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The Horse's Lawyer

by H.A. McNary

211 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-0398; ISBN 1-4120-0035-1; US$20.00, C$23.00, EUR16.50, £11.50

The Horse's Lawyer is about the horse's viewpoint in the horse-human relationship.

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about the book      about the author      sample excerpts or Table of Contents      catalogue info

About the Book It wasn't hard to find the landmarks Roland had told him to look for in the foothills. He saw more grass than he had ever expected to find. Hills lay as sloping shoulders on either side suggesting the shape of a valley that turned to a rock-ribbed canyon after a few miles. Wind began to rise and he tugged his hat down snug. The horse turned south without being asked. The boy leaned forward, occasional bursts of sand stinging his face, full of expectation that the horse would find the water. Roland's voice came rolling across the expanse of his mind unbidden. Every horse will show you something of what you desire to know.

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About the Author The Horse is not mute; one simply has to know their language. A horse cannot lie or give false representation of itself. As the author declares, "I will represent any horse in court and prove it was only practising self preservation- regardless of its behavior!" H. A. McNary lives in Texas where he writes novels and raises quarter horses. On occasion, he assists humans in their understanding of the horse.

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Sample Excerpts

CHAPTER 25

Cooney looked up at the sound of the diesel engine slowing and saw the shiny rig turning in the gate. He shifted the chewing tobacco to the other side of his mouth and spat. Looking over the horse's back, he watched the truck circle the driveway.

"Well, at least they're smart enough to drive slow on private property," he thought. The driver parked out of the way on the far side of the drive, earning another point from Cooney. The clump of pinons in the middle of the drive blocked his view as he heard the doors open and close. He could hear their steps on the gravel as they walked toward him. Sunlight shone brightly on the big belt buckle at one girl's waist.

"Hang onto your hat, Par," he said under his breath. "I think things are gonna be different after this visit." He put the saddle on the colt and pulled the cinch before he turned to face the girls.

He extended his hand. "Cooney Fleer, Miss."

Jamie took his hand. "Jamie Huston and this is my sister, Carla. How do you do?"

"I do just fine, Miss Huston. Pleased to make your acquaintance. What can"I do for you?"

"As if I didn't know," he said to himself.

"We're looking for Mr. Hays. No one answered the phone, so we drove out here to see if anyone was home. Bud McKinney sent us."

"Say old Bud sent you?" Another point for the girl.

"Yes, he did."

"Well, let's look around and see if we can find Par."

"I have a question for you, Mr. Fleer. Why didn't you tie the colt to the hitch rail to saddle him?"

"It's just not done that way around here. The colt never will learn to stand still for me if I don't give him the chance to learn it."

"Don't you get tired of him moving around while you try to put the

addle on?" "Aw, he'll find a stoppin' place sooner or later. There ain't no hurry."

To her, the statement sounded unfinished but she could think of nothing to challenge it with.

The girls followed him as he led off with the horse. They stopped at a corral where a Mexican boy was riding a colt. Cooney pointed at the boy. "That's Ricky Romero. He rides horses here for Par."

"He has good hands. Has he been here long?"

"About a year now. Par put him to work starting colts when he showed he could do it the way Par wanted. It hasn't been easy for him."

"What do you mean easy?"

"Ricky thought comin' here off a ranch in Mexico, he knew all there was to know about startin' young horses. Par helped him understand that he was too rough. You can see now that he has come around to Par's way of thinkin'."

Jamie and Carla watched with interest as Ricky prepared the next colt for its first ride. Cooney explained as they watched.

"This isn't the first time this colt has felt the saddle. It's been through that part many times, but today, well, today is different. The filly has to get used to the idea of a saddle and rider on her back. Up to this point Ricky has been preparing her for this moment. Sometimes it's not too pretty if the pony hasn't been prepared in the right way." Jamie started to say she had seen colts ridden before, but bit off an exasperated reply.

"Will she buck?" asked Carla.

"There's no way of knowing about colts, we'll just have to wait and see." Ricky had saddled the colt and sent it into a trot at the end of a leadrope. He stopped the horse and sent it the other direction with the colt circling him. He stopped the horse and pulled the cinch tighter and sent the horse off again.

"When he stops her this time, he'll pull the cinch one more time and then let her rest. He wants the saddle to settle in place and it gives her a little more time to adjust to being handled."

Ricky stroked the filly's forehead, speaking soft, indiscernible words.

"What's he saying to the horse?" asked Jamie.

"Most likely telling her they are going to be friends even though his breath smells like meat."

"Huh?" interjected Carla.

Resolutely Cooney kept up his narrative. "Ricky had beefsteak for breakfast this morning. The colt can smell it. In a few moments Ricky will try and get in the saddle and there's the problem. See, horses don't usually allow meat eating predators on their backs for very long." Carla kept her voice low. "I hadn't looked at this from the horse's point of view."

Cooney spat a stream of brown tobacco juice to one side. "Most people don't, Carla. That's what creates the conflict between the horse and rider."

"Why is he pushing the horse sideways?" asked Jamie.

"From here it looks like he's pushing but really he's waiting for the horse to move away from the pressure. Ricky has worked with this filly for months doing ground work, getting her ready for her first ride." "Months! You've got to be joking. Nobody spends that much time with one horse."

"Time doesn't mean anything to a horse, Miss Huston," came the voice, husky and deep from behind her. Jamie and Carla both spun to face the man while Cooney kept watching Ricky.

"Par Hays."

His face softened and Jamie felt hers do the same as something charged the air between them. He extended his hand to both girls in turn.

"This is my sister, Carla."

"My pleasure, ladies."

Jamie's gaze lingered on the rugged, lined face, the sweep of his mustache.

"What am I doing," she asked herself. "What do you mean, time means nothing to a horse?"

"Just that. Humans operate on schedules; horses don't. The horse does better if it's not held to a human's hurry up schedule when they are being handled."

"You didn't use the word training."

"No. I try to stay far away from that concept. The horse can already do everything people think they are training it to do."

"You're confusing me. Can you say it another way?"

"Sure. If our thinking was advanced enough we could simply get on a horse and they would go willingly, without fear. What we are doing most of the time is learning to stay out of their way while they try and figure out what we are asking."

"So you give each horse the time it needs to find that understanding and overcome our ineptness." She was unable to keep a slight sarcasm out of her voice.

He gave a slight laugh. "Yeah. I don't think I've ever heard it put much better than that."

Something was happening at that moment as she felt him gently turn the hard edge of her words away. Life was different here, something unnamable, yet she was sure it existed. She would have been unnerved by his steel gray eyes were it not for his air of quiet assurance. His six foot frame towered over her. When he glanced away she looked him up and down. "Passive body language, but those eyes look right inside a person."

Thunder rumbled to the west, a brilliant white bolt of lightning arced into a dark cloud.

"Watch," said Par. "Ricky is about to get on the colt." His voice was calm, detached.

Ricky tugged on the saddle horn until the colt spread its front feet. The boy gathered the cotton- braided reins in his hand and when the colt looked at him with his right eye he stepped in the stirrup.

At that moment it dawned on Jamie that Ricky was mounting on the horse's right side.

"Oh, no!"

She grabbed Par's arm. Surely he wouldn't let this happen. The boy was in danger.

Par was prepared. When Jamie looked up at him to speak, he was holding his finger to his lips. He shook his head side to side, warning her with his eyes.

Both girls tensed, waiting for the horse to explode. They had both seen colts ridden for the first time and had seen some bad wrecks.

When Jamie looked again, Ricky was sitting in the saddle; then he dismounted on the left side. In a few seconds he mounted, sat, and dismounted on the right side. When he was mounted for the third time the colt bent its neck and sniffed his boot. It looked away when another horse neighed in the distance.

Jamie released her grip on Par's arm and drew a deep breath. Carla looked at her, unspoken questions in both girls' eyes. Ricky bent the filly's neck with one rein, holding its head halfway to his knee. Par's voice was little more than a whisper, but it startled Jamie when he spoke.

"The filly is being asked to take her first step. When she does, Ricky will release the rein."

The colt fidgeted, moving its head up and down, then pulling against the rein, searching for the answer that would release the pressure on its neck. Ricky was ready and released the rein an instant before the colt took the step. She then walked three more steps before she stopped. Ricky repeated the maneuver using the other rein. This time the filly walked half- way around the corral before she stopped. She licked her lips and smelled a pile of manure left by another horse, then walked aimlessly around the corral.

Ricky slipped the halter off the filly's head and let her continue walking until she stopped. She walked again toward the group of people watching. When she stopped Ricky dismounted and rubbed her neck. Par broke the spell. "Good job, Ricky. She's coming along just fine, don't you think?"

"Yes. This is a very good start for her. But this is enough for today. I'll ask a little more tomorrow." Rainfall was imminent as the bank of dark clouds overshadowed the ranch.

"Do you have a place I can turn my horses out?" asked Jamie. "They need a break from the trailer."

"Yes. We have plenty of space." Wind whipped at the men's hats and swirled the girls' hair around their heads. A long strand of Jamie's brown hair caught in her mouth. Catching it with her forefinger she tugged it away. Par saw the hair slide from the corner of her mouth; the moisture on it glistened in the muted light of the coming storm.

No one hurried even though they all knew a soaking was inevitable if they tarried. The first heavy drops of rain thumped on the men's felt hats. Lightning cracked loud overhead.

"Turn them in the small trap by the house!" Par yelled at Cooney, straining to make himself heard between the claps of thunder.

Carla saw the gate they were headed for and ran ahead to open it. Released, the horses ran kicking and bucking, totally indifferent to the storm. They ran through the pounding rain, tails erect heads up, gliding among the patches of weeds and wind-matted grass.

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Catalogue Information

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