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4. Life at Earl's Hall Park

We traveled about twenty -five kilometres and arrived at Earl's Hall Park. There was

a very big house and many stables. John asked for the head coachman, Mr. York. He was a

friendly and polite middle -aged man. He sent us to our stalls in a stable.

An hour later, John and York, came to our airy and wide stable. Mr. York said,

Mr. Manley, these horses look very good. Will you tell me anything about them?

They're the best horses in the country. The black one is good -tempered and brave.

The brown one had a bad temper when she first came to us, but now she's as good

as the black one. If you are good to her, she will get angry if a man is cruel to her.

You should be kind to her, John told him. I will remember that, and I will tell

all the grooms here, said Mr. York. Before they left the stable, John also said,

Oh, I must warn you about one thing, Mr. York. We never use a bearing rain with these horses.

They don't need one. Mr. York said, well, they must wear a bearing rain here, I'm afraid.

I don't like bearing rains myself. Lord Westland is very kind to horses,

but Lady Westland wants a bearing rain on her carriage horses.

She says the horses must have their heads up all the time. That is the fashion in London.

Oh, I'm sorry to hear this, very sorry, but I must leave now. I don't want to miss my

train, said John. Then he patted us for the last time and left. It was a very sad moment.

John looked at me and ginger one more time before he went out the door. I've never seen him since that day.

The next morning Earl Westland came to the stable and looked at us. He was quite pleased and said to York,

these horses are as good as Gordon told me. Then he also said, but they are not a good match in color.

A black and a brown horse pulling a carriage together will not look good in London,

so we will use them as riding horses in London. But here in the countryside they can pull our

carriage together. Yes, I understand, sir, York said, and then he mentioned the bearing rain

problem. The Lord said, they will have a bearing rain here, but it shouldn't be very tight at first.

You can make it a little bit tighter each day, so they won't feel it.

That afternoon York harnessed us to a carriage and put on our bearing rains. He took us to the front

of the house. It was much bigger than the Gordon's house, but it wasn't very nice.

The lady came out and looked at us. She was a tall, arrogant woman. She didn't seem very pleased

with us. She got in the carriage and York touched us gently with the whip. Then we began to go at a

while I was walking or trotting. But I could not lower my head when it was on my neck,

and that was a problem when I felt tired. To my surprise, ginger was not angry about the

bearing rain yet. The next afternoon the lady rode in our carriage again.

Before she got on, she said to York, these horses must hold their heads higher up,

so please make their rain shorter and tighter. And York followed the lady's orders.

When we were going uphill, my back and legs began to hurt because I couldn't put my head

forward with the tight rain. Ginger began to get angry about the tight bearing rain.

If they continue to make my rain tighter, I will be angry and do something bad.

Right now I am trying to be nice and calm because they are very nice to us in other ways.

One afternoon we were waiting for Lady Westland in front of the house again. York was sitting on

the driver's seat and a groom was standing by the carriage. Lady Westland came out in expensive

silk clothes. I am going to the Duchess's party. The horses must hold their heads higher up,

so tighten their reins and raise their heads, she said to York.

York got down and tightened my rain first. He made it so tight that it hurt my neck

and the bit cut my mouth. Then he went to ginger, and before he began to pull the rain,

ginger went up on her hind legs and began to kick desperately.

York in the groom could not stop her. She was trying to escape, but she hit the carriage pole and fell

down. She had bruises all over her body. She was still trying to get back on her feet and escape.

York sat on her head and shouted at the groom,

get a knife and cut her harness be quick. Then another groom took me out of my harness

and led me back to the stable. I was very angry too. I wanted to kick the groom,

but I remembered my mother's advice. Finally two grooms brought ginger to the stable.

Later, York came to the stable and checked ginger's wounds and bruises. He gave orders to the grooms

about them. I heard him talking to himself angrily. I hate the bearing rains. They make good horses bad.

They give us a lot of trouble too. After that day, ginger did not drive the carriage again.

The Lord's younger son Gordon began to ride her when he went hunting. They gave me a new carriage

partner. His name was Max. Before coming here, Max was in the Lord's stable in London.

Doesn't the bearing rain hurt you? I asked Max. He said, yes, it does, but I must wear it. It is

Lady Westland's order, and he continued to speak. Masters want us to hold our heads very high.

They don't worry about our pain. The rains make us ill and weak. Then are masters by new horses.

Of course, this is good for the horse market.

In April, Lord Westland and the Lady went to London. They always stay in London in April and May.

Their sons used their horses when they are in London. York went with the Lord and his wife too.

They left me, ginger, and a few other horses here. And a groom named Ruben Smith looked after the

horses and the stables. He was very good with the horses. He was a good driver and a good groom.

Why didn't they make Ruben the head groom? Or the head coachman, I asked Max. He is much better

than York, and he knows more about horses than York. Max said, you are right, but Ruben has a big

problem. He drinks too much. When he is drunk, he becomes very bad. He promised not to drink

anymore, but I don't trust him. One day I realized that Max was right.

That day Lord Westland's older son was going to London. He asked Ruben to drive him to the

station in Hartford in my carriage. He said to him, after you take me to the station,

leave the carriage at the carriage makers in Hartford. They will change its wheels.

And you will ride black beauty on the way back home. So take a saddle with you and take this money.

So we took the Lord's son to the station. Then we went to the makers and Ruben left the carriage

there. He put the saddle on me and rode me to an inn. He told a groom there to feed me,

and he said, my horse must be ready at four o 'clock. Ruben did not come back at four. He came at five

and said to the groom, I'm not leaving until six. I met some old friends here. I will have dinner with

them. The groom pointed at one of my front shoes and said, sir, look, that shoe can fall off. There

is a loose nail in it. It's all right. I'll do something about it when I get home, said Ruben.

I was surprised because normally Ruben was very careful about our shoes.

I waited for him for about three hours. Finally, he came at nine o 'clock and shouted at the groom's

angrily. A groom brought me to him. He was very drunk. As soon as he sat on my saddle,

he whipped me and made me gallop very fast. And my loose shoe came off. Ruben did not see this.

It was a rough road with many stones. They were hurting my feet. They cut into my barefoot.

Finally, I couldn't run anymore and fell down. Then Ruben fell down on my head.

There were cuts on my legs, but I stood up and limped to the side of the road.

Several hours later, at midnight, I saw Ginger pulling a cart. I nade and Ginger nade back at me.

There were two grooms on the cart. They were looking for us. One of them jumped off and ran

toward Ruben in the middle of the road. He is dead, he shouted. The two men picked up the body

and put it onto the cart. Then, one of the grooms said,

the horse has cuts on his legs and there's blood on his foot. I'll put a cloth around it

and I'll walk him home. You ride the cart. My injured foot in the cuts on my legs healed weeks

later, but the scars were not gone. They left me in the field for two months and I rested there.

I was free, but very lonely. Then, one day, they also brought Ginger and left her with me.

She needed to rest too. The Lord's younger son was not very careful with me.

He rode me on too many hunting and riding trips. Now, I'm too weak to run, said Ginger.

One day, Lord Westlyn came to the field together with York. He examined my scars. He seemed angry.

He turned to York and said, these scars will always be there. I can't have a scarred horse in

my stable, so we must sell him. I paid 300 pounds for these horses and I promised my friend Gordon

to take good care of them, but I couldn't. I know a man in Bath. He rents horses to people.

He buys horses at very low prices. Scars are not important for horse renting.

We can sell black beauty to that man, said York. Then, they left.

They will send you away. Perhaps we will never see each other again, said Ginger sadly.

A week later, a groom came and took me away. Ginger and I need to each other for the last time.

That was another sad moment in my life.

Then the groom rode me to the station. There, he put me in a horse box on the train to Bath.

It was a new experience for me. I was very bored on the train, but I wasn't afraid.

After the journey, I found myself in a stable with many other horses in it.

It wasn't as comfortable and nice as the ones at Burtwick or Earls Hall.