point is to make the most of the opportunities each
locality offers, and as an example it may be of interest to give my
personal experience on this head.

Thanks to the confidence reposed in me by my General and to his
liberality, I was allowed to draw the equivalent of sixty rations of
oats per day and per squadron in cash, and to handle this money to the
best of my judgment.

Since peas, beans, and white American maize--the yellow Hungarian
quality is generally considered inferior--were ninepence to one
shilling cheaper per hundredweight than oats, I laid in a stock of
them, and was able to give not only an increased weight of ration, but
one of considerably greater nutritive value. Thus I gained the double
advantage, not only of not being compelled to stint the corn ration in
winter in order to save up for the harder work of the summers, but I
was able to increase even the winter ration itself. This I consider an
essential gain, for horses that after the winter season are well fed
and in their full condition are equal to far higher exertions than
those which have been kept low, and then fed up for perhaps a very
short time before the increased strain is thrown upon them.

The food was thus divided: After the manoeuvres, in cases where an
increased ration was required, American maize was issued, and the
ration improved by half a pound. From about Christmas-time onwards
peas and beans were served out, and the amount increased until midway
through the Squadron drills, after which it was kept at the same level
until the manoeuvres. In the end it amounted to the equivalent of 15
pounds of oats, which can be considered as the normal scale for our
medium and light Cavalry horses. The peas and beans were soaked for
twelve hours, the water being twice changed during this time to
prevent their turning sour.

During the manoeuvres, according to circumstances, I laid down at
suitable points in the district stores of forage, or gave the Squadron
Commanders money with which to supply themselves locally, and thus was
able to keep up the increase in the ration during the greater part of
this trying period.

The experiment was continued for nearly two years, and its results
were astonishingly satisfactory. Not only did the visible condition of
the horses develop markedly, and maintain itself throughout the
greatest exertions, both during the manoeuvres and the Divisional
exercises, but in spite of increased performances the nu