Horsemanship.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 13 May 1910, Page 4

Horsemanship.

It is a rooted opinion of most colouiaU but especially Australians, that Australasia possesses the best horsemon in the world (renuirks the '•Manawatu Daily Times ,, ). H is a rooted opinion in America that the cattle States have that distinction, and in India, the cradle 0/ tho horseback games, that some, of the Indian mounted peoples can ride as Well a.s anyone ever did. Probably the Arabs'or tlu> Khirgiz coiild_ slk;;w any of them tho way, and it is generally recognised that Hungary has some fino horsemen. Tell tbi' ordinary colonial, however, that a Belgian or an Italian could do on a horse what k> could not do, and you would probably be asked to go nnd and "get your head read." There are' few 'men in the world who can ride through trees like Australian stockmen. Xew Zuahinders can't, simply because the Xew Zealand bush was so dense that they never learnt that wonderful knack of keeping out of tho way of branches that tho Australian has developed. To get ci nfideucmit that you have to learn it young. Ull the other hand, we have horsemen in the Paraekuretu hill country, for instance, who will ride up and down hill.s in a fashion, that makes the ''tint" rider's hair .stand 011 end, and wo have riders of tho old school, like Mr John Stevens, and men of tho modern, school it won! ! bo invidious to name. Take him all round, the Xew Zealand™ , or Australian is very much more «-i.'...p'tabJe as a, horseman and would probably learn to ride under varying conditions quicker than an Englishman, though livlaud and England possess some ol tho world's beat cross-country horsemen. _ It is when we como to Iho Continent Cavalry Schools, however, thflt we find some surprising horsemanship. A little time ago there were shown at the Opera Mouse a series of pictures of the training ci Italian cavalrymen, and the horsemanship shown ' a net the tests successfully surmounted were it revelation to those who had not followed thy thoroughness of European cavalry training who based their estimates on the way the British Yeomanry foil off in South Africa.