UNFAVOURABLE RESULTS. 605 hunting-field. It is scarcely necessary to say that none of these articles gave evidence of the most trifling acquaintance with the subject of horse-shoeing, and many of them appeared to be influenced solely by the special exigencies of an embryo horse-shoe company, destined to invest money and make fortunes out of one of the most pretentious inventions perhaps ever introduced to the notice of the British public. No horseman, nor yet any competent man of science whose opinion is worth having, has yet ventured, so far as I am aware, to commend it in this country; and all the proper experiments hitherto made with it have, I believe, turned out unsatisfactory, or complete failures. As might have been anticipated, it has proved a most injurious method of shoeing; the percentage of crippled horses has been very great, and far beyond that attending the ordinary improper mode of shoeing; the number of shoes cast and lost has been far above the usual average, and horses have cut, stumbled, tumbled, and limped from corns, to my certain knowledge, quite as much, if not more, than with the worst application of the old system. This appears to be acknowledged so far, as the only humane method' now tolerates hot fitting apparently to any extent, and also sanctions the employment of calkins at the extremities of the heels, with other modifications, which leave one in doubt how much of the American invention will remain after a few months' longer trial in England. Where it has now and again succeeded in gaining a testimonial, has no doubt been largely due either to these modifications, or to circumstances in which any other ordinary shoe would have been equally successful. It will be seen by referring to our history of shoeing, that the only claim to scientific farriery which can be admitted in this new system-allowing the frog to reach the ground-is no novelty, and is achieved by the mutilation of the best portions of the sole and crust. A very much less pretentious, though promising to be a far more useful, invention, is the quite recent one of Mr Gray of Sheffield, the patentee and manufacturer of grooved steel and steel-faced bars, to be made into horseshoes. Shoes made from these rolled bars have the ground surface cut into a series of ridges and teeth of various forms (figs. 201, 202, 203), adapted to secure a firm foothold, and prevent horses from slipping or falling on the pavement of large towns. Owing to their being manufactured either entirely or partially of steel-in the latter case the steel is on the ground surface-they can be tempered so as to preserve their denticulated surface in an efficient condition for some time; a rather important feature to be noted. According to Mr Gray, 'shoes made from this material will not require sharpen fig. 203 STEEL-FACED SHOES. 607 ing in winter, and will be found of universal advantage on the road or in the field; they are one-third lighter, will last longer, and look much better than any other shoes.' The combination of steel and iron appears to be that best adapted for horse-shoes that require to be tempered, as they are less liable to fracture, and should be less expensive—indeed the patentee asserts that shoes can be made at a very little more expense than the ordinary ones, over which they are said to possess such advantages. I regret I have not had sufficient time to submit this invention to the test of experiment, but from what I have seen of it, I am in hopes that it may prove useful in the triple view of lightness, durability, and increased surety of footing, more particularly in winter. The fitted shoe looks very neat, and, as may be seen, the ground face can be ridged or serrated in any fashion. The foot surface is nearly, if not quite, plane. These shoes can be turned, fitted, and put on by any ordinary farrier, and the holes may be made wherever they are required. 608 CHAPTER XIV. IMPORTANCE OF SHOEING TO CIVILIZATION. THE GREEKS AND ROMANS. INCONVENIENCES ATTENDING THE EMPLOYMENT OF UNSHOD ANIMALS. ROADS AND CITIES. MANUAL LABOUR. INTRODUCTION OF SHOEING, AND ITS EFFECTS. VARIETIES OF BREEDS OF HORSES. CHANGES IN THE ART OF WAR. INCREASE IN CAVALRY. ARMOUR. RIDING DOUBLE. HEAVY EQUIPMENT. INCREASING IMPORTANCE OF SHOEING. EXAMPLES. NAPOLEON'S RETREAT FROM MOSCOW. DANISH RETREAT FROM SCHLESWIG. FARRIERS' STRIKE IN PARIS. THUS far, then, have we endeavoured to trace the history of horse-shoes and horse-shoeing. We have seen that there is not sufficient evidence to testify that the Greeks and some other ancient races whom we may designate 'horse-loving,' employed an iron defence nailed to the feet of their solipeds; that, though the Romans of a comparatively later age must have, to some extent, been aware of, and perhaps practised, this art, yet their writers do not mention it; and, from the testimonies before us, we might almost be inclined to conclude that the Romans only resorted to it in those countries which they had invaded or conquered, and where they already found it in use; that shoeing with iron plates and nails was known to some, at any rate, of the Celtic and Germanic tribes settled in the West probably long before our era; and IMPORTANCE of shoeing TO CIVILIZATION. 609 that from these people the art, more or less modified, and perhaps improved, has descended to our own days, a thousand-fold more necessary to us than it was to them. It is quite possible, and even extremely probable, that for a long period shoeing was but rarely resorted to by the people who were aware of its utility; and if, as is surmised, the art was kept a secret by the Druid priests, this may account for the Romans being unacquainted with its application for some time after their having been in contact with the so-styled barbarous nations of Gaul, Ger many, and Britain. Before this device was adopted, horses must have been almost exclusively employed to carry riders, who were nearly always warriors; or to drag those light tiny chariots said to be the invention of Erichthonius, the Athenian, or their modifications—the currus arcuate, the lectica, the carpentum, and the carruca, which, drawn by one or more horses, were seldom used except in the Grecian or Roman games. In the heroic ages, indeed, they appear to have been almost solely employed for the speedy conveyance of warriors on the march or into action, that they might be vigorous for the fight, and attack where most suitable. When these war-chariots appear with three horses, one of that number was often a spare steed to replace either of the other two that might be disabled from wounds, or perhaps have its feet worn to the quick. For long journeys, mules were preferred either for riding or draught purposes, because of the natural thickness and resistance of their hoofs; so that it may not have been a matter of fashion, but necessity, which compelled the Roman emperors and the Roman ladies to go about in equipages drawn by mules |