Rensselaer Journal, Volume 11, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 December 1901 — MAKES HORSES APPEAR SPIRITED. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

MAKES HORSES APPEAR SPIRITED.

Bit burrs for making horses hold their heads high in the air are said to be in common use in New York. Eight pairs of the burrs were removed from

the mouths of horses attac he d to private carriage s in front of the Madison Square Garden in New York on T hursday night. The owners of the carriages

desired to have their horses make a good appearance at the horse show, and hit upon that means of making an ordinary animal appear frisky. 'fhe bit burr is a contrivance made of heavy leather, three inches in diameter. In the center is a hole large enough to admit the bit. On the. inner side of the burr are bunches of bristles, which protrude a quarter of an inch! The burr is slipped on the bit and the bristles rub against the side of the horse’s mouth when the line is pulled taut. The burr is used legitimately for correcting a "one-line puller,’’ as a horse which pulls to one side is called. Bristles is the usual material used for studding the burr, although, it is charged that some horse owners use tacks, with the sharp point filed ofT. Both kinds of the burr are sa-d to have been removed from the New York horses.