are apt to get a habit
of leaning on it.

The value of the hunting pommel is very great. If the horse leaps
suddenly up, it holds down the left knee, and makes it a fulcrum to
keep the right one in its proper place. In riding down steep places it
prevents sliding forward, and assists greatly in managing a hard
puller. A rider cannot be thrown on it, and it renders it next to
impossible that she should be thrown on the other pommel; besides, it
gives the habit and figure a much finer appearance.

But it is necessary for every lady to have this pommel as carefully
fitted to her person as her habit is. Not only see the saddle in
progress, but _sit on it_. A chance saddle may seem to suit; so also,
if a No. 4 shoe is worn, a ready-made 4 may be wearable; but as a shoe
made to fit the wearer's foot is always best, so also is a saddle that
is adjusted to the rider's proportions.

A stirrup may be an advantage, if the foot is likely to weary; but
since the general introduction of the third pommel it is not necessary
to a woman in the way that it is to a man. A woman, also, is very apt
to make it a lever for "wriggling" about in her saddle,--a habit that
is not only very ungraceful, but which gives many a horse a sore back,
which a firm, quiet seat never does.

Reins should not be given to a learner; her first lessons should be on
a led horse. The best horsewomen in England have been taught how to
walk, canter, gallop, trot, and leap without the assistance of reins.
I do not advocate the plan for general use, but I do know that
learners are apt to acquire the habit of holding on by the bridle.

When the hand is trusted with reins, hold them in both hands. One
bridle and two hands are far better than two bridles and one hand. The
practice of one-handed riding originated in military schools; for a
trooper has a sword or lance to carry, and riding-schools have usually
been kept by old soldiers. But who attempts to turn a horse in harness
with one hand? Don't hold the reins as if you were afraid of letting
them go again, for this not only gives a "dead" hand, but compels the
rider's body to follow the vagaries of the horse's head. Lightly and
smoothly, "as if they were a worsted thread," hold the reins; and from
the time the horse is in motion till the ride is finished, never cease
a gentle sympathetic feeling upon the mouth. Women generally attain a
"good hand" easier than men. In the first place, it is partly natural
and sp