ppearance may be. The same may be said about
colour; although, as a grey horse is conspicuous enough to be singled
out of a crowd of bays and browns, a lady who is at all "impartial" in
her seat would do well to select a horse wearing a less noticeable tint
of coat. As rearing is the worst vice a lady's mount can possess, no
horse who has a tendency to rear should be ridden by a woman, as from
her position in the side-saddle she is far more helpless than a man on
such an animal. A lady's hunter should not have too light a mouth, but
should go nicely up to his bridle, and not resent the use of the curb,
which is sometimes necessary in avoiding danger. He should on no account
be inclined to pull. A perfect hunter is like a thorough good sportsman,
who regards his share of bangs and blows as all in the day's work. As
the majority of hunters have their own likes and dislikes about jumping
certain kinds of fences, a lady should know precisely what to expect
from her mount and what his jumping capabilities are, before taking him
into the hunting-field, which is not the place for experiments. I had
many pleasant days out hunting with the Quorn, Belvoir, Cottesmore, and
North Cheshire on the Irish mare, Salary (Fig. 5).

In summing up the requirements of a hunter for either man or woman, I
cannot do better than to quote the following sound advice from Whyte
Melville: "People talk about size and shape, shoulders, quarters, blood,
bone and muscle, but for my part, give me a hunter with brains. He has
to take care of the biggest fool of the two, and think for both."

[Illustration: Fig. 5.--Irish mare, Salary.]

To be capable of safely crossing a stiff country, a horse requires at
least a few falls--which had best be shared by a man--and much
experience, which cannot be obtained without time. Hence, I would advise
no lady, however well she may ride, to hunt on a young horse, who will
always require a good deal of time in which to learn his business. It is
certainly no pleasure to be on the back of a horse who is inclined to
drop his hind legs in the ditch on the other side, or to "chance" a post
and rails. Many young horses are so reluctant in going at a fence, and
in "spreading themselves out," that they are no good except when ridden
by a man who can use his legs, which is a feat that a woman is unable to
accomplish.

A perfect _hack_, whether for man or woman, is far more difficult to
find at the present time than a good hun