organisations in India? Is each part to be made to represent the whole? Is the grand army to remain broken up into separate divisions, each to recruit to its own standard, and to invite the Hindoos to wear our respective uniforms, adopt our respective shibboleths, learn and repeat our respective warcries, and even make caste-marks of our wounds and scars, which to us are but the sad mementoes of old battles? Or, to drop all metaphors, shall Christian converts in India be necessarily grouped and stereotyped into Episcopal Churches, Presbyterian Churches, Lutheran Churches, Methodist Churches, Baptist Churches, or Independent Churches, and adopt as their respective creeds the Confession of Faith, the Thirty-nine Articles, or some other formula approved of by our forefathers, and the separating sign of some British or American sect? Whether any Church seriously entertains this design I know not, though I suspect it of some; and I feel assured that it will be realised in part, as conversions increase by means of foreign missions, and be at last perpetuated, unless it is now carefully guarded against by every opportunity being watched and taken advantage of to propagate a different idea, and to rear up an independent and all-inclusive native Indian Church. By such a Church I mean one which shall be organised and governed by the natives themselves, as far as possible, independently of us. We could of course claim, as Christians and fellow-subjects, to be recognised as brethren, and to be received among its members, or, if it should so please both parties, serve among its ministers, and rejoice always to be its best friends and generous supporters. In all this we would only have them to do to us as we should feel bound to do to them. Such a Church might, as taught by experience, mould its outward form of government and worship according to its inner wants and outward circumstances, guided by history and by the teaching and spirit of Christianity. Its creed for no Christian society can exist without some known and professed beliefs - would include those truths which had been confessed by the catholic Church of Christ since the first; and, as necessary to its very existence as a Church, it would recognise the supreme authority of Jesus Christ and His Apostles. It would also have, like the whole Church, its Lord's day for public worship, and the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Thus might a new temple be

reared on the plains of India unlike perhaps any to be seen in our Western lands, yet with all our goodly stones built up in its fabric, and with all our spiritual worship within its walls of the one living and true God-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A Church like this would, from its very nationality, attract many a man who does not wish to be ranked among the adherents of mission Churches. It would dispose, also, of many difficulties inseparable from our position, whether regarding baptism or the selection and support of a native ministry. And, finally, it would give ample scope, for many a year to come, for all the aid and efforts which our home Churches and missionaries could afford by schools and colleges, personal labour, and also by money contributions, to establish, strengthen, and extend it.

"Moreover, it seems to me that India affords varied and remarkable elements for contributing many varied gifts and talents to such a Church as this. The simple peasant and scholarly pundit, the speculative mystic or self-torturing devotee, the peaceful South-man and the manly North-man; the weak Hindoo who clings to others of his caste for strength, and the strong aborigines who love their individuality and independence;-one and all possess a power which could find its place of rest and blessing in the faith of Christ and in fellowship with one another through Him. The incarnate but unseen Christ, the Divine yet human brother, would dethrone every idol; God's Word be substituted for the Puranas; Christian brotherhood for caste; and the peace of God, instead of these and every weary rite and empty ceremony, would satisfy the heart. Such is my ideal, which I hope and believe will one day become real in India. The day indeed seems to be far off when the 'Church of India,' worthy of the country, shall occupy its place within what may then be the Christendom of the world. A period of chaos may intervene ere it is created; and after that, how many days full of change and of strange revolutions, with their 'evenings' and 'mornings,' may succeed ere it enjoys a Sabbath rest of holiness and peace! But yet that Church must be, if India is ever to become one, or a nation in any true sense of the word. For union, strength, and real progress can never henceforth in this world's history either result from or coalesce with Mohammedanism or Hindooism, far less with the cold and heartless abstractions of an atheistic

philosophy. Hence English government, by physical force and moral power, must, with a firm and unswerving grasp, hold the broken fragments of the Indian races together until they

are united from within by Christianity into a living organism, which can then, and then only, dispense with the force without. The wild olive must be grafted into the root and fatness' of the good olive-tree of the Church of Christ; and while the living union is being formed, and until the living sap begins to flow from the root to every branch, English power must firmly bind and hold the parts together. Our hopes of an Indian nation are bound up with our hopes of an Indian Church; and it is a high privilege for us to be able to help on this consummation. The West thus gives back to the East the riches which it has from the East received, to be returned again, I doubt not, with interest to ourselves."

With the prospect thus eloquently depicted we conclude our review of a subject which may seem to have merely a special religious interest, but which is really one of the highest importance for the permanence of our great Indian Em

pire and the interests of general civilisation. The spread of Christianity in that vast kingdom, as a living force uniting together in a common faith its discordant populations, and blessing them with its spirit of righteousness, purity, and charity, is the best security at once for good government and popular wellbeing.

The rise of an Indian Church would be at the same time the rise of a nation, bound to us by ties which no accident or mere series of accidents could interrupt, but one with us alike in material ambition and moral aim. It may be long before there is any approach to so grand a result. But the humblest means by which it may be wrought out are deserving of our attention; and in the mean time at least, and so far as we can see or experience enables us to predict, there are no means more likely to contribute to this result than what may seem to many the very humblest of all-the labours of the Christian schoolmaster and missionary.

THIS is an admirable little book, the honest and careful work of a man fully acquainted with a subject that he loves, and thoroughly able to bring to its discussion a considerable amount of general knowledge. Of all the books we have seen on this subject, we have not met with one so completely exhaustive as this of Major Dwyer; and, while cram-full of information, it is most pleasant reading. To a man-if there be such-who takes little interest in matters equine, the volume will open a new sense; and to him who has "horsy" tastes, it will prove a constant book of reference and study; and with this ad

vantage, that he can never be at a loss to discover the solution of any difficulties that may occur to him, either on matters of Seat or Saddle, or Bits and Bitting.

Well knowing, as he quietly observes, what a delicate task it is to give a man any counsel as to his horse, saddle, bridle, or seat, and that the great majority of people would bear more patiently doubts expressed on their mental or moral qualifications, he also knows that to all Englishmen generally there is a peculiar repugnance against advice on a matter to be deemed ignorant of which impugns a man's social status; for we are-let us

own it-still in the same position we were when the definition of a respectable person was that "he drove a gig."

Here is really the great difficulty of reading such a book as this before us. To tell people who have the best horses in the world that they have anything to learn as to how to ride them; to assure them that the vast amount of the daily disasters that occur with horses, are caused by some unintentional cruelty to the horse in his bitting or harnessing, or some glaring ignorance as to the relief the animal sought from an unnecessary infliction; to proclaim that we have more broken-kneed horses, more plungers, bolters, rearers, and jibbers than all the rest of Europe, was a bold task; and undertaken with less of tact, delicacy, and actual knowledge, than our author's, would scarcely have proved either an attraction or a success.

Yet it is precisely by these two words-attractive and successfulwe would characterise the volume before us. It will seem, says Major Dwyer,

"impossible, or at least improbable, that mere saddles and bridles, or the manner in which they are adjusted to the horse's body, can produce such very material results as those suggested here. Well, it does seem strange; but let us listen, before passing judgment on the case, to some documentary evidence bearing upon it. On the 20th May 1859, the French cavalry had in Piedmont 9008 effective horses, increased subsequently by the arrival of a whole brigade (Perouse), so that on the 24th June (Solferino), the total number borne on the lists was 10,206. But it subsequently transpired, from the report of the Cavalry Commission ordered by Marshal Randon to inquire into the causes of the tear and wear of horses during the campaign, that, on the day of that decisive battle, not more than about 3500 horses were really fit for service, the remainder having been disabled by less than one month's marching; for, with the exception of one or two squadrons that fought at Magenta, the French cavalry was never under fire up to the 24th June, and an immense proportion

of these had been rendered unserviceable by the saddle and other portions of the equipment."

The author distinctly declares that he has no pretension to proclaim a model seat on horseback; nor has he any desire to see men, no matter how different in build or make, ride after precisely the same fashion; the aim of his little treatise being to enable each to discover what will suit his own case, and put him in a position to make the best and most of whatever horse he may have to ride, and in the safest manner; and this by a plain and easily-understood explanation of the horse's anatomy and framework, of the leverage by which his action is accomplished, and the causes by which that action can be interfered with or impeded.

First of all, the rider should be seated where least of all he would interfere with the free action of the horse; and this leads at once to examine the construction of the saddle, what amount of surface comes in contact with the horse's back, how it should be maintained in its place that is, how girthed-and how and where the rider should be seated on it.

The second part of the work is devoted to Bits and Bitting. Not that he deems them subordinate in point of importance, but because a light hand essentially depends on a close and steady seat; totally out of the question with what are called rein-riders, who mainly depend on the bridle for their seats on horseback. The last part of the book concerns Restiveness and its Cure which means, in fact, re-training, and demands inquiry as to what method should be adopted, or what modification of method, in this respect.

;

Like all men who have much to do with horses, Major Dwyer is no believer in vice. He inclines to ascribe restiveness to the blunders and mismanagement of those who are about the animal, either as grooms or trainers; and who are prone, first, to impute a fault to

the horse; and, secondly, to attempt the cure by some totally inadequate, if not actually cruel method.

It is not as notorious as it ought to be, that the fearful accidents, of which we daily read in our newspapers, with horses either in saddle or harness, are almost entirely owing to errors in training, or mistakes in bitting or saddling; that the quietest animal that ever stepped will become restive if his tongue be cut across by an overtightened curb, or his respiration impeded by a cruelly - drawn girth. Many a kicker has been made by a galling crupper; many an incurable rearer by a severe bit and a hard hand.

If all foreigners, Frenchmen, Russians, Germans, and Italians, have fewer disasters with horse-flesh than ourselves, and if confessedly we as a nation ride better, care more for horses, and have better horses, the causes of this calamity must be sought for less in the nature of the English horse than in that English system of training and breaking, which recognises every difficulty as a vice inherent in the animal, and seeks to subdue by force what simply requires address, and that subtle intimation of the rider's wish, to which the horse would be willingly obedient if he only knew it, but which, imposed as a tyranny, he resists proudly and defiantly, as becomes the stronger animal.

Of medicine it is said that the difference between British and foreign physicians was, that the English doctors killed their patients, the foreigners let them die. So in an opposite way it might be stated that foreign trainers over-train, and we in England under-teach, our horses; and the consequence is, there are more horses in England with defective fore legs than abroad; while curb, spavin, and thoroughpin, are certainly more frequently found in foreign cattle.

That half-careless seat pressing forward on the withers, and with advanced leg impeding the shoulder action, so common in England, pre

disposes to smashed knees and knotted fore tendons; while unquestionably the over-tendency to throw the horse on his hind quarters, which makes him much pleasanter to ride, and more amenable to the hand, will be frequently paid for in capped hocks.

The right position on the horse's back is the first essential of all riding, and we cannot do better than refer our readers to the volume before us for a thorough explanation of the matter; first, as regards the horse; and, secondly, the rider. Nor let the reader be frightened by the thought that he is referred to some slight knowledge of anatomy. Major Dwyer is a very pleasant schoolmaster, and makes our lessons both instructive and amusing. His chapter on the construction of the horse is admirably written, and plainly shows that, though the longsword-saddle-bridle have been the writer's accompaniment for many a year, his earlier pursuits inclined to science, and those acquirements which form the staple of a highlyeducated mind.

If it were not unwarrantable digression, it would be a very tempting inquiry to go a little into that question, as to what fault in our military system has lost us the services of many men who, like the author before us, have left their own country to enter foreign armies, and have brought to France, to Austria, to Spain, and even to Russia, talents and abilities that we certainly ought to have secured for our own. Marshal Nugent and General O'Connell are great names in Austria; and, going lower in rank, we could quote many who have gained splendid reputation for military skill and prowess, and whose comrades speak of them as our Engländer, as a title of honour.

Years and years ago we heard of a "rittmeister" who had written a small volume which was adopted as a sort of text-book on Cavalry Tactics, and this an Irishman writing in German. The author, we

were told, was a model soldier-as modest and gentle in the camp as he was bold and headlong in the field. He was the chosen Adjutant of a distinguished General, the father of the late Prime Minister of Austria, Count Mensdorf, the cousin of our own Queen. This same Irishman lived to make the great campaign of Austria in Italy; to distinguish himself in many a field; and now in his peaceful days to write this admirable little book before us, full of a life's experiences of his subject, and yet not more marked by thorough knowledge and skill than by deference and modesty.

I am in no impatience to do away with the purchase system of our army; but is there no modification of that system which would secure to us the services of such men as this? Without our borough representation we should not have had our Burkes, our Cannings, nor probably in earlier life our Disraelis and our Gladstones; and could we not introduce into military matters some plan by which the abilities of men could be retained for their own country, who now are driven to seek employment abroad? Nobody will pretend to say that we have a glut of such people; that tactical knowledge is a drug with us; and that our cavalry regiments or our riding-schools are swarming with Major Dwyers. The real truth being, that we are singularly deficient in a class of men who make soldiering a career; who care for it as such; love all its details, and are never happier than when carrying out into active service all the minute practical knowledge they have stored up in peace.

The little volume we are now discussing will sufficiently show how much we have to learn, on a subject which most Englishmen deem their own, from the practice of foreign armies. When we know that sore backs alone can disable a cavalry force; that a regiment numerically three hundred strong

may not be able to bring a hundred and fifty mounted troopers into the field; that Lord Cardigan's reconnaissance into the Dobrudscha left him but a handful of men fit for duty; that at Solferino 3500 horses were available out of a force of 10,200;-it is time to inquire by what system of care and precaution the Austrians contrive to avoid this disaster. And that they do so we ourselves can amply testify. We remember the arrival of a light cavalry regiment, the "Lichtenstein Chevaux Legers," at a remote part of the empire, after a long and weary march in deep winter. The regiment numbered eighteen hundred mounted men, and we were curious to know how many were passed in review by the General who inspected them on the day after their coming: we learned that less than twenty horses were reported sick; and these included snow ophthalmia, kicks and injuries by accidents, and the other disasters of a long march.

As this is a question which touches the hunting-man and the road-rider almost equally with the dragoon, and as it is a point on which a great deal of error and no small share of ignorance prevail, we cannot do better than refer our readers to the second and third chapters of this volume, in which the saddle, its shape, size, and bearings are fully treated, and the position of the rider defined by rules which cannot be controverted, nor, what is equally valuable, be mistaken. On nothing is Major Dwyer more rightfully insistent than on the superiority of the surcingle to the girth as a means of attaching the saddle.

"Direct proof of the correctness of what is advanced here may be obtained in the following manner: Take a longish saddle on which the girth-straps (or points) are fixed forward; girth the horse tolerably tightly; now put a rider in the saddle the heavier he is and get him to sit well back. You will the more apparent will the result befind, by putting your fingers flat between the girth and the horse's chest before the