e as yet grievously unversed in
even the elementary knowledge of the delicate construction of the member
that is entrusted to their care.

This fact has been dilated on in books devoted to shoeing, and in the
prefatory note to the last edition of Fleming's manual on this subject we
find the following statement: 'The records of all humane societies show
that, of prosecutions for cruelty to animals, an overwhelming majority
refer to the horse; and of these, a large proportion are for working horses
while suffering from lameness in one form or other.

'So frequent are such cases that observers have concluded that their
prevalence must result from some specific cause, and, not unnaturally,
attention has thus been directed to the various modes of management
practised in relation to the horse's foot, to the manner of shoeing, and,
in particular, to the way in which the foot is prepared for the shoe.'

It must be remembered, however, that although harm in the forge may
frequently arise from culpable roughness or carelessness, such is not
necessarily always the case, and that quite as much injury may result from
careful and conscientious workmanship when it is unfortunate enough to be
based upon principles wrong in themselves to commence with.

It so happens, too, that shoeing, in itself a necessary evil, may be
responsible for injuries in the causation of which the smith can have
played no part. Take, for example, the ill effects following upon the
animal's attendant allowing him to carry his shoes for too long a time.
In this case the natural growth of the horn carries the heel of the shoe
further beneath the foot than is safe for a correct bearing; in fact,
anterior to the point of inflection of the wall. The shoe, at the same
time, is greatly thinned from excessive wear. Result, a sharp and
easily-bended piece of iron situate immediately under the seat of corn.
Pressure or actual cutting of the sole is bound to occur, and the animal is
lamed.

Again, apart from the question of negligence or otherwise on the part of
the smith or the animal's attendant, it must be remembered that the nailing
on to the foot of a plate of iron is not giving to the animal an easier
means of progression. The reverse is the case. In place of the sucker-like
face of the natural horn is substituted a smooth, and, with wear,
highly-polished surface. Slipping and sliding attempts to gain a foothold
become frequent, and strains of the tendons and l