First gentle him well on both sides, about the saddle, and all over,
until he will stand still without holding, and is not afraid to see you
any where about him.
As soon as you have him thus gentled, get a small block, about one foot or
eighteen inches in height, and set it down by the side of him, about where
you want to stand to mount him; step up on this, raising yourself very
gently; horses notice every change of position very closely, and if you
were to step up suddenly on the block, it would be very apt to scare him;
but by raising yourself gradually on it, he will see you, without being
frightened, in a position very near the same as when you are on his back.
As soon as he will bear this without alarm, untie the stirrup strap next
to you, and put your left foot into the stirrup, and stand square over it,
holding your knee against the horse, and your toe out, so as to touch him
under the shoulder with the toe of your boot. Place your right hand on the
front of the saddle and on the opposite side of you. Taking hold of a
portion of the mane and the reins as they hang loosely over his neck with
your left hand; then gradually bear your weight on the stirrup, and on
your right hand, until the horse feels your whole weight on the saddle;
repeat this several times, each time raising yourself a little higher from
the block, until he will allow you to raise your leg over his croop, and
place yourself in the saddle.
There are three great advantages in having a block to mount from. First, a
sudden change of position is very apt to frighten a young horse that has
never been handled; he will allow you to walk up to him, and stand by his
side without scaring at you, because you have gentled him to that
position, but if you get down on your hands and knees and crawl towards
him, he will be very much frightened, and upon the same principle, he
would frighten at your new position if you had the power to hold yourself
over his back without touching him. Then the first great advantage of the
block is to gradually gentle him to that new position in which he will see
you when you ride him.
Secondly, by the process of leaning your weight in the stirrups, and on
your hand, you can gradually accustom him to your weight, so as not to
frighten him by having him feel it all at once. And in the third place the
block elevates you so that you will not have to make a spring in order to
get on to the horse's back, but from it you can gradually raise yourself
into the saddle. When you take these precautions, there is no horse so
wild, but what you can mount him without making him jump. I have tried it
on the worst horses that could be found, and have never failed in any
case. When mounting, your horse should always stand without being held. A
horse is never well broke when he has to be held with a tight rein while
mounting; and a colt is never so safe to mount, as when you see that
assurance of confidence, and absence of fear, which causes him to stand
without holding.