It is Lawrence, I think, who remarks that grooms consider water as at best a necessary evil Among professional men, I mean among veterinarians, it is the general opinion that horses should not suffer habitual restriction. It is admitted that the horse should not be permitted to drink as much as he pleases when he is very thirsty, nor when he is hot, nor to drink largely when he is just going to fast work. But it is contended that, except under these circumstances, he should have water as much as he pleases, and when he pleases. A great many horses, hunters and racers especially, and some mail-horses, are never indulged with an unlimited quantity of water. I have frequently inquired the reason of this. Some tell me that water in unlimited quantity is dangerous; others say that it would purge the horse; others, that it would break his wind; others, that it would make his belly too large; and a few declare that the horse will neither eat nor work if he be constantly confined to a small allowance of water. I would not speak confidently, but I am disposed to believe that there is no good reason for constant restriction, and that the evils which grooms fear are those which arise from a large draught of water given at once, and especially when the horse is going to work.

They carry restriction so far that the horse is always thirsty, and if he accidentally reach a large quantity he is almost sure to drink too much. It is not considered that this quantity would never be taken if water were given so often that the horse could not become so thirsty. This appears to me to be the foundation of the groom's fears.

But still there may be some other reason for withholding water. It is quite possible that horses may be disposed to consume more fluid than is good for them. They may be stronger or swifter than if they were permitted to drink as much as they pleased. This has never been proved, but a few experiments would set the matter rest, and a point of such importance ought not to remain unknown. We want to know whether a horse acquires more speed, power, or endurance, when his daily allowance of water is limited, than when he has water always before him, to take in such measure, and in such quantities, as he pleases. Stable usages are so often founded on ignorance and hypothesis, that we may well be excused for sometimes doubting their propriety, even when subsequent investigation proves them correct.

It is certain, however, that a horse can be trained to dispense with a considerable portion of the water that he is accustomed to take when left to himself. By giving the water in four or five services, he will drink a little less than if it were given only thrice. But the quantity may be further reduced, so that in the course of two or three weeks the horse will not desire more than two thirds of the quantity he formerly consumed. Whether this be right or wrong, is as I have said, not settled; but it can be done. The quantity must be diminished by slow degrees, not all at once, and so much must not be withheld on any day as to make the horse refuse his grain. At the end of a period varying from two weeks to four, the horse becomes accustomed to the spare allowance of water. He drinks less than formerly. The system, perhaps, learns to be more economical in the consumption of fluid. Less urine and less perspiration may be made, and less vapor may be exhaled from the lungs.

When the daily supply of water is very materially diminished, the horse refuses to feed. He eats some, but not so much as he should. He soon loses flesh, and becomes unfit for work; and he does not recover until he either gets more water, or until the system learns to do without that which is denied. A certain quantity must be allowed, for the system can not carry on its operations without it. When Mr. Lyon first built his stables at Paisley, the well did not yield sufficient water, and the horses were kept on short allowance. In eight days they were not like the same animals; they were lean, dull, and feeble, and did not recover till more water was obtained.