Black Beauty - The Autobiography of a Horse #222182

The first place that I can well remember was a pleasant meadow with a pond of clear water in it. Some shady trees leaned over it, and rushes and water-lilies grew at the deep end. Over the hedge on one side we' looked into a plowed field, and on the other we looked over a gate at our master's house, which stood by the roadside; at the top of the meadow was a grove of fir trees, and at the bottom a running brook, overhung by i a steep bank. While I was young I lived upon my mother's milk, as I could not eat grass. In the daytime I ran by her. Side, and at night I lay down close by her. When it was hot we used to stay by the pond in the shade of the trees, and when it was cold we had a warm shed near the grove. There were six young colts in the meadow beside me; they were older than I was. I used to run with them, and had great fun. We used to gallop all together round the field, as hard as we could go, and some times we had rather rough play, for they would bite and kick, as well as gallop. One day when there was a good deal of kicking, my mother whinnied to me to come to her, and then she said: I wish you to pay attention to what I am going to say. The colts who live here are very good colts, but they are cart-horse colts, and they have not learned manners. You have been well-born and well-bred; your father has a great name in these parts, and your grandfather won the cup at'the races; your grandmother had the sweetest temper of any horse I ever knew, and I think you have never seen me kick or bite. I hope you will grow up gentle and good, and never learn bad ways; do your work with a good will, lift your feet up well when you trot, and never bite or kick even in play. I have never forgotten my mother's advice. I knew she Was a wise old horse, and our master thought a great deal of her. Her name was Duch ess, but he called her Pet.