Hints on Driving Horses (Harness, Carriage, Etc). Captain C. Morley Knight

      CHAPTER II.

      DRIVING—SINGLE HARNESS.

      The start.

      Getting into dog-cart.

      How to hold reins.

      BEFORE starting, always have a good look round, and see that all the harness is put on correctly; then go to the off side of the horse and take the reins in the right hand, the near rein under the forefinger and the off rein under the third finger. Get up into the cart and sit down immediately; now transfer the reins into the left hand, the near rein over the forefinger, and the off rein under the middle finger. Thus you have two fingers between the reins (fig. 2). The reason for this is that it gives much more scope for play of the wrist on the horse’s mouth than if you only have one finger between the reins. The thumb should point straight to the right, and the forefinger be held well out, pointing to the right rear. This will keep the near rein close up to the knuckle, and the horse may easily be moved across the road to either the left or right by turning the back of the hand up or down respectively.

      FIG. 2.—SINGLE HARNESS—POSITION OF THE HANDS.

      Sit well up.

      Sit well up; nothing looks so bad as to see the driver leaning forward over the reins.

      How to start.

      Finally, take the whip in the right hand at the place where it balances most comfortably, and you are ready to start. Then give the horse the office to start by feeling his mouth gently and speaking to him; if he does not respond touch him gently with the whip.

      The moment he starts drop the hand slightly; jibbing is often caused by neglect of the latter precaution.

      Elbows must be close to sides.

      Keep your elbows close to your sides, with the points almost touching the hips. The wrists should be well bent, as by this means you are enabled to keep a perfectly steady bearing on the horse’s mouth without any jerking. This is a very important point.

      Fore arm horizontal.

      The fore arm should be horizontal, and the fingers from two to four inches from the centre of the body, with the knuckles to the front.

      Lower fingers to grip the reins.

      How to turn.

      The thumb must not be pressed down on the rein, exeept when a loop is taken up to turn a corner to the right or left (see fig. 23), when the right hand is available for shortening the other rein to prevent the horse turning too rapidly, or else to use the whip to bring him round.

      The fingers which should grip the reins, (so tightly that they should never slip), are the three lower ones. The forefinger should be held as in fig. 2.

      Whip not to be used when hand on reins.

      Never keep a large amount of slack of the off rein in your right hand (fig. 3) as then you cannot use the whip; and remember never to hit the horse while the right hand is holding a rein.

      The reason for this is obvious, because if you do try to hit him when you have the off rein in the right hand, you must slack that rein off, and the horse immediately dashes away to the left.

      FIG. 3.—SINGLE HARNESS—RIGHT HAND IN WRONG POSITION.

      Never move reins in left hand.

      It cannot be too strongly impressed on the beginner, that whether the right hand is on the reins or not, they should always be of the same length in the hand, and never be allowed to slip.

      The right hand should never on any account take the off rein out of the left hand. It is the first and most important law of driving, that the reins, as held in the left hand, should be of such a length as to keep the horse straight, and should remain at that length, whether the right hand is being used on one or other of them or not.

      No coachman who drives with a rein in each hand can be said to know his business, and yet it is one of the commonest things to be seen in London.

      Do not job horse’s mouth.

      Never use the whip on the horse unnecessarily, and never job him in the mouth except to punish him for doing something wrong. Nevertheless, for a horse which is inclined to kick, jobbing is very useful when applied at the right time, more especially if accompanied by a sharp hit with the whip over his ears.

      Never hit a shier.

      Use the voice.

      The whip should never be used on a shier, it will only frighten him, and confirm him in the habit, which is caused by nervousness and not by vice. Encourage him rather by speaking to him, as there is nothing a horse learns to understand quicker than his master’s voice.

      Do not flap the reins on his back either to start him or to make him increase his pace.

      Pace should be steady.

      Learn to drive at a steady and even pace. From eight to nine miles an hour will usually be found most suitable to average horses, but do not on any account drive sometimes at six miles and sometimes at ten. Nothing tires a horse so much as constantly changing the pace.

      Start slow.

      It is usually better to start a little slower, especially if you have a long way to go.

      Once fairly started, keep your eyes well fixed in front of you, and watch exactly what other vehicles are doing, so that you may never have to pull up suddenly. You should be able to see from a distance whether you can get through or not, and if you see that you cannot, begin to slow down at once.

      Jerky pace very bad.

      Never increase your pace, or check it, suddenly. Nothing is more uncomfortable for the passengers or more wearying to the horse.

      Shortening reins.

      It is far better for the beginner to slow down at once, if he is not sure of getting through a tight place, than to go fast up to it, and then have to pull up quite suddenly, if he can pull up at all. This cannot always be done at the last moment, and an accident is the result. As a rule, when it is necessary to pull up in a hurry, the reins cannot be shortened except by throwing up the hands, which, to say the least of it, looks very unbusinesslike. The proper course to pursue is to catch hold of the reins with the first finger and thumb of the right hand just behind the left, and shorten them as much as necessary by pulling them through (fig. 4).

      FIG. 4.—SHORTENING REINS.

      It is far better on such an occasion to have the reins rather too short than too long, but if only a small amount of shortening is required the right hand can be placed on the reins in front of the left and the left hand slid up to the right (fig. 5).

      Signal with whip to carriage behind.

      When driving in a town, it is the rule to swing the whip stick round once or twice as an indication to the drivers of vehicles behind you that you are going to slow down or turn a corner.

      Turn corners carefully.

      Before coming to the turn the pace must always be checked, particularly in a town, where the streets are generally slippery and there is nearly always a curbstone. Many an accident occurs daily through