Regency Travel: Advice and Directions with Respect to the Purchase of a Horse

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I discovered this amazing resource The Complete Farrier, Or Gentleman’s Travelling Companion: Comprising a General Description of the … Horse, with a Concise Account of His Diseases, Their Symptoms and Remedies …. (1809) that has a variety of helpful hints, recipes, and also an amazing guide to buying a horse!

This is a good sized chapter that starts with the general comments (Advice and Directions) and continues with specific things to look for in terms of head, moving, legs, etc.   I have also snipped the “test drive” portion, because I think it also has some helpful, general hints.

 ADVICE AND DIRECTIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE PURCHASE OF A HORSE THE chicanery and artifice too generally practised by dealers in horses renders it necessary that unwary as well as unskilful purchasers should have some rules laid down by which they may in a degree avoid or guard against such fraudulent and dishonourable practices Indeed it is to be lamented that some men who evince a proper regard for moral rectitude in their ordinary transactions will when selling a horse deviate from their true character by extolling the animal beyond his real merit or by concealing material faults or latent defects in direct violation of truth and candor We shall now describe the horse in as brief a manner as possible noticing some of the most material imperfections and shall also lay down some rules by which the age may be judged of with a tolerable degree of certainty at least until he arrives at an advanced age The purchaser ought first to examine the horse as he stands in the stall when no person is near him and observe whether he stands firm and steady on all his legs if he shifts their position
frequently and appears restless it indicates hard usage or something worse and although it may not be a sufficient reason alone to decline a purchase the cause ought first to be well inquired into

RIDE YOURSELF AFTER a minute examination such as before recommended should you be of opinion that the horse is likely to answer your purpose mount yourself and ride him a few miles alone otherwise you cannot judge correctly of his gaits or spirits as most horses go much freer and better in company than they do alone This is a proper time also to observe his wind Such trial is the more necessary as it is not uncommon to meet with horses whose gaits and actions are pleasing to the eye yet when mounted are intolerably rough and unpleasant to the rider and often addicted to start and stumble Do not permit yourself to be hurried into the purchase of a horse because he is a beautiful figure or otherwise fascinating in his external app pearance but always examine more than once before you purchase otherwise it is highly probable

that some material defects will escape your notice especially if you are not a critical judge This caution is the more necessary because your morals as well as pecuniary interest may both suffer For should it so happen that by making a hasty purchase you get a horse defective in some essential points that will by no means answer the intended purpose you may possibly be induced to commence the jocky to get him off your hands and in order to do this with the least loss to yourself you may not consider it indispensibly necessary to acquaint the purchaser perhaps as unwary as yourself with the whole truth respecting the defective animal in which case your morals will most certainly be impli cated It is also necessary to have particular regard to the kind of service for which the horse is intended If for the saddle or any active service the middle size say about fifteen hands high well formed as before described is to be prefer red but if for a slow and heavy draught the larger and stronger the better Small horses answer equally well for the purposes of agriculture as well as for many other employments to which their strength are adequate

All the extraordinary qualities and exact symmetry before described will seldom or ever be met with in any one horse the purchaser however will no doubt give a preference to those that approach them the nearest 245

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