DRIVING FOUR
About the year 1840, with the advent of railways in England,
coaching, for a time at least, practically came to an end. Before
that time, all transportation of passengers, mail, and small
merchandise was by coach. The mail-coaches were under government
control, and as representing the Sovereign, had rights and
privileges, and were entitled to respect. Many of the present-day
usages are reminders of that time, and relics of ancient customs.
That other vehicles should give way to the mail-coach, that the
constables should salute as it passed, that other coachmen should
recognize it by saluting, can be readily appreciated. In England
to-day, the coaches running out of London with their loads of
passengers, bent on a day's pleasant outing merely, are treated
much in the same way. All but surly drivers make way for them, the
police salute, many of the other coachmen salute, and the forms of
what were once realities still obtain.
Both there and here many people forget, that these coaches must
take out a license, and are bound by the laws governing other
vehicles employed for the transportation of passengers. The coach
put on each season by the Coaching-club of New York, and which has
run latterly from the Holland House to Ardsley on the Hudson and
return, although it may be done primarily for sport, is none the
less governed by the terms of its license. Hence it is that a good
sportsman, in undertaking such a duty, goes rain or shine, makes a
point of being on time, insists upon promptness, not as a fad of
his own, but because these are the implied articles of agreement
between him and the city when he takes out his license. Like all
other good sport, there is an element of hard work and tyranny in
it. The coachman must at all times obey the laws of the sport.
To buy, train, and drive the horses, and carry out a successful
schedule for six weeks or so, with the innumerable details
involved, is a task requiring knowledge, experience, tact, and
patience. The man who can do this may be said to have passed his
postgraduate examination as a first-class coachman.
There are not many men who can do that, but there is plenty of
sport to be had in driving four horses, this side of that supreme
ability. Men who lack the time, money, knowledge, and experience to
put a coach on the road may still, with benefit to themselves, and
to the inmates of their stables, drive four horses. Although there
was coaching in a sense in this country, from Revolutionary times
and before (see Chapter III.), the first regular English coach
sent to this country to be used for pleasure driving was imported
in 1860 by Mr. Lawrence of Boston. The first public coach was put
on the road in 1876 by Colonel Delancey Kane, and ran from the
Brunswick Hotel, New York, to Pelham.
Monotony probably destroys more people than any one form of
dissipation. Humanity wearies of the round of duties day after day,
and attempts by drink, or dissipation, or by running away from
duty, to break in upon it or to break away from it. It takes the
very highest qualities to stick it out, whatever may be the duty.
Plato maintained that change is rest. Many men work all the time;
their only rest is change of work. He is a diplomat in life who
remembers this dangerous quality of monotony, and in his own life,
and the life about him, seeks to diversify it.
This principle can be applied to the subject of driving as well, if
not better, than to most others. To drive one horse, over one road,
day in and day out, becomes a weariness to the flesh, instead of
a refreshment. If you have only one horse, you can at least both
ride him and drive him. If you have two, you can drive them abreast
as a pair, or one in front of the other as a tandem, and both can
be ridden. As soon as your stable enlarges to four, you can have
no end of variety if care and patience are exercised. Strange to
say, too, the horses join in the fun. A horse likes a new road and
enjoys going in a new way. It will take time and trouble to teach
your horses to go tandem, and in a four; but once they are taught,
they enjoy it quite as much as you do. Of course we are writing
now of those who wish to get practice and pleasure out of their
stables, not merely for those who use their horses for purposes of
transportation only. Do not start out with the notion that the only
way to drive a tandem, or a four, is to have exactly the proper
vehicle, the right harness to the shape of a buckle, and horses of
just such and such a character. The show ring is one thing; driving
for sport and pleasure is quite another.
Practically any man who will spend enough money can win prizes in
the show ring; and it is only occasionally nowadays, when so much
money is spent for show-ring horses and equipages, that a man of
moderate means can hope to win in these tournaments. He may by good
judgment, in buying and training, bring out a winner now and then;
but he has little chance against those who are willing to pay any
price for a ready-made winner.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXI.]
It is a good thing to know how horses and vehicle should be turned
out, even down to minute details; but a book, a coach-builder,
a harnessmaker and a bank-account never yet made a sportsman,
at this, or any other game. As has been said before in another
chapter, "form" is only rational when it is the proper clothing of
an idea; it is ridiculous and unworthy when it is merely an idea of
proper clothing.
Of tandem driving we have written in another chapter. If you cannot
have a four, costing, with coach, horses, and harness, $15,000
or more, why not have just as much sport, and far more valuable
experience, by a more economical arrangement? Buy your horses with
a purpose, to begin with. Let the saddle-horses serve as leaders,
the blockier, heavier harness horses in the wheel. Or if you run to
smaller sizes, two of 15.1 in the wheel and your polo ponies 14.2
in the lead, with a pony break behind them, make a capital four. If
a second-hand harness is not procurable, terrets on your wheelers'
saddles and bridles make any stout double harness serviceable; and
an extra pair of long reins and long traces fit out your leaders,
and there you are. Any man who can afford to keep four horses can,
if he will give the problem time and trouble, have the practice of
driving four.
Be it said at once that the best practice is that of driving
different teams every day, and that can only be obtained where
there is a good deal of road coaching, and you are of an ability
to be permitted to drive. Next to that, probably, comes the
experience and knowledge to be derived from getting together,
harnessing, bitting, and getting to go, a four out of your own
stable. Most books and most teachers deal with the subject of
driving four as though appearances counted ninety-seven per cent,
and your own pleasure and profit three per cent.
We are dealing with four-in-hand driving here as a pastime, as an
opportunity for variety in your own driving, and as a refreshing
change in their way of going for your horses. Remember always that
it is not hard on, but good for, your horses to give them variety
of work. Horses that are well housed, carefully fed and watered,
comfortably harnessed, and discreetly driven are much better for
change of scene and change of work. This is not intended to mean
that a light, high-strung lady's saddle-horse is improved by being
put to work in the wheel of a break; or that, of any horse, too
much work or the kind of work to which he is palpably unsuited
should be required of him. What is maintained here is that very few
owners of horses get all the fun out of them that there is to be
had.
These questions of pole-chains or leather pole-pieces, this or that
shape of bit,--so long as the bit fits the inside of the horse's
mouth,--housings or no housings, stable-clothes or breeches and
boots, are all matters that come after, not before, driving. The
study of appearances comes after the knowledge of essentials,
not before. Appearances as the result of knowledge take care of
themselves; but the mere study of appearances teaches nothing. When
you have learned to harness and put to your horses, start, stop,
turn them, and keep them going evenly, at a proper pace; and when
your thong is as easily handled as a walking-stick, then will be
time enough to investigate matters of buttons, hat brims, curve of
bit-shanks, whiphandles, cut of greatcoats, and methods of saluting
with the whip.
A certain amount of strength is the first requisite in driving four
horses. It is calculated that the weight on the hand of the four
reins, averages from six to ten pounds for a light, well-bitted
team, less perhaps for a perfect team, and running up as high as
twenty-five, to even more, pounds in holding a team going down
hill. The writer remembers the painful numbness of the left forearm
when he first drove four, years ago. It is well to invigorate the
arms, and to begin a very little at a time at this exercise, or an
overdose at a first lesson may put the forearm out of commission
for some days. Pulleys, dumb-bells, Indian clubs, or carrying a
loaded walking-stick will muscle up the arm and put it in condition.
The use of the four-in-hand whip is so all-important that it
should not be left to the last, but practised persistently from the
start. Many teams, bitted and trained by professionals and only
driven in the park by their owners, require almost no use of the
thong; and as a result many drivers of four horses can hardly put
up a thong, let alone use it with any success.
Place the point of the thong under the fingers, grasping the stick,
not at the end, but at the point where the ferrule encircles it
(Plate XXXI.). Swing the point of the stick from left to right with
a slight downward movement, then make a quick half circle from left
to right and upward, and your thong will curl around your stick
three or four times and hold there. The lower part of the thong
will curl around the handle the opposite way. Between the upper and
lower coil will hang a bight of the thong (Plate XXXI.). Move your
stick over to the left or driving hand, pull out the lower coil
with the thumb and forefinger of that hand, and place the point
of your thong again under your right hand, the thong now going
around the stick in the same direction all the way down so that
it is easily unwound when wanted (Plate XXXI.). The point of the
thong is more secure in your right hand if it is wrapped a couple
of times around the handle, though there is high authority against
this practice, on the ground that it is not so easy to unwind your
thong when wanted. If you are a beginner, you will find it safer
to make the couple of turns around the handle. Mr. Bronson, who was
one of the very best of our American whips, held, and with justice,
that the point of the thong should not be wrapped around the stick,
maintaining that just when the hands were needed it required two
hands to undo it. The whip should be held pointing upward and to
the left. When the thong hangs over the middle of the back of the
near wheeler, your whip will be in about the right position.
The way usually recommended for putting up the thong is to make a
large S on the wall and follow this with the point of the whip,
beginning at the bottom and moving across from left to right. To
do this, start slowly from left to right, and let the upper curve
be made with a turn of the wrist which will bring the fingers
uppermost at the finish.
It is exasperatingly easy, and exasperatingly difficult. Once you
get the knack, it is like skating and swimming, you wonder how you
were ever puzzled. If these directions are not clear, get some
one to pound it into you by persistent instruction; for, of all
awkward things, none is more so than the confusion arising from a
dangling thong, that cannot be made to go up, and stay up, where
it belongs. Nothing but constant practice makes one comfortable
with the whip. If you are driving in the country, unwind and put
up your thong constantly; even take out your four-in-hand whip
with one or two horses, and practise, practise, practise. Some
day, in a crowded street or in the park, when a cut of the whip
is imperatively necessary and a quick return of the thong to its
place as necessary, you will not regret a moment of the time spent
in this way. Do not trust to luck in this matter. What is usually
called "luck" is, after all, the happy way ability and opportunity
have of often meeting. Keep your thong pliable, otherwise it will
not stay in its place and be difficult to put up.
In using your whip, make as little fuss and noise as possible; each
horse should be hit so that the other three hear nothing and know
nothing. Do not flick a horse, but hit and draw the thong at the
same time, then it means something. In putting up your thong, do
not make a flourish with the arm. It is just as easy to put the
thong up with the right elbow at the side.
The wheelers should be hit in front of the pad, down the shoulder;
it is better to hit the off wheeler on the off shoulder if his mate
is restive.
If there is kicking, the best punishment is a cut over the ears. In
hitting the off leader, swing the point of your stick out to the
right; once the thong is unwound, make a turn, and bring the stick
forward quickly, when the thong will travel forward under the
stick. Always aim to hit a leader under his traces, and when you
hit him let him know that he has been hit. Always aim farther ahead
than you mean to hit. You cannot go too far, and you may be short.
To catch the thong again, take it back, away from your horses, and
point the stick over your left arm, allowing the thong to fall
first, or point your stick up, and let the thong slide down the
inside of it to your hand. Pull the thong through with the finger
and thumb of the left hand till the point is within a few inches of
the right hand, then put up the thong as directed.
To hit the near leader is a little more difficult, and a good
reason, by the way, for putting the lazier leader on the off side.
Untwist your thong as before on the right side of you, swing the
thong over all your horses so that it hangs on the left side of the
coach, then with a turn of the stick shoot your thong as before,
stopping the point of the stick at about the pad of the near
wheeler, when the point of the thong will hit the near leader's
hocks. In getting your thong back from this position, swing it from
left to right over all your horses, and point the stick again over
the left arm, when the thong will fall over the reins near the hand
or, if well done, into the hand. Then proceed as before. The near
wheeler may be hit on the quarters also, by throwing the lash
between the heads of the wheelers, though this is condemned by many
as a bad practice. This needs practice, particularly in getting
your thong back to your hand.
Never attempt to use the whip while the right hand is on the reins
or holding a rein. First, because you cannot use the whip with any
effect, and second, because you are sure to jab one of your horses
in the mouth by a jerk on the rein you happen to be handling. See
that your thong is all clear before attempting to put it up. You
will find that it has a disconcerting way of catching on the rein
buckles, the handles of the foot-board, or even on the lamps. If in
using your thong it catches in any part of the harness, treat it
gently; do not pull at it, which only makes it hold faster; and if
it will not come loose by these measures, send the servant down to
loosen it. If your thong catches in boughs of trees or the like, do
not hang on to the stick, but let the whole thing go and send back
for it.
In saluting, drop your whip into your left hand and take off your
hat if it be a lady you would recognize. Few things are more
parochial in these matters than to see a man making a conspicuous
sword salute with his whip to a lady who is either in another
vehicle or on the road. In saluting others, a movement of the
whip from left to right with the forearm is enough. It has the
merit of not taking the right hand far from the reins, and is less
conspicuous than the use of the whip as a sword, by bringing the
handle up to your chin.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXII.--DRIVING FOUR]
It is an old-time custom among the drivers of road-coaches in
England to take off the hat to a chimney-sweep. Just why it is
supposed to bring luck, like killing spiders in the morning and
letting them live in the evening, and fifty other fancies of a like
kind, the writer cannot explain. In approaching trouble, where you
are likely to need your thong, unwind it and hold only the point
under your thumb. A cut in time may save a whole side of harness!
Four horses with a heavy vehicle behind them--a drag weighs from
twenty-one to twenty-four hundred pounds, a public coach from
twenty-four hundred to three thousand pounds--and loaded with
passengers occupies a good deal of space, gathers a good deal of
momentum, and needs a good deal of skill in its governor. The very
assumption of the task of driving is a great responsibility. No man
should undertake it lightly.
To know the whole game, and to do it supremely well, requires many,
many months of constant and studious practice. The easier it looks,
the more capable is the man who makes it look easy to you. Do not
for a moment be deceived into thinking that it is really easy. The
consequences of thinking so may contain, not only disasters of the
most awkward kind, but death also.
Begin at the very beginning, with the harnessing and putting to of
your horses. Depend only upon a good and trustworthy builder for
your vehicle. If you buy a second-hand one, choose it with a friend
who knows what such a vehicle should be, and then have it gone over
thoroughly by your carriage builder.
Of the harnessing of the horses we have already written. It needs
to be added, that in harnessing four all the details of fit and
stoutness of leather and proper bitting should be more than ever
looked after. Before your horses are brought out have the pole in
its place and the lead-bars hung on the pole-hook. Have a look
yourself to see that the pole-pin is securely in its place. Bring
out your wheelers, hook the pole-chains to the kidney-link ring,
giving ample room to back them so that the traces may be put over
the roller-bolts,--outside trace first, then the inside one,--then
tighten the pole-chains by passing the hook through the kidney-link
ring from the inside out so that it will come out away from the
pole. The length of this chain must depend upon the good or bad
roads you are proposing to drive over, and upon other things
already discussed (Chapter XIII.). When your horses are poled
up, they are drawn toward the pole, and you will notice that the
inside trace is therefore shorter than the outside trace. This
difference should be taken up by enlarging the inside roller-bolt
by wrapping it, never by punching holes in the trace, and thus
weakening it. Then fasten the coupling-reins to their bits, and
fasten your reins over your off wheeler's pad-terret, or let them
be drawn through above the trace and tug-buckle from the front,
back.
Then bring out your leaders and fasten their traces to their bars.
The leaders may be put to with their traces on their own bars; with
the traces crossed on the inside, each horse working off his mate's
bar; with the traces crossed, but each horse working off his own
bar. The first is best for well-trained, evenly working horses. The
second is advocated by those who consider that this method makes
the work more even, and keeps the lazy horse up to his work. The
third is mainly to keep the leaders more together. The bars of the
leaders may be fastened together with a strap for the same reason.
Never use a chain for this purpose as, in case of a leg over the
trace or any similar accident, a chain cannot be cut and promptly
undone.
This lapping of the traces is a matter each man should work out
for himself, after noticing how his particular leaders go most
comfortably. This lapping of the traces also keeps the traces away
from the horses' sides, and in hot or muddy weather this is a
consideration.
Buckle your coupling-reins to the bits, run them through their
terrets, and, together with the wheel-reins, push them through from
in front above the trace and tug-buckle of the off leader.
Put up your thong, lay the whip over the wheelers' backs, and as
a precaution push the end of it between the back-strap. If your
whip is in the socket, it is in your way in getting up, it may be
broken by your passengers, or it may be played with by an ignorant
passenger and dropped, or at any rate, the thong loosened. If
the whip is placed across the toe-board no one can mount to the
box-seat while it is there. If you are driving alone and studying
your team, the whip is better on the toe-board, where it is not
easily displaced and does not annoy the wheelers; otherwise the
best place is across the backs of the wheelers. A piece of steel
covered with leather on the lead-reins (Fownes of London used
ivory) just in front of the coupling-buckle prevents these slipping
through the lead-terrets, as may easily happen if either horse
plunges or hangs back.
If no bearing-reins are used, the throat-latches should be snug,
since they alone hold the bridle on the horse's head. In breaking
in a team, bearing-reins properly adjusted do no harm and are a
safeguard. If necessary, start with them very loose and shorten
them when the horse is warmed up, and his neck muscles are more
pliable. If the bearing-reins are fastened up before the start,
there will be backing, rearing, and jibbing, all of which may be
obviated by tightening the bearing-reins after the start.
If you are to drive over good level roads, your wheelers may be
placed as near the coach as will enable them to go at a good
gait without hitting the splinter-bar or wheels. The length
of wheel-traces should be about ninety-seven inches, of the
lead-traces about ninety inches. With smaller horses the traces
are, of course, proportionately shorter. A long drawn out team
is hard on the arm and hand, not so easily manœuvred, and, being
farther from their work and from you, not so likely to be easily
handled.
On Western roads in this country, the four horses are put much
farther from the coach and from one another, and given plenty of
leeway as to traces and pole-chains. Driving over their heavy,
rough roads necessitates this. If one of our compactly harnessed
teams attempted to work over their roads, the coach, passengers,
and horses' shoulders would be badly racked. Indeed, it is to be
doubted whether closely harnessed horses would not pull one another
down. The experienced coachman from the East does not sneer at the
long drawn out teams in the West; nor does the Westerner sneer at
the closely coupled teams of the East. Each is adapted to do its
own work. It is only the neophyte who sneers here or elsewhere,
and a stupid neophyte at that; for to sneer at ignorance is stupid,
and to sneer at stupidity, ignorant.
Now that you have your horses harnessed to your vehicle, have
another look round, for at this business a quiet start is more than
half the battle, and it is worth while to see to it that you may
get away without at once stopping, to arrange something about the
harness that has been neglected.
Now step back to the off wheeler's quarter, and with the right
hand take hold of the leaders' reins and place them in the left
hand where they belong, with the forefinger between them; then
take the wheelers' reins, and place them in the left hand with the
middle finger between them. You will then have: near leader's rein
over forefinger, off leader's rein under forefinger and on top of
the near wheeler's rein; the near wheeler's rein over the middle
finger, and under the off leader's rein, and the off wheeler's rein
under the middle finger. Then with your right hand pull out twelve
to eighteen inches of both off reins; see that the buckles of the
wheel-reins and the stitchings of the lead-reins are at an even
distance from the left hand, so that when you are seated on the box
the reins will be level. It saves time, trouble, and embarrassment
to be able to do this quickly and accurately. If you are beginning
or out of practice, it is well to get up and down with the reins
until they are the proper length in your hand.
Then put the reins in the right hand exactly as they were in the
left (or one finger lower down, so that the forefinger is free to
hold on in getting up; this is advised by some coachmen, but is
not necessary), throw the ends of the reins over your right arm,
take your whip in your right hand, and you are ready to mount. To
do this, put your left foot on the hub of the wheel, right foot
on the roller-bolt, left foot on the step, and right foot on the
foot-board, using your left hand to hold on with and leaving the
right hanging down. Sit down at once, for, having climbed so high,
it would be humiliating to tumble off if a horse started. Then put
the reins back in the left hand, where you should find them all of
about the proper length (Plate XXXII.). If they are not, get them
level without touching the mouths of the horses. In taking the
reins from their place to put them in the hand, it is usual to drop
the ends on the ground. If, however, you are on a muddy street or
wet pavement, put the ends of the reins over the little finger of
the right hand, which will keep them out of the mud and wet while
you are arranging them in your hand to mount.
Another way of taking up the reins is, instead of drawing out the
two off reins before mounting, to allow the two off reins to run
through the fingers as you mount to the box, which has, to be sure,
the advantage of keeping control of all four horses from the moment
you take up the reins. It is rare that a man drives four without
men at his horses' heads when he gets up, and for the beginner, at
any rate, the first-mentioned method is the simpler of the two.
Start quietly. Feel your horses' mouths gently as a reminder that
something is coming, give the word, let them have sufficient rein,
let the wheelers into their collars first, and go off quietly at a
walk. If you are driving a green team, or a mean team, or a team
you are making, always start from the stable yourself. Even if
your coachman is a better coachman than you are, it is best to get
away with them yourself, and to keep them amenable from the start.
Although it is advised here to let the wheelers start the coach,
the ideal way is to let all four horses feel their traces at the
same moment; but it is only under ideal circumstances and with an
ideal team that all four horses will dip into their collars at the
same instant, and walk off with the coach, without so much as a
flurry or a shake of the head at starting. Such horses are too good
to be true, and need very little driving.
Let the rugs or quarter-blankets be taken off quietly, not grabbed
off as a sort of "get-up" signal, and if your horses are at all
inclined to waver, let the grooms run ahead a few steps so that
the horses can see them and be tempted to go on with them, and
then, the team fairly started, they can drop back and take their
places on the coach. Let them have their heads at the start and get
them in hand after they are all in the traces. By checking a horse
suddenly at the start, with a too tight rein, or jabbing a leader
under the tail with the pole, or, worst of all, forgetting to take
the brake off and jerking the whole team back on their haunches at
the start, you may, you will indeed, so irritate your horses that
it will take your gentlest and most skilful behavior to get them
right and going pleasantly.
The writer knows one mare at least who behaves perfectly if
everything goes smoothly at the start, but if she is upset at
the start, the whole drive is spoilt by her behavior; nor is she
appeased till safely back in the stable. So, by all means, use
every endeavor, every artifice even, to get a good start.
As was duly emphasized in Chapter XIII., by far the greater part
of the comfort and skill in driving depends upon the give and take
of the left hand from the wrist, or with a slight movement forward
or backward of the hand itself. Turning the left hand up or down
with a movement to the right or left will, if your horses are
well in hand, guide them to the right or left. In starting, you
are usually on one side or the other of the road. To bring your
horses over, two small points to the left with the near lead-rein
under the thumb, the near wheel-rein under the forefinger; or if
to the right, the off lead-rein under the forefinger and the off
wheel-rein under the middle finger will give the direction, and,
once they are where you want them, the reins slip out, and you have
had the right hand free to be used if necessary. Or, turning the
left hand down with the knuckles toward the horses, bringing the
hand at the same time back to the left hip, will take them to the
right; while turning the left over, the knuckles toward you, and
the hand moved toward the body, will turn them to the left. This
movement of the left hand up or down shortens or lengthens the near
lead-rein.
There is an objection to moving the left hand about much, and
turns to the left and right are best made by "points" or "loops."
Before turning anywhere, always have your leaders well in hand. If
they have hold of the pole-end, the wheelers are helpless to turn
the coach. To turn to the left, take the near lead-rein with the
three lower fingers of the right hand and draw it back, catching it
under the left thumb, holding it fast till your team has responded
(see Plate XXXII.). To turn to the right, do the same thing with
your off lead-rein, holding it either under the thumb or under
the forefinger of the left hand (see Plate XXXII.). Under the
forefinger is better, since the rein is then in its proper place
to run out, just as in the former case under the thumb is better
for the same reason. Never pull a rein off to the side, but always
straight back toward you, so that the hands may never get too far
away from one another. Do not spoil your point by letting the left
hand go forward to meet it, but bring the point back with the right
hand, keeping the left hand in its place.
As soon as horses go much together as four, they get to know the
signals of the reins and sometimes respond too quickly. This
is especially so of the wheel horses. As soon as they feel the
lead-rein moving in their head terret, they begin to turn toward
it. In going round corners this results in the wheelers going
round too quickly, and perhaps running the coach on the curb or
against a post or pillar. An easy way to avoid this is by making
an "opposition point" so called. Before giving the office to your
near leader, and making the point with your near lead-rein to
turn to the left, take up the off-wheel rein and hold it over the
forefinger of the left hand (Plate XXXII.), then make your point,
and with one hand your leader is going round to the left, your
wheelers are kept away from the corner, and you have your right
hand to use on the reins, or with the whip to urge the wheelers
round.
In turning to the right, the same thing may be done by taking the
near wheeler's rein and passing it over the thumb of the left hand,
then point to the right (Plate XXXII.), and again you have your
whole team in one hand and doing your bidding. In turning a team
off to the left, in order to pass another vehicle, or in any case
where the turn is a slight one and to be made quickly, put the
right hand on the two near reins with the middle finger between
them, and as you draw them toward you let the left hand advance.
Place the right hand on the two off reins with the fourth finger
between them, and repeat the same manœuvre to go to the right.
Put the right hand well in advance of the left in doing this, and
pull directly toward you, otherwise you will pull the reins out
of the left hand and spoil the whole movement by contradictory
instructions to the horses' mouths. In pulling up to the left, you
may place both near-reins well over the thumb, and then use the
right hand as usual in stopping; this will bring your team over,
and stop them at the same time (Plate XXXII.).
It is obvious that all these "oppositions" may be made by using
the right hand on the reins. In most road driving this is done.
There are from time to time turns to be made round sharp corners,
into gateways, through narrow streets, coming down hill, or with a
dip down hill immediately after turning a corner, when the right
hand is imperatively needed. It is at such times that to know how
to make these "points" and their "opposition" is very useful. The
best way, therefore, is in times of peace to prepare for war by
using these "points" and "oppositions" frequently where they can be
made easily and without looking at the hands; then when you really
need them you know how without fumbling and flurrying to do what is
necessary.
When you wish to shorten your lead-reins, take them clean out of
the left hand, bring them back the required length, and replace
them. It is better and safer, however, so far as possible, to push
these, and other reins when possible, back from behind. To shorten
the wheel-reins, push them back one at a time--an awkward way--or
pull them both through from behind. The near wheel-rein, being the
most awkward rein to get at, should be shortened by pulling it from
behind. To shorten any other of the three separately, take it in
the lower fingers of the right hand and push it back the required
distance. To shorten all the reins, put the right hand on all four
reins, little and fourth fingers over both off reins, middle finger
between, and forefinger and thumb over the near reins, and push
them back a little at a time. As has been said before, if in a
hurry pull all four reins back from behind.
As the two reins together, the off-lead and near-wheel, are the
most troublesome to the beginner, it is well to remember that if
your leaders are straggling to the left and your wheelers to the
right, pushing these two centre reins back a little will put things
straight. For the opposite trouble, pulling them forward a little
will solve the problem. The leaders of a team are there to help
over heavy roads and in going up hill; but as they have no pole
to support them, their position is the more tiring one, and they
should be cared for accordingly and not allowed to pull all the
time. In crossing gutters or hollow places, be particularly careful
to have your leaders in hand, otherwise if they are straining on
the pole, the lift and jerk may break it. This is not an uncommon
accident, and a very awkward one.
Remember that because you are driving four horses you have no
peculiar rights and privileges over other American citizens, though
they be driving only one horse or a donkey. The courtesy of the
road will usually give the heavy load a chance, but you can only
ask, you may not demand it. On a public coach, making time and
carrying passengers for fare, the horn is both a safeguard and a
proper signal; but the tooting of a horn on all occasions in park,
village, and ordinary road driving is almost an impertinence.
_Cessante ratione, cessat et ipsa lex._ If you must have a horn
for protection, drive up and down your own back road until that
necessity is passed.
In stopping, get ready in advance and slow down gradually. Get your
leaders back a little, put your right hand on the reins as already
described, lift the left hand, push the right toward you, and come
to a stop with the horses as nearly as possible in their bits and
collars ready to start again (Plate XXXII.). The man who can stop
and start without a jerk is a good workman already.
Before getting down, put on your brake, always quietly, then shift
the reins into the right hand with the whip, step down, put the
reins into the tug-bearer as they were when you took them out, lay
your whip across the backs of the horses, and your task is done.
If there is to be a change of horses, or you are in your own stable
yard at the end of the journey, have your reins unbuckled, let
the leaders' reins be pulled through your hands by the grooms,
then throw down the wheel-reins, one on either side, or, as
circumstances of space demand, retain the wheel-reins, and drive
your coach where it is to stand by the wheelers alone, after the
leaders are out. Above all things, do nothing in a hurry; remember
that you are captain of the ship and should not leave it until
everything is shipshape and in order.
Where you have but one man at your service, he should stand at the
heads of the wheelers where he can hold them by their heads and
the leaders by their reins. Never attempt to hold or to stop a team
by running to the heads of the leaders. They cannot stop if they
would, with a coach and the two wheelers pushing them from behind.
Get to the heads of the wheelers and stop them, and thus, if it is
not too late to do it at all, stop the whole four.
Keeping four horses up to their work, or well in hand, does not
mean that they should be all, all the time, tugging at their
traces. They should be kept up to their bits all the time,
otherwise you have no control over them and no way of signifying
your wishes to them. If you have fenced, you know how absolutely
essential it is to keep in constant touch with your opponent's
sword. You feel him by feeling his sword. I have seen a skilful
French officer fence blindfolded with an inferior opponent, he
demanding only that he should be allowed to feel his opponent's
weapon at all times, except when he thrust, or parried. He could
apparently divine what was coming by the feel of his opponent's
rapier on his own. The feel of the bit in the horse's mouth is as
important. You can guess what the horse intends to do, and the
horse knows what you wish him to do. If the bit is not on his bars
with a gentle pressure all the time you are driving him, you are
cut off from any quick connection with him. This is what it means
to have your team in hand, that is, to be in constant communication
with your horses' mouths. Most beginners, owing to the weight of
reins in their hands, and because their leaders are so far away,
either lug on the reins, mistaking this for firmness, or they allow
the reins to dangle. You should feel each horse's mouth lightly,
but all the time. The lugging soon makes a puller; while the latter
carelessness produces what is known as a "nigger-broke" horse, or
one that is lazy and never quickly obedient to the bit.
If you are getting together a team for yourself and by yourself,
therefore, it is far better to drive each horse single until you
know his mouth, and then in pairs until you are quite familiar
with the way they like to go best as to bits, coupling-reins, and
the like. There are two classes of people who have accidents: the
beginners who are rash, and the old hands who are over-confident,
and hence careless. When your driving has gone smoothly for some
time you take less pains, a mistake is made, and trouble follows.
But even if carelessness does not result actually in accident,
remember that it is bad for the horses not to be kept strictly up
to the mark whenever they are driven. The horses become slovenly in
their work all too quickly, if you are careless in yours.
RULES FOR JUDGING PARK DRAGS AND │RULES FOR JUDGING PARK DRAGS AND
ROAD-COACHES, AS ADOPTED BY THE │ROAD-COACHES, AS ADOPTED BY THE
COACHING CLUB │COACHING CLUB
│
The drag should have a perch and be│The road-coach should be built
less heavy than a road-coach and │stronger than a park drag,
more highly finished, with crest or│especially as to the under-carriage
monogram on the door panels or hind│and axles, which latter should not
boot, or foot-board. │measure less than two inches in
│diameter.
│
The axles may be either mail or │The axles may be either mail or
collinges (not imitation). │collinges (not imitation).
│
The hind seat should be supported │The hind seat is usually supported
by curved iron braces, and be of a │by solid wooden risers, with
proper width for two grooms, │wooden curtain, but the supports
without lazy-back. │may be of curved iron, as in a park
│drag, in which case a stationary
│leather curtain is used. Its seat
│should be wide enough for at least
│two beside the guard, who should
│occupy the near side with an extra
│cushion. He should have a strap to
│take hold of when standing to sound
│the horn.
│
The lazy-backs on the roof seats │The lazy-backs of the box-seat,
should be turned down when not in │hind seat, and roof seats should be.
use. │stationary
│
The under side of the foot-board, │The under side of the foot-board,
together with the rises, should be │together with the risers of the box
of the same color as the │and rumble, should be of the same
under-carriage. │color as the under-carriage.
│
The body of the drag and the panel │The body of the coach and the panel
of the hind boot should correspond │of the hind boot should also
in color. │correspond in color.
│
The door of the hind boot should be│The door on the hind boot to be
hinged at the bottom, that it may │hinged on the off side to enable
be used as a table when open. │the guard to open it from the near
│hind step when the coach is in
│motion.
│
The skid and safety-hook (if │The skid and safety-hook must be
carried) should be hung on the off │hung on the off side in countries
side. │in in which it is customary to
│drive on the off side of the
│roadway, for the skid should be on
│the outside wheel or the coach will
│slide towards the ditch.
│
It is customary to trim the outside│The trimming of the outside seats
seats in either pigskinor cloth, │should be of carpet or any other
and the inside of the drag in │suitable material, not leather. The
morocco or cloth. │inside of the coach is usually
│finished in hard wood or leather.
│
The coachman's driving apron, when │The coachman's driving apron, when
not in use, should be folded on the│not in use, should be folded on the
driving cushion, outside out. │driving cushion, outside out.
Passengers' aprons, if carried, to │
be folded and placed on the front │
inside seat. │
│
A watch and case are not essential,│A foot-board watch with case should
nor is the pocket in the driving │be provided. The driving cushion
cushion. │should have a pocket on the near
│side.
│
There should be no luggage rails, │The iron rails on the roof, between
or straps on the roofbetween the │the front and back seats, should
seats. │have a lattice or network of
│leather straps to prevent small
│luggage, coats, rugs, etc., placed
│on the roof, from falling off.
│
Inside, the drag should have:-- │Inside, the coach should have:--
Hat straps fastened to the roof. │ Hat straps fastened to the roof.
Pockets on the doors. │ Leather pockets at the sides or
Places over the front or back │ on the doors.
seats where the lamps may │ An extra jointed whip.
be hung when not in use. │
An extra jointed whip. │
│
The umbrella basket when carried to│The basket shall be hung on the
be hung on the near side. │near side and in front of the
│guard's seat. The horn should be
│placed in the basket with its
│mouthpiece up.
│
Lamps off.--Lamps inside coach. │Side lamps in place and ready for
│use.
│
Two extra lead bars, consisting of │Two extra lead bars, consisting of
a main and side bar, fastened to │a main and side bar, fastened to
the back of the hind seat with │the back of the hind seat with
straps. Main bar above. │straps. Main bar above.
│
Lead bars put on with screw-heads │Lead bars put on with screw-heads
of furniture up. │of furniture up.
│
The following articles to be neatly│The following articles to be neatly
stowed inside the front boot:-- │stowed in a convenient part of the
A small kit of tools. │coach:--
An extra lead and wheel trace. │ A wheel jack.
A rein splicer or two double │ A chain trace.
buckles of different sizes. │ An extra bit.
Extra hame straps. │ Extra hame straps.
│ Extra lead trace.
│ A bearing-rein.
│ A rein splicer, or two double
│ buckles of different sizes. A
│ kit of tools, comprising a
│ wrench, hammer, cold chisel,
│ coil of wire, punch, hoof-pick,
│ and knife.
│ Two extra large rings for
│ kidney-links, or a pair of pole
│ pieces.
│
Loin-cloths for team and the │The guard should be appropriately
necessary waterproof aprons should │dressed and should have a way-bill
be carried in a convenient and │pouch with a watch fitted on one
accessible part of the drag. │side and a place provided for the
│key of the hind boot.
│
It is usual for a park drag to be │
fitted with luncheon boxes, wine │
racks, etc., also a box on the roof│
called an "imperial." This latter │
is never carried except when going │
to the races or a luncheon. │
│
Pole-chains should be burnished and│Pole-chains should be burnished or
have spring-hooks. The chains │black, but pole head and chains
should be of a length which will │must be alike. Hooks should have
admit of snapping both hooks into │india-rubberrings, not
the pole headring. If too short, │spring-hooks.
one end should be hooked in the │
pole headring and the other in a │Chains with single hooks should be
link. If too long, one end should │put on pole-head from inside out,
be snapped in the pole headring, │then passed through the
and the other brought through said │kidney-link, and hooked
ring (from the outside in) and │into one of the links of the
snapped in a link. │chains.
│
Cruppers with buckles on all horses│Cruppers on wheelers but not
preferred. │necessarily on leaders, unless
│bearing-reins are used. Trace
│bearers on the leaders from
│the hames to the tug buckles are
│permissible.
│
Loin straps and trace bearers are │No loin straps.
permissible. │
│
Face pieces (drops). │Face pieces (optional).
│
Martingale around the collars of │Martingale around the collar and
wheelers and not through │not through kidney-link alone.
kidney-link alone. │
│
Martingales on all horses. │No martingales on leaders;
│kidney-link rings on leaders.
│
Mountings of coach harness and the │Mountings, preferably of brass, but
buttons on servants' liveries │at least all of the same metal
should be of the same metal. │throughout.
│
Wheel traces with metal loop ends, │Wheel traces with French loop or
not chains. │chain ends. Chain put on roller
│bolt with chain out and ring in.
│
Wheelers' inside traces shorter │Wheelers' inside traces shorter
than outside traces, unless the │than outside traces, unless the
inside roller bolt is enlarged to │inside roller bolt is enlarged to
give the same result. │give the same result.
│
Lead traces straight or lapped, not│Lead traces lapped, crossed, or
crossed. │straight.
│
Eyes on ends of hames through which│Hook ends to hames.
the kidney-links pass. │
│
Plain kidney-links. │Chain and short kidney-links or all
No kidney-link rings on leaders. │chain.
│
Solid draught eyes on hames. │Ring draught eyes on hames.
│
Clip inside of trace leather, and │One or more bearing-reins are
showing rivet heads only. │optional.
│
Full bearing-reins with bit and │Cruppers with or without buckles.
bridoon. │Martingale back strap.
Buxton bits preferred. │
│
Single point strap to tug buckle. │
│
Metal or ribbon fronts to bridles. │Metal or leather fronts to bridles.
If ribbon, the color should match │If leather, the color to match the
the livery waistcoats. │color of the coach.
│
│
The crest or monogram should be on │A crest or monogram is not
the rosettes, face pieces, winkers,│generally used in road work, but
pads and martingale flaps. │instead lead bars or a special
Ribbon or colored rosettes are │device in brass is put on the
inappropriate. │winkers and rosettes.
│
Hame straps put on with points │Hame straps put on with points
inside; _i.e._ to the off side │inside; _i.e._ to the off side
on the near horse and the near side│on the near horse and the near side
on the off horse. │on the off horse.
│
Reins of single brown leather. │Reins of single brown leather.
│
Draught-reins sewed in one piece │Draught-reins sewed in one piece
with end buckles only. │with end buckles only.
│
Lead traces with screw-heads of the│Traces with screw-heads of the
cock-eyes up. │cock-eyes and chain ends up.
│
All parts of the harness should be │All straps preferably of single
double and neatly stitched. │leather.
│
Collars to be of black patent │Collars may be of patent, plain
leather, shaped to the neck. │black, or brown leather; straight,
│thick, and full padded.
│
The hames bent to fit the collar │The hames straight to fit the
accurately. │collar.
│
Harness black.--All straps should │Harness black or brown.
be of proper length, but not too │
short. │
│
When the owner or his │
representative drives, the stable │
shutters should be down; otherwise │
up. │
[Illustration: PLATE XXXIII.--PONY TANDEM]