[00:00.017]Chapter 2. Birtwick Park
[00:05.109]I was beginning to grow handsome．My coat was fine and soft， and was a shiny black．I had one white foot，and a pretty white star on my forehead．
[00:21.569]When I was four years old，Mr. Gordon came to look at me．He looked closely at my eyes，my mouth， and my legs， and then I had to walk and trot and gallop for him．
[00:38.321]'When he has been trained，'Mr. Gordon said to my master，'he will do very well．'
[00:46.705]My master liked to train his horses himself before selling them，and the next day my training began．
[00:56.371]To train a horse is to teach him to wear a saddle，and to carry a man，woman or child on his back．
[01:06.873]The horse must also learn to wear a collar， and to stand still when it is put on；then to have a carriage fixed behind him， and to go fast or slow，whichever his driver wishes．
[01:24.097]He must never bite or kick or talk to other horses， and must always do what his master tells him，however tired or hungry he feels．
[01:36.587]Like all horses that have grown up，I had to wear a bit and bridle．
[01:44.074]A bit is a great piece of cold hard metal， as thick as a man's finger，which is pushed into a horse's mouth between his teeth and over his tongue， with the ends coming out at the corners．
[02:03.257]It is held there by straps which go over the horse's head，under his neck，round his nose and under his chin．Reins，which the rider holds，are fastened to each end of the bit．
[02:23.577]Slowly， with my master's kind words and gentle ways， I learned to wear my bit and bridle．
[02:33.746]Next there was the saddle．My master put it on my back very gently， then fixed the straps under my body， speaking quietly to me all the time．
[02:49.378]Then one morning， he got on my back and rode me round the field on the soft grass．
[02:58.601]He did this every day until I was used to it．
[03:03.769]Then he took me to the village where a man fixed metal shoes on to each hoof．
[03:11.833]My feet felt heavy and strange，but I got used to this，too．
[03:18.457]There were more new things to wear．
[03:22.865]First，a heavy collar on my neck，and a bridle with great side pieces against my eyes，called blinkers．
[03:32.808]With these on，I could only see in front of me．But in time I got used to everything，and could do my work as well as my mother．
[03:45.665]For a fortnight， my master sent me to a neighbour's farm for another kind of training， which was very useful to me．
[03:57.145]One field was next to the railway and had sheep and cows in it， and I was put in among them．
[04:06.241]I shall never forget the first train that thundered by， and how I galloped to the far side of the field，trembling with fear at this terrible noise．
[04:17.425]But after a few days I cared as little as the sheep and cows when a train passed by．
[04:25.449]It was early in May when a man came to take me away to Mr Gordon's house．
[04:33.345]My master said，'Goodbye，Darkie．Be a good horse，and always do your best．'I put my nose into his hand and he patted me kindly，and then I left my first home．
[04:51.905]Mr. Gordon's house，which was called the Hall，stood in Birtwick Park，near the village．
[05:03.409]We went into the Park through a large gate，then trotted along a smooth road between some trees to the house and gardens．
[05:15.641]Beyond this were the stables．
[05:23.641]There was room for many horses and carriages．
[05:25.777]My stable had four good stalls and a large window．
[05:31.089]It was very pleasant．The first stall was called a loose box，where a horse is not tied up all the time but is free to move around as he likes．
[05:41.937]It is a great thing to have a loose box．The groom put me into it and gave me some oats．
[05:50.074]Then he patted me，spoke kindly，and went away．In the stall next to mine stood a little fat grey pony．
[06:01.297]'Hello，'I said．'What is your name？'
[06:06.337]'Merrylegs，'he said，turning round．'I'm very handsome．I carry the young ladies on my back， and sometimes I take Mrs. Gordon out in one of the carriages．Are you going to live next to me in the box？'
[06:25.497]'Yes，'I said．
[06:28.169]'Then I hope you are well-behaved，'he said．'I don't like anyone who bites．'
[06:34.465]A horse's head looked over from the stall beyond．
[06:38.496]It was a tall brown mare， and she did not look pleased．'So it's you who has turned me out of my bx，'she said．
[06:48.833]'I'm sorry，'I said，'but the man put me in here，so it is not my fault．I don't want to argue with anyone；I just wish to live in peace．
[07:03.385]Later，Merrylegs told me about the tall brown mare．
[07:09.177]'Ginger has a bad habit of biting people，'he explained．'One day，she bit James in the arm，and Miss Flora and Miss Jessie， the children， were afraid to come into the stable after that．
[07:28.169]If you don't bite， I hope they'll start to come again．'
[07:33.876]I told him I never bit anything except grass and could not understand why Ginger bit people．
[07:42.057]'No one was ever kind to her before she came here，'said Merrylegs．
[07:48.914]'John and James do all they can to please her，and our master is never unkind．I'm twelve years old， and I know that there isn't a better place for a horse all-round the country than this．
[08:06.233]John has been here fourteen years and is the best groom there ever was．
[08:12.585]And you never saw a kinder stable boy than James．
[08:17.097]There was no reason for Ginger to bite anyone．It's her own fault that she did not stay in the box．'
[08:24.505]The name of the groom was John Manly．The next morning， he got out his brushes and gave me a good grooming，then put a saddle on me．
[08:39.665]He rode me slowly at first，then at a trot， then at a gallop．As we came back through the Park， we met Mr. and Mrs. Gordon．They stopped and John jumped off．
[08:56.089]'Well，John， how does he go？'said Mr. Gordon．
[09:02.521]'He's a fine horse，sir，'said John．'He's fast，but the lightest touch of the rein will guide him．
[09:12.563]They were shooting birds near Highwood，and a gun went off close by．
[09:19.225]He pulled up a little，but I just held the rein and he wasn't frightened at all．
[09:25.498]It's my opinion he was never frightened or beaten when he was young．'
[09:31.346]'Good，'said Mr. Gordon．'I'll ride him tomorrow．'
[09:37.098]I remembered my mother's advice， and the next day I tried to do exactly what my master wanted me to do．He was a very good rider，and when he came home his wife was waiting for him at the door．
[09:55.745]'How do you like him， my dear？'she asked．
[10:01.209]'I have never ridden a more pleasant horse，'answered Mr. Gordon．'What shall we call him？'
[10:09.473]'What about Blackbird，like your uncle's old horse？'said his wife．
[10:16.657]'He's far handsomer than Blackbird，'said Mr. Gordon．
[10:22.369]'Yes，'she said，'he's quite a beauty， and he has a kind， intelligent face．Shall we call him Black Beauty？'
[10:34.698]'Black Beauty—why，yes，I think that's a very good name，'said Mr. Gordon．
[10:44.001]John went into the stable and told James．
[10:53.355]'I'd call him Rob Roy，'said James，'if it did not remind everyone of the past．I never saw two horses more alike．'
[11:02.778]'That's not surprising，'said John．'Didn't you know that Farmer Grey's old Duchess was the mother of them both？'
[11:13.313]So poor Rob Roy who was killed at the hunt was my brother！ Now I understood why my mother was so unhappy when he died．
[11:27.379]John was very proud of me，and seemed to know just how a horse feels．And James was kind too．
[11:37.505]A day or two later，I went out in the carriage with Ginger．I wondered how we would get on together， but I found it easy to trot along beside her．
[11:52.105]Merrylegs was a happy little pony and was everyone's favorite．We were soon great friends and I became quite happy in my new home．