receipt, because, after all poffible enquiry among the old wives of my acquaintance, I have been unable to trace the fignification of a moldywarp, or whether it be fish or flesh. Perhaps fome gentle reader may be able to help me out at a dead lift. I prefume, by this time, the reader has had enough of Gervafe Markham! Early in the reign of James I. came forth An Hipponomie, or The Vineyard of Horfemanship, by Michael Baret, graced with a number of dedications, one of which was to " Charles I. when prince." The fate of this writer is fomewhat fingular, and truly unmerited; for not only has his work funk into utter oblivion with the public (no uncommon cafe) but I know not of any author who has vouchfafed even to mention it; nevertheless, I will venture to pronounce, that upon an impartial examination, it will be found by far the ableft work of the kind, whether we confider the learning of its author, his practical knowledge of the Horse, or the utility of his rules, which our language could boast of, until the present century. Michael Baret, of Holland, in Lincolnshire, like his predeceffor Blundevill, a poor gentleman, poffeffed no common fhare of that species of erudition, fo highly in vogue, and esteemed fo effentially neceffary to a polite education, in the reign of pedantry and James. His argu VOL. I. C ments ments, upon whatever fubject, whether the most abftrufe and recondite, or the most common; whether he attempts to difcriminate and fix upon the precife point which divides speed from floutnefs in horfes, or to regulate the œconomy of bits, halters, and faddles; are all drawn from Euclid, Aristotle, and the Schools, and present themselves in the regular logical array of ma. mi. and con. to confront, or rather to confound the prefumptuous fceptic. He had read Dee's prefaces before, His book contains many more learned quotations than pages, and the fluency of his style, and his powers of amplification, are upon a level with his learning. He was moreover well read in many branches of useful science, and whoever will be hardy and patient enough to wade through the tedious labyrinths of his vineyard, and candid enough to make allowance for the quaintnefs of his ftyle, and the frequent unnatural ftrangeness of his conceptions, the mere confequence of the then prevailing education; fhall find great flore of important and useful observations, by no means inapplicable even to the prefent enlightened period. But the name of Baret ought ever to be mentioned with honour and refpect, were it only only on the confideration that he was the first of our countrymen who directed his efforts to expose, and write down, the barbarous and difgufting foreign practice of breaking horses, which then generally prevailed; and on such account furely his book muft have been acceptable to that truly excellent, humane, and good-natured prince, to whom it was addreffed. He reprobates, in a becoming and forcible manner, the use of lacerating and torturing bits, trammels for pacing, fhoes of advantage, weights on the loins, and all fuch abfurd and illegitimate methods of training the horse; recommending from right reason, and his own experience, the adoption of mild bits, and none other than gentle and perfuafive methods, attempered with firmness, and occafionally necessary severity. This rational and manly practice he confirms with the philofophic obfervation, that whatever conqueft is obtained by mere violence, is only exterior and temporary. The reader will I trust excuse me, if (feduced by my natural inclination) I amrather diffuse upon the merits of a writer who is the advocate of humanity. Baret treats of breeding, and of horsemanfhip in all its different branches, but not of veterinary medicine. He corrects Morgan in some peculiar notions, and condemns his conftant recourse to phyfic, which, in his own opinion, C 2 opinion, should be fparingly exhibited in the stable. The most valuable part of his work, is that which treats upon breaking, riding, and management. It is fomewhat remarkable, that the feat on horseback, recommended by Baret in the reign of James I. is precifely the fame as that practised by our jockies and sporting men of the prefent day; as are also his rules. for the management of brood mares, and the early training of racing cattle. He alfo describes and recommends (under the denomination of a help) the wriggling motion of the bridle in a race, as we fee it practifed at prefent, by jockies. The canter after water (fo much decried by fome writers) prevailed in his time, and had his approbation. It appears, by his book, that in thofe days it was a common custom to match their hunters to run after the hounds. He particularizes the bell-courfe, or regular race; the race to and again; the race back and again, with the wild-goofe chace; which laft I apprehend to be the fame, as has been fince called fteeple-hunting. If we look farther into the opinions of this author, we fhall find him exhibiting ftriking proofs of the imbecility and inconsistency of the human mind; for although he generally employs his pen (and that with fufficient warmth) in defence of fuch, as without risk, may be ftyled pure and demonftrable truths, and and in condemning the mean flavery of authority and prejudice, yet we easily discover, that he too, has his reserves in favour of particular opinions, which are not all beholding to reason for their support. He was fo enamoured with the manége, and the fyflem of regulating the progreffive motions of the Horse by art (a practice in which he no doubt excelled) that he fuppofed all the defects of Horfes arofe merely for want of proper training; which, in his ideas, would not only prevent refliveness, ftumbling, going too wide before or behind, and the defect ufually arifing from a cockthroppled neck, but even jadishness and enterfering. Slighting thofe divifions, or modes of progreffions, which nature herself hath prescribed to the Horse, and which, for that reason (with the leave of Michael Baret, and all other riding-mafters) must be the best, he esteemed no faddle-horse perfect which had not been taught an artificial pace; without even excepting running horfes, which he fuppofed by fuch means, might all be rendered ftout and tough, whatsoever nature might have previously decreed in their flamina or conformation. I wonder indeed he did not open an academy to teach human cattle to amble. This author affures us, with a gravity befitting the subject, that Horfes, as well as men, were originally created perfect; but that the former C3 |