Whispers from the Tent — The Horse From My Boyhood

Two years after Phili came into my possession, I was allowed to sit down to the rudiments of practical horsemanship - to learn how to understand and guide Phili's animal intelligence.

I had little fear of horses. This was no virtue but an acquired talent. After the adventure in the river, I learned to give as much confidence to an animal as he gave to me. I was never allowed to punish him with blows, never to thrust my will upon him with force. We children were taught to reason with ourselves before we tried to reason with an animal, and thus remain the master. That was the secret.

— Drinkers of the Wind, by Carl Raswan, 1944

Grecian sculpture from the frieze of the Parthenon.