome so that if the horse pisse either behind or before it may haue a dissent to the same so as al the wet may passe into the foresaid gutter by meanes of awger holes which should be made in the plancke for that purpose This is one of the best fashions that euer I tried or saw in any place where soeuer I haue trauelled And whereas thou saiest stones weare thy horses shooes breakes them and their hoofes wastes more litter and is more cold I could neuer find my horse to like one whit worse on the stones than on the plancks although something it weare their shooes more than plancks and that he may also breake his hoof or shooe somthing more than vpon the plancks I grant also it wil waste somthing the more litter yet if thou wouldest well consider how many good horses are hurt and mischiefed in their legs shoulders and small of their backs by dangerous slipping sliding falling and hanging their legs therein thou wouldst grant the floore made as before and pauement to be ten times better than the plancks yea and they are made and maintained with lesse charges by an halfe than the planckes But you must note that when you paue your stable that you leaue a gutter through your horses roomes couered with a plancke as before take héed that whether you plancke your stable or paue or make the floore with sand or grauell that you make it not aboue 4. or 5. inches higher before than behinde for by making it verie high before your horse he shall stand vneasily and if you shall mooue him neuer so little in the stable he will be readie to fall besides that his litter when he doth lie will all fall behinde him and also if he chance to tumble or wallow himselfe in his roome you shall sée him settle so farre backward that he cannot rise for that his hinder legs wil be clean without the posts of his roome he hangs so short by the neck that it is not possible for hun to rise til you loose his collar which is a thing verie dangerous for vpon such planckes you may soone marre any horse Kingdon I grant this is a very good way to make my plancks but I would desire you to tel me whether it be not good to raise my horses roome a foote higher than the grounde behind to make my horses shew the better Clifford It were good for an horse courser to make his horses shew higher than they be indéed but
and disdainfull Spaniards by the cunning and skilfull Flemings and by my Countrie men whose Nature if I truelie paint out I should but offend for the Prouerbe sayth It is an euill Birde that beraieth her owne neast and if I should flatter them all wise men would condemne me and mine owne conscience accuse me for the Lorde knowes all those that haue made triall of me that I am a thousand times better contented with honest painful pouertie then with the riches of India where I cannot be liked without vse of flatterie neither resembling the Parasite Gnato nor yet the boasting Souldier Thraso Thus much haue I dreamed but nowe béeing awaked let vs go to our purpose which is to make this rare and straunge kinde of racke which I first dreamed of when I serued sir Thomas Scot of Kent to whom I am much bound not onelie for that he gaue me a young horse to triâ— my cunning vpon being then a stranger to him for the space of two yeares wherein he vsed such wisdome and patience that I must néeds commend him before all those that euer I haue serued in England for although he could by his skill haue taught me yet did he neither teach me contrarie or find falt with anie thing yet cannot I commend him halfe so much for this as for that he gaue me leaue to beate downe the rackes of his stable plankes and posts and to paue the same and make the posts and barres according to mine owne small skill but the thing wherfore he deserueth immortal praise is the when he sawe this rack then first by me inuented not brought to anie perfection though he had power to command me to alter it to his former fashion yet did hée wiselie winke thereat till such time as he sawe I had throughlie found the discommoditie thereof and then he did gentlie perswade me to alter it if I thought good by which his gentle and prudent doings he did not onelie make me yéeld willinglie to that he might haue forced me by his authoritie by the which he did wonderfullie content me but also till this daie I caÌ„not find anie man that in my iudgement doth deserue the commendations that he hath forced me to giue of him that all the Gnatoes that shall thinke that I haue said thus much by the way of flatterie I doe thée to wit that I parted out of sir Thomas Scots house not as a friend but as an enimie but yet he paied me my wages so iustlie that I cannot but yet once againe commend him not for that I héereby séeke his friendship yea I doe not thinke that in my life time I shal sée him or haue to do with him yet am I thoroughly perswaded that I shal highlie offend if I should defraud mine enimie of his right But to our purpose I neuer gaue ouer till I had brought my foresayde inuention to his ful perfection at maister Barnard Drakes in Deuon shéere who is both a wise and an honest Gentleman And it is made in this sorte you must first set your manger a foote and a halfe from the wall that is before your horses head then maie you palacâ— vpon the inner edge of the manger at euerie flue foote distance a péece of timber of such length as the other ends thereof be made fast to the floore that is ouer your horses then hauing made your racke in péeces of fiue foote and a halfe of length then may you begin to set vp the first péece of your racke make two holes wherein you must make fast the first two endes of your racke in the wall and two tenans on the other two ends thereof which must be ioyned fast into two mortices which should be made in the péeces of timber for that purpose When you haue thus placed the first péece of racke then shall you place another at the one end into the foresaid péece of timber on the other end with another péece of timber Thus when you haue placed all the péeces of your racke then shalt you plancke it close betwixt the bottome of your racke to the edge of the manger in such sort as no man can perceiue the hollownesse which remaines betwixt the wall and those plankes then shall you take little péeces of timber and make them fast at one end into the neather side of your racke and let the other ends leane against the wall in such sort as you sée the rafters of the roofe of an house then must you naile on them planks or laths to the end that your forrage fall not downe behinde your plankes and manger and this sloping pentice shal alwaies force your forrage to fall towards your racke so as your horses may reach it at their pleasure out of this racke there cannot fall anie dust vppon your horses heads no nor so much as vppon their noses Kingdon This racke is verie good but héereby I shall loose a foot and a halfe of my stable for that the inner side of my manger must stand a foote and halfe from the wall Clifford But it shal saue the more litter theÌ„ the discommoditie therof shal counteruaile by reason of the great roome that shall remaine behinde and vnder your manger in such sort that you shall neuer sée your horses to be able to pawe out anie of their litter with their fore féete and your racke being placed vpright they shall be able to reach their forrage with a thousand times more ease then out of our ordinarie rackes Kingdon What meane you by setting your racke vpright Clifford I meane that thou shouldest set the vpper side and neather side thereof of like distance from the wall and make the bottome thereof that must holde vp your forrage to stand in such sort against the wall as wee commonlie sée a pentice ouer a shoppe windowe so as there may nothing staie vpon the same but that it shall all fall toward your vpright racke whether you place this rack high or lowe yet may your horse easâ—lie get out his forrage if you place it not so high as hée cannot reach it Kingdon Whether is it good to make my stable doore right behinde my horses or in the ende and whether is it good to make a floore ouer my Stable or no Clifford As touching thy first demaund it is an hundred times better to make the doore in the ende of the Stable then in the side thereof for by making it in the end of the Stable the winde shall neuer haue full power vppon anie of your horses the doore béeing open you may also turne your horses heades towardes your house or court and make behinde them a doore or windowâ— to throw out your dung at which shall be a great ease to your horse kéeper and also it will not be hurtfull to your horses for the lesse drudgerie you put your kéeper vnto the better shall your horses be dressed yea you shall neuer sée where it is painful carrying out of
doe him more harme than your medicine hath done hym good in sixe wéekes before And it shall be good once in fiue or sixe daies to ride him into the water and walke him â—n houre at the least And as soone as hée comes in and that his legge is well rubbed with strawe and hauing first warmed your seare cloth ouer a fewe coales which you must haue on a fire shoouell for that purpose before you doe laie it vnto the sore but if it chaunce the griefe be in such parte of the legge as your roll and plaister will alwaies settle downewardes then must you make a long rounde roll of woollen cloth as bigge as a thumb rope and you must sowe at eache ende thereof a péece of strong canuas a hand broade and two foote long and made sharpe at the two endes and when you will roll his legge set one ende of the canuas vnder your foote and then hauing rolled his legge somewhat aboue the vpper edge of his plaister then shall you bring the two endes togither vppon the middle of the roll so as you may tie them bothe togither in sâ—â—he sorte as the knotte may not touch the horses legge for if you shoulde not tie the two endes togither the roll woulde winde loose about his legge This will holde your plaister in the due place without being able to sincke or settle downe and you may roll his legge a great deale more easier therewith than with anie other Of the scabbe or manginesse in a horse THis cruell kinde of scabbe scurffe or itch bréeding ouer all the horses bodie and most commonlye beginnes in his mane and taile it commeth of a corrupt bloud and nâ—â—deth no other signes The cure Let him bloud the first daie on one side of his neâ—ke and wash all his bodie with hote brine or else with béefe broâ—h pisse and salt mingled together rubbing him with rough waddes of strawe till he be readie â—o bléede then shall you let him alone till the second â—nie and then shall you let him bloud on the other side of his necke which being done and all his bodie rubbed with rough waddes and made cleane you shall take of Swines greacâ— a pound of blacke Sope as much of Rape oile a pinte of brimstone sixe ounces finely beaten into powder and hauing first killed your Nuicke siluer mingle all these thinges togither vppon a soft fire without letting it boile being so warme as you can suffer your hand in it annoint all the sore places therewith and rubbe and chasâ— it well with your handes to make it sincke into the skiâ—me And if you sée the horse rubbe or bite him selfe in anie place of his bodie you may wash it as before and annoint it with some of the foresaid medicine I haue cured diuers horses herewith without ointing them thâ—ice but you must duâ—ing this cure diet your horse veri◠〈…〉 rly and let him haue so little rest as may be Of the griefe in the eies and first of him that hath receiued a blowe IF your horse haue receiued a blowe in or vppon his eie so that he can not holde open the same and that there is no blemish nor white â—â—lme doth appeare vpon his eie then shall you remedie him in this sorte Take faire water and salt and with your mouth spâ—â—t his eie full thereof and if his eie be not verie sore this shall remedie him it is good also to wette a cloth therein so bigge as will fill the horses eare on the gréeued side Then chasing it thrust it in so fast as is possible you must tie his eare fast so as the cloth may not fall out and let it remainâ— therein the space of a whole daie at the least honie also warmed a little and put in his eie is not onelie good to make him open hiâ— eie but wil also preuent anie other gréefe that might bréede vpon the horses eie by meanes if the foresaide stripe Of the white filme pearle or web that may breed on the sight of a horses eie TAke honie as before and put it in his eie with a feather if the filme be but thinne that wil remedie him or else take the iuice of Salandine and put to a spoonefull thereof halfe a spoonefull of womans milke but if the filme be olde so that it will not breake then take the powder of burned Allume being well burned and surely beaten blowe a little thereof with a â—â—ill into his eie and take héede when you will dresse him in this sort that you tie his head fast to some post in such sorte that hée can not stirre for by dressing your horse when he is loose hée may strike his eye vppon the ende of your quill in such sorte that you shall doe him more harme in one moment than your medicine shall doe him good in a moneth this is an approoued medicine not onelie for the foresaide gréefe but also for anie other that shall bréede in the horses eie but if so be that your horse haue a filme ouer his eie so thicke that it will not breake with blowing this powder in his eie then must you cast your powder in and fill his eie full thereof once a daie and hauing filled it let him â—e still holding his eie open with your two thumbs by the space of one halfe houre till the allume be melted then let him rise and dresse him in this sort but once a daie for the space of two or thrée daies and then blowe it in his eie as before And if at anie time you sée the inside of his eie liddes to be red then shall you dresse him with honie for the space of two or thrée daies and then dresse him again with your allum til he be whole Of the canker in the eie TAke of Woodbine leaues of Primrose leaues of Sage leaues of Violet leaues and of Rosemarie each one a handfull and of Allume halfe a pound boile all those things togither in thrée gallons of faire water till two partes thereof be consumed and when it is boiled inough straine it through a cloth into a faire vessel and adde thereunto half a pinte of honie and then shall you boile it againe the space of one quarter of an houre vpon a softe fire Then adde thereunto halfe a pinte of strong Vineger The signes to knowe it be these his eie will be redde and round about the same it will be full of little knots or buttons as bigge as the heads of pins and also it wil runne of filthie stinking matter The cure Let him bloud in the vaine beneath his eie and also in his necke vaine on the gréeued side and then wash him twice a daie with this water héere following and with a fine linnen cloth dip it therin it being first made bloud or milke warme Another for the same TAke Sage Fennell Rosemarie of each a handfull of Allome two ounces boile all these things together in two gallons of faire water till
yuu turne him in a little ring vpon the gréeued side he will goe verie lame The cure Put a paire of straight pasturnes vpon his fore féet during this cure and hauing first letten him bloud in the great vaine on the inside of his grieued legge then shall you take of Oile of Baies of Sallet Oile butter and Swines grease of each halfe a pound melt all these things together and anoint all your horses shoulder therwith being so warme as you can scarce suffer your hand in it Anoint also betwéene his fore legs and euen vp to his withers so as you leaue no part of his shoulder vnanointed dresse him euerie daie once in this sort til your medicine be al spent but within 2. or 3. daies you shal sée swelling appeare betwixt his legs all the rest of his breast shoulder therabouts wil begin to swell his fore leg also will swell yea I haue dressed diuers horses in this sort the their bellies swelled so great that I haue béene forced to lay wet hay with a couple of surâ—ingles iust before the â—hafte of the horse to defend the swelling from his coddes and yet the swelling hath all gone awaie of it selfe without comming to a head or breaking But if it chaunce to come to a head you may slit it with a razor and heale it by thrusting a teint of flaxe or towe in it being first dipped in this salue here following Take of Turpentine of Honie of Hogsgreace and of Waxe and shéeps Suet of eache a like quantitie melt all these things togither and apply it as before This is a verie good salue to heale anie wound that may happen on a horse yea I haue cured my selfe diuers hurts therewith without anie other medicine sauing warme white Wine to wash the wound withall But to our purpose Thou shalt let thy horse stand still without once moouing him for the space of three wéeks or a moneth the longer the better and at the first walking him abroad take héede that hée be rough shâ—d And that you leade him not vpon anie sâ—ipperie grounde for feare of hurting him And although he go verie sound yet would I not aduise you to stirre him in fiftéene daies more Of the wrenching or splint in the two shoulders of a horse I Haue in my life time séene but one of these horses and he was one Master George Deuerishes who then 〈…〉 aie at Lampha and I being at his house he instantly requested me to looke on the saide horse and to sée whether I could cure him or not but when I had enquired the cause thereof they tolde me that they had yoked him in the head of a cart with the which they did gather tything â—orne And the horse being vnacquainted with that kind of trauel he for lacke of vse or else through negligence of the gouernoures thereof fell vppon the side of a bancke and the horses drewe him a good waie vnder the carte so as he was neither able to rise nor stande but being lifted vp he would wrestle and fall on the one side or other by reason he was not able to bring his legs forward but I doubting whether his shoulders were wrenched out of ioint or rend from his briscot laide good store of strawe vnder him and cast him therevppon and with foure pasturnes pulled him vppe from the ground to put his shoulders in their iointes which was a verie good waie if they had béene out but whether they had béene out or no I haue tolde you both the cause and signes thereof truely And the waie whereby I cured him perfectly here foloweth I did first cutte a couple of holes through the skinne foure inches vnder his toe shoulder ioints or points of shoulder and with a quill I blewe vppe all the skinne of his shoulders full of winde euen vppe to the withers and hauing in this sorte blowen vp the skinne from the flesh and thrust out all the winde againe with my two handes I then made two ruelles of the vpper leather of a shooe thrée inches broade and hauing made them rounde and cutte two holes in the middle thereof I raised all the skinne from the flesh rounde about the two foresaide holes or slittes and hauing put the said two péeces of leather therein I charged all his shoulder with Pitch Tarre and Rozen molten togither and let him stand still with a paire of straight pasturnes vppon his féete and good store of litter vnderneath him for the spâ—ce of one moneth then I caused him to be led foorth of the stable and perceiuing him to go sound I put on his pasturns and let him stand in the stable thrée wéekes more and then hauing turned him to grasse till hée was well pinched with the srost he euer after went sound Of the wrench in the wyther ioint THis commeth by treading his foote in some hole or in some rough or stonie waie The signes to knowe it be these The horse will halt and his ioint will swell so as you shall perceiue it to be bigger than the ioint of the other legge The cure Take héede you let no dogleaches let him bloud in the shackle veines as I haue séene diuers of them doe and striking him so often into the sinews and veines of the legge till they haue doubled his paines The cure that I haue alwaies vsed is this Take of blacke or gray Sope halfe a pound and hauing made it hote in a panne you shall take two or thrée good handfulles of of Towe and dippe them in the Sope you shall laie it hote to the horses ioint and then hauing rolled all that ioint with a band of sixe foote long and thrée inches broad you shall let him stand one whole daie and a night before you dresse him againe and obserue this order euerie daie once till he be whole and when you will roll your horse legge in this sorte turne vp your roll rounde vppon a harde lump as you sée the Surgeons do then shall you take the first end thereof and put it vnder your foote and hauing wrapped all the rest of the band about his legge you may tie the two ends togither so as you shall not wring your horses legge I thought it good to teach you this much for that I haue séene diuers Horseleaches or rather Sowegelders or butcherly tormentors that would laie a plaister with a clout vpon a horses legge and afterwarde tie it so hard with a corde that the medicine hath not done the horse halfe so much good as the corde hath done him harme when I lacked Sope I vsed Wine lées and wheate flowar whereof I made a pâ—â—ister being warmed which I haue found almost as good as the other Of the Collicke I Coulde neuer finde by experience anie horse to haue this griefe but when he did stand long idle in the stable and I haue neuer vsed anie other cure than to trot him till hée was well warmed which will cause him to breake
vnder followeth Hauing cast the horse vppon a softe dunghill I with a long knife cut awaie the flesh on the hanging or vnder side of the creast euen from the sore end thereof to the hinder end sixe inches broad and two inches thick and something more in the middle thereâ—f where it was thickest groping the creast with my two handes where it was thicke I cut and pared it so long till I made it iust of one thicknesse then holding the horse stil fast bound I couered all the place with great handfulls of Swines dung which I caused to be holden fast with mens hands for the space of an houre in which time the bloud was perfectlie stauncht then I let the horse rise led him into the stable and tied him in such sorte that hée could neither rubbe his necke nor lie downe and the next morning betimes I thrâ—we good store of burnt Allome vppon all the sore place and so I let him stande for the spaâ—e of two dayes neuer touching the wound for feare of making it bléede and at the two dayes end I faire and softly bathed the place with a lynnen cloth dipped in warme pisse and then hauing dryed the sore I threwe on burnt Allome beaten into fine pouder and after I perceiued it to bée well fastned and thorough drie I anointed him with Vnguentum album round about the edges of the sorâ— a quarter of an inch broade In this sorte did I dresse him euerie daie once on that side of the creast that did fall and howe I dressed the contrarie side héereafter followeth I did first plat or trace all his mane on the contrarie side and then I made fast with strong thongs or points of leather a cudgel of a foote and an halfe long to the ends of the foresaid plattings of the mane then I didde hang to the middle of the foresaide cudgell a péece of lead with a hole in it of such waight as did poise his creast and holde it vpright in his due place then did I burne long strikes beginning at his creast and ending euer almost as lowe as the point of his shoulder of the same side as the weight did hang and they were no more but an inch and an halfe one from an other and I burned them also well with an yron halfe an inch thicke but whereas I made but siâ—e great strikes if I had made twelue verie small ones it had béene much better bicause that when he had béene healed it would not haue béene halfe so much séene But to conclude I charged the burnt places with Pitch Tarre and Rozen molten togither and let my weight hang vntill he was throughly healed in both sides of his necke with this I set vp his crest so stiffe that it is not possible to stirre it neither to the one side nor to the other but it will presently returne into his proper place againe and so continue Of the vpper taint THis is a swelling in the backe or maister sinew of the foreleg and commeth by meanes that the horse striketh the sinew with the toe of his hinder foote it néedeth no signes for that you may easily perceiue it by the halting of your horse and by the long swelling that will remaine vppon the forenamed sinew you shall cure it perfectly by dressing him euerie daie once with a plaister made of Wine lées and wheat â—â—owar as hash beene before taught or else you may take blacke Sope and Bores grease of each like quantitie sealding hote make a plaister thereof so long and broad as the swelling with these two last named medicines I haue neuer failed to cure my horse of any grief in his legges that commeth either by straine or stroke and if at any time you make your horse go sound with the foresaid medicines and that some swelling remaineth or vile vitious sore that you can with no salue or medicine heale it then shall you burne all his leg with long strikes from the vpper part of the swelling vnto the neathermost parte thereof drawing your strikes downeward with the haire which order you must obserue in burning anie horse that you drawe your hand so neare as you can with the haire and that you make the edge of your yron very thin and burne your strikes thicke and also somewhat déepe and after his burning annoint his leg with blacke Sope two or thrée times but if it be a gelding turne him to grasse wherewith you shall finde him perfectly cured within a short space but if it be such an horse as you can not turne to grasse sée that you exercise him euerie daie twice at the least Of the paines scratches moulie heeles or anie other scuruie scalles whatsoeuer that may breede in a horses legges or heeles whether they come by meanes of euil humors or for lacke of good dressing or cleane keeping whether they be matterie and filthie running sores or drie scabs you shal cure them perfectly with this medicine TAke of Turpentine Hogs grease Honie and blacke Sope of ech like quantitie and hauing molten them vpon a soft fire take it off and put in a little bole Armoniacke finely beaten into powder then worke all these things well togither with a sticke in your right hand and a dish of wheate flowar by you that with your left hand you may put it in a little at once til you haue made it thicke like an ointment or soft salue then shall you make a plaister vpon canuas or linnen cloth so bigge as the sore and hauing first cut away the haire applie your plaister and dresse him in this sort once a daie vntill he be whole Of the Fistula or anie hollow vlcer that may breede in anie part of your horses bodie either by euil curing of a wound or by bruise stroke or wringing with an euil saddle vpon his wythers THis is an hollow filthie mattering vlcer and most commonly a great deale straiter at the mouth than within The cure First search the bottome therof with a Goose or Swannes quill or with a small rod well couered with fine linnen cloth and hauing found the bottom thereof cut it so large with a razor that the matter may haue frée passage downeward for otherwise it shall be hard to cure it by reason that the matter standing in the sore shall fret the good flesh and make the wound daily greater But take héede that in launcing it you cut not anie master sinew for a sinewe once cut will neuer growe togither againe hauing stanched the bloud with Swines dung you shall then take of honie one pinte of Verdegréese one ounce and boile these togither vpon a soft fire thrée quarters of an houre then hauing cleâ—â—sed the wound or sore by tying a teint of â—â—re or fine linnen cloth to the point of your quil with a thréede drawe it softly into the wound then cut off your quill or feather so long that you may take good holde in the neather end of the teint that
larger on the one side than on the other But it is much worse wheÌ„ it is higher on the outside than on the inside for therby it shal make the horse tread inward strike the one leg against the other lame himself the remedie is to pare his larger side wel and pare nothing on the other side but onelie to euen the side of your shooe How to pare and shooe the flat foote THe foote is said to be slat when it is so high in the middle as on the outside you shall pâ—re it as litle as is possible at the héeles you may part it well at the toe and on the sole verie little holowe your shoo well make it with a broad web strong about the in edge and at the spunges take héede that you make no calcons for anie horse that hath a weake or straight foote and let it lie at the héeles without the horne and rounde about full as long as the foot and it will be good to pierce your holes somewhat farther from the edge than you do for him that hath a perfect foote How to shoe a horse that ouer-reacheth MAke his shooe no longer before than the héele of his horne doth of necessitie require and at the toe end of the hinder foote set your shooe a full quarter of an inch shorter than the horne which horne you must not cut but let it hang ouer the shooe this is the perfectest waie or remedie that euer I could find for him that ouer-reacheth For the horse that enterfeers THis commeth vndoubtedly through weakenesse of bodie for that he is ridden too yong The best remedie that euer I coulde finde is to pare the foote on the out side and also to breake off the calcon on the outside of the shooe and to leaue it a litle thicker on the inside than on the outside Also you must cause the shooe to be made to lie within the horne from the hée le naile to the formost naile on the inside but at the héele let it lie something without the horne as well on the inside as on the outside for otherwise the spunge shall sincke into his héele and so consume the same that it shall be lower than the outside so that the shooe by consuming the héele on the one side and the Smith paring him on the other side shall cleane marre your horses foote For an horse that hath an euâ—l hoofe LEt your horse stand vpon his owne dâ—â—g and throw water vpon it good store and euerie night take it awaie till the next morning that he be dreast this is verie good to recouer a horse hoofe that is euill through the negligence of his kéeper but if so be your horsâ—s hoofe be reasonable good and that you would kéepe the same and make it soft and tough then annoint it euerie daie once with Turpentine Hogs grease and Honie and of each like quantitie molten together For the horse that hath naturallie an euill hoofe or hath bene foundred by meanes whereof his hoofe is so marred that he is not able to carrie a shooe FIrst shooe him in the new of the Moone with high shooes vpon the second or third daie after the change then make him a paire of bootes in this sort first cut a péece of strong leather a finger breadth larger then the horses foot which is best done by laying the horse shooe vpon the leather then shall you cut so much of the legge of an olde boote as will goe about the forenamed sole then close it fast round about vpon the edge of your sole and let it be sire inches long and as wide aboue as belowe then put it on the horses foote and marke it round about an inch aboue the horses hoofe theÌ„ take it off againe and cut it full of long flits so as you may passe a péece of leather of an inch broad with a buckle vpon the same that you may make it fast vpon the horse foot then shall you take Turpentine Hogs grease and Honnie of each a like quantitie melt them all together and being warme anoint the horse foot therwith then shall you dip a cloth therein with the which you must stop the horses foote before you put on his boote it shall be verie gooâ— to 〈◊〉 a péece of soft cotton round about the toppe â— the horses foote being first dipt in the foresaid mediâ—ne T 〈…〉 al not onelie defend your horses foote froâ— galding with the girdle or boote but the warmnesâ—e of the cloth shal wonderfullie cause the horse foote tâ— increase it shall be good to take off his â—oote euerie two daies once and to let him stand foure houres at the least before you dresse him and put on his boote to the end he may rest his foote FINIS IMPRINTED AT London by Thomas East for Thomas Cadman dwelling in Paules Churchyard at the signe of the Bible 1585.
may know himselfe to be throughly maistred by this inuention Hauing vsed him in this sorte so much as reason requireth to whose rule I woulde haue thée haue a speciall regarde in such extremities as those be thou maiest somewhat slacke thy cordes in such sort that thou straine not thy horses head therewith Then take his backe and offer him gently to tread out a ring in the selfe place In doing whereof I woulde haue you to speake him faire flattering and vsing him gently to the ende he may finde ease in obeying your will and also that he may perceiue the better wheresore he is corrected And afterwarde when hée shall offer to run awaie or malitiously refuse to doe his lessons let your bridle go and drawe the ende of your corde so much as shall be requisite By this meanes you may easily staie your horse from going awaie euen with the strength of one of your fingers which being done correct him sharpely with the spurrâ— on the contrarie shoulder as before taught and the rod also that being done slacke the corde and offer hym his lesson againe and faile not that at euerie time he doth erre to correct him in this order by meanes whereof you shall in shorte time haue him as obedient as euer was scholler to his schoolemaister Kingdon But were it not better to ride him in some déep way and hauing footmen with staues and burning strawe in the endes thereof to put it in his nose or to runne him in the fielde till he be wearie Clifford It were verie good for a foole or madman Kingdon Wherfore both learned wisemen haue so taught me Clifford I graunt them to be both learned and wise but in teaching such bables they bewray their want of skill in this art for consider I praie thée howe that horse is reformed that the rider can not commaunde when it shall please him without the helpe of anie footeman but by this last remedie by me taught thou shalt maister anie horse without helpe and make him that he shall not once dare offer to run awaie Hovv to remedie that Horse that will turne but on the one hand Clifford YOU shall remedie him in this sorte following put a false raine on the side the he wil not turne on if you ride him with a bit for if you ride him with a trench you shall not néede of a false raine This béeing done turne him on that hand in some large ring and giue him at the least tenne or twelue turnes at a time then giue him two or thrée on the other hand afterwarde turne him on the other hande againe as before for in obseruing this order and by holding your false or trench raine on that side so short that he can haue no libertie with his head you shall quicklie remedie him if you giue him no short nor narow turnes till he be perfect in the large and that you bring him not sodainlie from a large ring to a little but as he is perfect in the large ring so euer must you make him tread his ring lesse lesse by a little at once til you haue brought him to tread his rings in as small compasse as shall bée requisite Kingdon But I haue knowen some horses that when you would offer to turne them they will turne on the contrarie side in despite of your téeth Clifford Haue I not taught thée in the last Chapter with a strap of leather to turne a runawaie horse by the which thou maist remedie this fault easilie if thou wilt take héede thou turne him not too short at the first but orderlie and leasurelie as hath bene before taught Kingdon But I haue séene you to a horse of maister Throckmortons vse a more easier waie in my iudgement and a farre more readier Clifford I praie you tell me in what order was that for I haue now cleane forgotten it Kingdon I sawe you vnbuckle the raines of the brake take the right raine thereof and put it through a ring that was made fast to your saddle with a double péece of leather that went twice about the fore point of your saddle trée and hauing past it through the foresayde ring you did also put it through the eie of your brake where the other end thereof was first made fast and I sawe you with drawing the end thereof holde your horse in such sort that he was not able to goe awaie but onelie to turne on the right hande notwithstanding you dyd breake your rodde on him and spurred him till he bled and afterward hauing loosed the foresayd raine buckled it in his former place then offered him his lesson which he did before stubburnlie refuse to do I then saw him do it with such willingnesse that in my iudgement the horse made a double amends for his former falt yea and though you did prouoke him by riding him till hée was almost wearie yet did he not dare once offer to goe awaie at the which I did not a little mâ—ruaile knowing him to be so stubburne a horse and so notable a runawaie that in the space of halfe a â—ere and more before your comming he stoode still because no man was willing to ride him Clifford Thou sayest troth thou maiest also in like manner take a cord of two fathome of length nesse the two ends thereof first through the greate eyeâ— of your bit or brake and afterward passe them through the two patterell buckles of your saddle and then make fast the side of the cord so the eie of your braue and when your â—â—rse doth offer to runne awaâ—e you may drawe one side of the foresayd cordes by meanes whereof you shall most â—astlie staie him as before but in correcting him if hée turne so fast and many times that you cannot endure the same then may you let that â—aine goe and pull the other by meanes whereof you shalt not onely correct your horse but also be well able to endure his turning Hovve to remedie a horse that will lie downe in the water Clifford AT what instant he lies downe in the water cause thrée or foure foot men to leaps â—n his head and keepe him downe vnder water till he be almost drowned Hovv to correct the horse that will not carrie his head right Clifford HOlde your spurre close in his side till hée looke that waie which when he doth take awaie your spurre and make much of him as soone as he forgets that correction see that you remember him as before till he leaue his fault Kingdon I haue knowen diuerse of those horses verie well reformed in their going but afterward when you would giue them a managing turne they will dowe their heads on the one side Clifford Take a strap of leather with a button at each end â—ut full of slits to the end you may shorten and lengthen it at your pleasure passe the one end therof through the eie of your cauison bit or brake the other end
through the buckle of your fore girse and make it of such length as your horse may haue no libertie to turne his head This is much better than to holde the contrarie raine of your cauison fast and a couple of these raines is the best remedie that euer I found for a weak necked horse Hovv to correct that horse that will not bring downe his mosell neither for bit nor musroll and being tied in with the martingale will continuallie straine the same and holde his nose fast on the musroll and his mouth on the bit and will not yeeld for anie of them Clifford YOu shall cléeue the end of your martingale and hauing made two buttons thereon button it fast to the two chéekes of your bit and buckle it not too short at the first but after when your horse is acquainted therewith you may make it so short as shal be requisite to kéepe his head in his due place Kingdon To what place of the chéeks of my bit shall I make this martingale fast for it seemeth me it were a greate deale better to make it fast in the great eies of my bit Clifford That shall neuer correct your horse but as touching the making it fast if your bit chéekes be turned at the ends you may put it into the same but if they be not turned at the ends then make fast a ring to each chéeke thereof néere to the neather ends with a packe thréed or shoomakers end by putting it through the one ring half a doosen times and about the chéeke of the bit and through the other ring also as before Kingdon It séemeth to me that a shoomakers end or pack-thréed should not holde my horse and also I thinke this waie to be verie daungerous for that my horse shall learne to checke vpon the bit by reason that the curbe shall piâ—ch him to sore Clifford The doubt which thou hast for breaking thy thréed is more then néedeth for that he shall neuer breake being tied in this order nor the strength of a good codpéece point although he be verie hard of mouth And as touching the vice of checking I grant it to be verie daungerous if thou vse it to a horse that is verie tender of mouth but thou must neuer vse it but wheÌ„ all other remedies faile shée for if thou vse it to a horse as before it shall worke to most excellent effect For the horse that is verie tender of mouth GIue him a bit made with two smooth Oliues or else in place of the Oliues fill all the ieues with plaine smooth rings and make him a curbe of leather in this sort Take away the thrée esses of the curbe from the rings thereof then take a péece of leather some thing more then twice the length of the foresayd Esses then passe that foresayde péece of leather thorough the ring the shal remaine at the hooke or long Ess that is fastned on the right chéeke of the bit then passe the other end thereof through one of the foresaide thrée rings that you fasten the curbe with all vpon the hooke and let the two ends of the foresaid péece of leather méet on the out side turning from the horses â—hin on the middle thereof making it fast with a causiers end For the horse that is some thing hard of mouth GIue him a plaine scatch or else two millions ioyned with a péece and put a whole barre or trench therein full of plaine rings Kingdon But what if my horse will not beare light vppon these two bits Clifford Then take your former cannon which would haue his chéekes long and his curbe great for I haue séene diuerse horses after they haue ben ridden with one of these foresayd bits one moneth and afterward giuing them their Cannon they haue become a great deale lighter thereon then at the first Kingdon But diuerse skilfull horse men are of the opinion that it is not good to chaunge a horses bridle if he be once well bitted Clifford I graunt neither would I wish you to change your cannon in anie case so long as it is possible to gouerne your horse with him but I haue found diuerse horses the could hardlie be gouerned with the cannon by reason of the hardnesse of their mouths but by changing them from the canon to one of the forsaid bits and afterward to the canon they become so light there vpon in processe of time that I haue bene able to gouerne them vppon a canon so easilie as though they had neuer béene harde mouthed Kingdon Then it should séeme that often chaunging a horses bit is good to him that is hard of mouth Clifford Yea if thou chaunge him vpon one of the foresayde thrée bits and that thou take héede thou giue him not anie other rough bit thou maist also vse the scatch with the vpâ—â—r mouth or the whole port with two round rowles which would not be rough nor great and fill the rest of the ieue with smooth playing rings on the out side therof These aforenamed bits are sufficient to frame anie horse of what nature or disposition so euer he be of not hauing his mouth marred before with euill riding and rough bits if so be thou haue the true art of riding in the which if thou be ignoraunt neither shall all the dronken fashions which thou maist sée in Flaunders nor the new sangles or light inuentions which thou mayest also sée in Paris nor all the moderate fashions inuented by the discréet Italians profit thée anie thing The end of the second booke The third booke of the keepers Office The first Chapter of the keepers Office Kingdon YOu haue taught me sufficiently as touching the art of riding now I praie you let it not be grieuous vnto you to teach mée after my horse is ridden how and in what order I shal walke and dresse him to the end that he may not take colde for that I haue often heard you saie that you account your horse halfe marred after that he hath once taken an extreame cold for that he shall be the more subiect not onlie to take that but also most perillous diseases death may happen vnto him by 〈◊〉 of extreme heat cold Clifford Thy horse being ridden cause him to be walked in the same place where thou geuest him some lesson in a great ring or right forth with a man on his back till he be thorough colde Kingdon Why shall I walke my horse with a man on his back and not in my hand and also why shal I walke him in a ring Clifford By walking him in a ring thou maiest sée him as the ridest thy other horses by him Also the man the shall ride him being ignorant how to vse his hand vpon the bridle shal then haue no néed to check him with the bit for he being well acquainted with that path will goe himselfe as touching thy walking of him in thy hand it is very dangerous for the the weather