CHAPTER VII. Four-in-Hand—the Whip.

FOUR-IN-HAND—THE WHIP.

If, however, it is necessary to pull the reins through from behind, the lower fingers must be tightened on the handle so as to allow the thumb and forefinger to be used.

Always take care that the whip is in its right place, and the thong properly done up. [Sidenote: Angle of whip.] Hold the whip at an angle of about thirty degrees to the left front and about forty degrees upwards, and not as in the picture opposite (fig. 26).

The thong ought to have three or four turns round the stick, the first turn beginning close to or on the quill, which is always covered with black twine.

Do not hold the whip tighter than is absolutely necessary. In fact, when the hand is on the reins the grip may be released altogether for a time, as they will hold it up; this will give the thumb a rest. Holding it loosely also ensures the double thong hanging straight down, as then it will do so by reason of its own weight. It looks excessively bad to see the whip held all sideways, but it will constantly get into that position unless the tyro pays great attention to keeping it straight.

The collar is the plate about ten inches from the thick end of the stick, and is sometimes termed the top ferrule.

This is done almost entirely by the wrist, with only a slight movement of the arm.

The following rules should be followed in hitting the horses:—

The only place the point of the whip should ever crack is on the horse, and never under any circumstances in the air, which would be dangerous, especially to those on the back seat, besides being very unworkmanlike.

The lash should hit the leaders under the bars on their hocks, as it does not look well to see wheals or streaks of mud on the horses’ flanks and quarters.

This can be repeated until the point of the lash has been pulled up into the right hand, when the thong can be caught on the stick as usual. If you catch the lash straight into the right hand the point may be got hold of by throwing the point of the stick upwards, and allowing the lash to slide through the middle finger. This is not nearly such a good plan as that described above, for you may easily throw the lash away altogether, and thus have to catch it again. Be careful, when you have the point of the lash in the right hand, to see that the loop is well clear of everything before catching it up on the stick, as it often [Sidenote: See that thong is not caught on footboard.] gets caught round the handle of the footboard or against the reins, which utterly spoils the catch. [Sidenote: Never use whip when right hand on reins.] You should never hit a horse with the whip while the right hand is holding a rein; it looks very awkward, and is most unworkmanlike. Should you have a loop of a rein in the right hand, as you might have when going round a corner to the right, first place the loop under the left thumb or forefinger, and then use the whip.

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