Black Beauty

ANNA SEWELL

Level 2

R etold by Jo hn Davage

Series Ediwrs: Andy Hopkins and Jocelyn Potter

Poanon Education Umlted Edinburgh (;ace. Harl<w,

Eucx CM20 2JE. England

and Associated Companie, diroughou1 che world.

ISBN O 582 42121 7

This edition first published 2000

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Contents

page

I ntroduct1011 V

Chapter l My Mother

Clupter 2 Ll'\\Olh j

Chapter 3 Birtw1ck Park 4

Chapter 4 I lkglll Well (>

Chapter 5 My Ncw Friend, 8

Chapter<> J.1mc, Howard 9

Chapter 7 The Fire 11

Chapter 8 Littlc Joe Green 14

Chapter 9 I ,llll Ill 15

Chapter 1(1 I Move Again 18

Chapter 11 E.1rls Hall 20

Chapter 12 Ginger is Angry 22

Chapter 13 Reuben Smith 23

Chapter l 4 An Accident 24

Chapter 15 A London C.1b Hor<;e 27

Chapter 16 Jerry Barker 30

Chapter 17 More Changes 32

Chapter 18 My Last Home 34

Activities 38

I11 trod11ction

'A/111ays lw .1!011d, so Jll'()Jlll' 111ill l<>l'I' yo11. A /1111111s worf..· /1,ml n,11/ tlo yo11r bcsr. ·

T hese were thL· word~ of Ub :k 13e.wty 's 1110thcr to he r ~011 w he n

he was o nly a young ho rse. At that Li111e, 1hey lived w nh 1::irrnc r

G rey. l3uL w hen Ulack Ueauty got o lde r, this was so111e times very

d ill-icult for him. N o t evcrybo c.ly was as kind as F.1r111e r Crcy.

Ann:t Sewell was born in (;rcat Y:mnouch, in N orfolk, England ,

in 1820. ShL· h;id an accide nt w he n she was about fourteen years

o ld. After this she could no t walk w ithout help. Blr1ck tkaw y was

her only book. She w ro te it because she loved ho rse~. It hurt her

w hc n so111e body wa~ unkind to a ho rsc.

T he re were no cars o r buses in those days. T here were trains

between the towns :ind cities. In town o r in the coumry you

walked, o r used a ho rse. T he ho rse c:irried you, o r pulled you in a

carriage, c:1rt o r bus. It b rought milk, bread and other thinbri. to

your ho use.

T here were m any thousands of ho rses at work in Europe,

Ame rica and othn countries. Some worked fo r good , kind

people, but some did not . Ofte n the animals had to pull very

lwavy things, and they had ro work fo r ho urs and ho urs. Anna

Sewell knew this, and she wanted to tell o the r people. So she

wrote her book.

She was o fte n ill, and i11 187 1 a doctor told he r mo the r,· Anna

has o nly eighteen 111onths now.' Soon afte r this, Anna started

writing her book. She finished it in 1877 and d ied in I !,!78, only

a year afte r Black Beauty went into the booksho ps. Uut many

people were kinde r to ho rses after they read Anna's book.

V

Chapter 1 My Mother

I don't remember everyching about che fi rst months of my lifr. I

remember a big field of green grass with one or two trees in it.

O n hot days my mother stood under a tree and I drank her milk .

That was before I got bigger. Then I started to cat the grass.

There were o ther young ho rses in the field. We ran and

jumped round and round the fidd . We fell on our backs in the

grass and kicked our legs happily.

When I stopped drinking he r milk, my mothe r went to work

every day. T hen, in the evening, I cold her abour my day.

' I' m luppy bl·Cal1se y,111 arc happy,' she sa id.' But remember

- you aren 't the same as these o ther young ho rses.They are going

to be farm ho rses. They're good horses, but we arc different.

People know ytiur father, ,111d Ill )' father was Lo rd Westl.111d's best

horse. When you're o lde r, you' ll learn to carry people on your

back. Or you ·11 take them from place to place in their carriages.'

' Is that your work, M other ? · I asked. ' D o you do that for

Farmer G rey?'

· Yes,' said my mo ther. · Farmer Grey sometimes rides me, and

sometimes I pull his carri:1ge. H erc he is now.'

Farmer Grey came into the field. He was a good, kind man ,

and he likt:d 111y mother.

' Well, my dear,' he said to her. ' he re's something for you.' H e

gave her some sugar.· And how is your little son ?' H e put a hand

o n my back and gave me some bread. It was very nice.

We couldn't answer him. He put a hand on my mother's back,

then he went away.

' H e's very kind,' my mother said. ' Always do your work

happily. Never bite o r kick. T hen he'll always be nice to you.'

·--- . •·'"<f- ... :. • I.

'

I Vi.• m11 and j11111ped """"' ,wd rc>1111d 11,ejield.

C hapter 2 Lesso ns

I got o kkr .rnd my co:it started lO ,him;. It was bl,1rk. but I h.1<l o nt'

wh1lt' foo t, a whitl' st:ir on 111y l:.tCl' :1 11d some w hitL' 0 11 my b.ick.

When I was a big horse, Mr Go rdon came LO 111e. I k lookl·d

.lt my eyes, my mo uth and my leg;.

' Ve ry good ,' he ~:i id. ' Ve ry good . N ow h1..·' II h.wc to le.mi to

work. I lt: ' 11 be a vc,~y goo<l ho rse then.'

What docs a horse have lO learn ?

H e learns not to move when a man puts a harness on him . Or

w hen the 1mn puts a bit into his mouth. A bit is ,1 cold, hard thing,

and it hurts. You can't move it. It stays in your mouth because the

head harness goes over your head, unde r your mouth and across

your nose.

I w:isn 't happy with the bit in my mo uth , but Farmer Crcy

was a kind man in every o the r way. I didn 't bite o r kick. My

mothe r always had a bit in her mouth wht:n she worked . Otht: r

ho rses have bits too, and I knew that . So I didn't move when they

put it in. Soon it didn't hurt.

The saddle wasn't as bad as the bit. H or~es have to learn co

have a saddle, and to carry a man, woman , or child on their backs.

T hey have to walk, o r co go a little faste r. Or to go very fast.

They put the bit in my m outh and the saddle on my back

every day. Then Farmer Grey walked w ith me round the big

field. Afte r that, he gave me some good food and spoke co me. I

liked the food and the kind words. I wasn't afraid now of the bit

and the saddle.

One day Farmer Grey got on my back and sat the re in the

saddle. The next day he rode me ro und the field . It wasn't ve ry

nice with a man in the saddle, but I was happy with · my kind

farmer on my back. H e rode me in the field every day afte r that.

The next bad thing were the shoes for my fee t. These, too,

were cold and hard. A man put them on me. Farmer Grey went

3

w ith m e, but I w.1s afraid. T h1.• 111.111 rook my lt.'l' l i11 tu~ h.111,k

T h l'11 ht' cut away som e of th,· i1Jrd foo t. It did n 'r h11n me. I

stood 0 11 three kgs w hen he d id the othe r fi.)O l. Then the man

made shoes fo r my feet.

It didn't hurt w hen lw put the m o n. Uut I couldn't move my

lt'et easily. Uut late r I srartt:d to hkt: the shot:s. and tht' hard roads

d idn 't hurt 111y feet.

N ext I lea rned to go in carriage harness. There was a very

s111Jl1 saddle, but the re was a big collar.

f=:mnl:!r Crey to ld 111e co pull a carriage with my mother.· You ' II

learn a lo t from he r,' he said, w he n he put the harnt:ss 0 11 me.

I d id learn. Shi:! showed 111e th t! way to 1110w, and she taught rm:

to listen to the driver.

' But tht're are good drivers a nd bad drivn s.' she sa id. · And

the re.: arc good people and bad pcoplc. Farmer C rcy is kind, and

bc thinks about his ho rses. l3ut some me n are bad, o r stupid.

Always be good, so people w ill love you. Always work hard a nd

do your best.'

Chapter 3 B irtwick Park

In M ay a m an came and took rne away co Mr Gordo n 's ho me :it

l3irtwick Park.

' Ue a good ho rse,' Farmer G rey said to me. ·and wo rk hard .'

I couldn't say anything, so I put my nose in his hand . H e put a

hand o n my back and smiled kindly.

l3irtwick Park was big. T hc re was a large ho use. And there

were a lo t o f scabies fo r ho rses, and places for many car r iages. I

wem to a stable for fo ur ho rses.

T hey gave me som e food , and the n I looked ro und. The re was

a ho rse near m e in the stable. H e was sm all and fa t, w it h a pre tty

head and happy eyes.

4

. .

'My 11a11/C' is /\lfrrrylels. / '111 ,,ery be1111t[{11/.'

· Who ,lfl' you ?' I askt·d.

' My 11,111w is Mnrylcb>"S,' he said. 'I'm very bt\1utift1I. I carry the

g irls 011 my back. Everybody love~ me.You are hvmg in this stable

w ith me, ~o you will have to be good now. I hope you do n'L bite.'

A ho rse looked at Merrylegs from across the ~table. She had a

very beautiful red- brown coat, but she had :rngry eyes. She put

her ears back.

' I )id I bite you ?' she ;1sked ,mgrily.

' N o, 110 ! ' Mcrrylq,,,i; said quickly.

Wh1:11 the red-brown ho rse went out to work that .1ftl·rnoon,

Merrylegs told me about h er.

'Ginger does bite,' he said.· One day she bit James in the arm and

hurt him. Miss Flora and Miss Jessie, Mr Gordon's little g irls, arc

afraid of her. They don't bring rm: nice food now. because Ginger

is here.'

' Why docs she bite?' I asked.' 1.~ she bad?'

'Oh, no! I think she was very unhappy. She says," N obody

was kind to me before I came he re." She'll change here. 1'111 twelve years o ld, and I know about life. There isn't a better place

lor ,1 horse than this, anywhere. John is the best g room in thl'

country and James is the kindest boy. Mr Gordon is a very nict'

man.Yes, Cinger w ill change here.'

Chapter 4 I Begin Well

The head groom's name was John Manly. H e lived with his wife

and one little child in a very small house near the scabies.

The next morning he took me outside the stable and

groomed me. He worked hard, and he made my coat clean and

beautiful.Then Mr Gordon came and loo ked at me.

' H e looks very good,' he said. ' I wanted to try him this

morning, but I have some other work. You ride him, John, and

chen tell me about him.'

6

John put .1 ~addk 0 11 111y h.1r k , bu t it was to<> ~lll.1ll. I k

c:h:m gcd 1t. I k got :rnm hc r ~;iddk·, not too big and no t mo ~mall,

:md we went out. H e was a very good rider and I understood his

wo rds. O n 1he road w1.· walke<l, ll1e n we wcor faste r. I wanted

him to like riding me. T hen he took m e away from the road to

som e open f1d ds with o ne o r two trees and ;1 10 1 o f g rass. There

he wanted me to go very fa~t. and I d i<l. It was good - I liked i1 ! I think John liked it, too.

Whe n we w1:re at Birtw ick Park again, Mr C o rdon asked Jo hn

M anly,• Wcll,John , how does he go?'

· He's v1:r y good - ve ry good ,' s.1id John.' He loves going fast.

H e unde rstands you. N obody was unkind to him w he n he was

young. So he isn't afraid of anybody o r anythit1g.'

' G ood,' Mr Gordon said.' I' ll ride him tom orrow.'

♦

The next day, John g roo med 111c a11d put the saddle o n m e;;. The n

he took me fro m the stables to the ho use.

I re me mbered my m othe r's wo rds and I tried to m ake

Mr Gordo n happy with me. He was a very good ride r, and he

was kind to me.

H is wife was at the door o f the big house w he n he finished

riding. ' Well, my dear,' -she -said,· h ow do you like him?'

' H e's b lack and very beauti ful,' said Mr Gordo n.' What can we

call him ?'

' We can call him 13!ack Beauty ! ' said his wife.

• 13lack Beauty - yes - yes,' said Mr Gordon. ' I think that's a

very good name.'

Jo hn came and rook me to the stables.

' We've got a name for him. Jo hn ,' said Mr Gordo n. •·My w ife

tho ught of ic. He's going to be Ulack 13eauty.'

Jo hn was very happy. • Com e w ith m e, my 13lack l3eau ty.' he

said. ' You are a beauty - and it's a good Engljsh name.'

7

Chapte r 5 My N ew Friends

Joh11 liked 111c. I le wa~ ,1 wry good groo111 .. 111d 111y bl,1ck co.1l

always ~hont· be:illlifully. He lookl·d ,11 my feet t·very day. I le

knew when one or them hurt. Then he put \Ot11ething on to it.

He often talked to me. I didn't know cvcry word, btll I soon

understood him. I likcd John Manly more Ll1.111 a11ybody.

l liked rhe stable boy,J:1111cs Howard, too. John taught him to

be kind ro horses, and ht· helped John to groom me.

After nvo or three days, I pulled a carriage with Ginger. I was

afraid of her. She put her cars back when they took me across to

her. But she clidn ·c move when they harnessed mc next ro her.

John drove us. and we workt·d very well. Ginger worked well.

She pulled as hard as me, and she also liked going more quickly.

M:my horses only go fast when the driver hies them with his

whip. Ginger and I went fast when the driver ,vanccd us to go

fast. We went as fast as we could. John didn't like the whip, and

he never whipped us. We worked hard for him.

After Ginger and I went out t\vo or three times with the

carriage, we were good friends.

We liked little Merrylegs very much. H e was never afraid

and always happy. Mr Gordon's li ttle girls loved riding him, and

they were never afraid. Mrs Gordon loved all three of us, and we

loved her.

Mr Gordon liked his people to have one day without work

every week. His horses also had a day without work. On Sunday

they cook us co a field of good grass, and we stayed there all day,

wichout reins or harness. We ran and jumped. We played, and we

were happy. Then we stood under some trees and told stories.

8

Chapte r 6 Jam es Howard

Mr Gordon c:1111e 10 the stables one day and spoke 10 John

Manly.• How is James working, John?• he asked.

• Very well,' John answered.· He lt•arns quickly. He is kind to

the horses, and the horses like him. He's learning to drive, and

he'll soon be a good driver.'

Then James came in. 'James,' Mr Gordon said. ' I have a letter

from my friend , Sir Clifford Williams of Clifford Hall. He wants

to find a good young groom. He pays well, and the young man

will soon be head groom. He will have a room, stable clothes and

driving clothes, and boys will help him. I don't want to lose you,

and John wiU be sad.'

' I will.Yes, I will.' John said. ' But I won't try to stop him.'

'Yes, we'll all be sad,' Mr Gordon said. '13ut we want you to

do well, James. Do you want to go? Speak to your mother ac

dinner-time, James, and then give me your answer. Then I can ceU

Sir Clifford.'

Ginger and Merrylegs and I were sad, too, when we heard

James's answer. He wanted co go. But ic was a better job for him.

We knew chat.

For six weeks before James went, we worked hard. He wanted

co be a very good driver, and Mr Gordon and John M anly

wanted to help him.

So the carriage went out every day. G inger and I pulled it, and

James drove. James learnt very quickly. For the first three weeks

John sat next to him, but after that James drove without him.

One day in autumn, after two or three days of heavy rain,

Mr Gordon wanted John to take him to the city. There was a

strong wind that day.

We came to the river. The water was very high under the

bridge, and there was water across the fields.

We arrived without a problem. But it was lace in the afternoon

before we started for home again.

9

l'lw wi11d \\',t~ ,1ru11gn tll>W, .111d 11 111.,dl' .1 11u"c 111 the trl'c,.

Suddl'lily, otK' o( rl1t· trt·t·, frll ,tt-ro~~ tl1t· ro.1d wi t It., ( ' R/\S! I !

I \V.l~ .1fr.1id, but I dtdll't rt111 .1w;iy. Joh11 _1u111pnl lllll or tltl' c.1rrt.lgl' .1nd c.1111e to llll'.

'Wt.' c11l't gn p.1,1 tl1 t· 1rn·.' Johll s.1id to Mr ( :nrdrni. · Wt·'ll

have to go 0 11 th t· othn ro.,d tu thl.' bridgl.'. It\ .1 lnngn ro.1d :ind

we'll ht· late. But the horsl' t'lt 't tired.'

It was ne:irly t.brk w hen we arriwd .11 the l>ridgt·. Wt.· cou ld ,t·c

w.ttl.'r 011 it. This so1ueti111l'S happl'nl'd w hl'll thl' rtvn w.1~ l11gh.

I startt.·d to walk across the bridgl' - but I stopped. Son1c1h111g

w:i~ wrong. I could fi:d it.

· Mow, Ul':tuty ! · said Mr Cordoll.

I didn't 1110w, .111d hl' put tht· w hip .icmss 111y back.

'Co 110w ! 'hl' ~aid.

Uut I clidn 't go.

'Thnc's .1 pmbk111: said John. I IL- j u111pt.·d down from the

carri..igl' .rnd tril'd to mow llll'. • Wh.tt's tht· probk-111, Ut·auty ?'

hl' :iskcd.

There was :1 houst· ,1crms the bridge, and a 111.1n rail out of the

door. 'Stop! Stop!' he shoutt.•d. 'Thl' bridgt.' is lm·ak ing ill the

111iddk. Don 't come across ic. or you'll fall in till' river! ·

John looked at me and slllikd. · Thank you, Ucauty,' he ~aid.

We went home on :i diffen:nt ro:id. It was late when we got

ho111t'. Mrs Cordon r;rn out of the house.

· You're late!' she said.' Did you have an accident?'

· We nearly did.' said her husband.· Uut Beauty is cll'vcrcr than I' LIS.

♦

' I have co go to the city .1g.11n.' Mr Cordon often said. And we

always went wht·n rl1nl.' wnt· .1 101 oi" c irri:igcs and ridl.'rs on the

road. Peop!t· wert· on t !il.'tr \\', I)' to tl1t.· l r.1111. o r they wcrt.' on their

way hcrnlt' .1cro~, the hrtdgc .tltl'r wnrk.

Tht'II llllt· d.1y M1 C:u1do11 ,.ml 10 .Ju l111 M.111ly. · Mrs Clmlo11

.11,cl I h:,w to go to l hl<1rd tu11101-row. Wt''H h.1ve t:,nga .111d

lll.1ck lk.Hll)' wid1 dw big c.i rri.1gt· .. 111d J.1n1t·, will driw u~:

It w.1s .1 JOLlrlll'Y ot' .,holll Sl'Vl'IHy- liw krlo111l·trl's to ( )xfiHd.

We went .1hout lifry ki lo111etrt·s 111 lllll' d.1y :111d d1l·n wt· ~topped

fc1r the 11ight .lt 1ht: higgl'\l ho ld in Aykshury. J.1111t·~ drow wry

wdl. Wt' pulkd rlit· r.1rri:1ge up .111d down .. 111d ht· .rlways stoppt'd

on thl' w.,y up. I k m·vn drovl' us 1:1st when wt· wl'nr down. Wl'

h.1d ro go qui<·kly wht·n the ro.1d w.1, good. bu1 1101 l>II h.,d m.,d,.

These things hl'lp ., horsl'. And when he gl'IS kind words. too. hl' i, h:1ppy.

They groo111nl u, in the hotd st:ibk .. ,nd gaw us SOllll' gond

ltlOd . Ja111t·s s.1id. 'CoO(l night. my bc:n1t1es. Sleep well. C:inger.

Slet·p wdl. Black lk.1ury.'Tht:11 he went lo hi~ hL·d.

Chapter 7 T he Fire

An hour btL'r, :1 111:m c.1111c to the ho tel on :1 horse. One of the hotel grooms brought the horse to the st:ihle.

At Binw ick Park nobody srnoked in the stables, but chis 111:111

did. There w:1s Ill> food in th<.: stable lc>r the new horse, so the

groom went to get son1t·. The food for the horses was 011 the

Aoor .1bow thL' scabll'. The groo111 ,wnr up therl' .ind found sornL'

food. I k threw it 0 11 the Aoor for the ho rse. :111d he went away.

I skpt, but I soon woke up :igain. I wa~ wry unhappy. Uut

why? I didn't know.

I heard Ginger. She was unhappy. too.

Then I saw rhc sm oke.

Very s0011 thne was smoke cvcrywhl're. There wert· noises

from abow my head - the sounds of a fire. The other horses in

the stable woke up. They moved their feet and tried ro ~et away

from the ~mokt·.

11

I w:is v,.:ry .1fraid. Thl.'11 till' hotd groo111 cunt· inlo thL' \l.1hk .111d tri t·d lo t.1kt·

tl1t· horn.:\ out. But h t· w;1~ .1fraid. wo, .1ml hi.' tnt·d w work quickly. Thar 111.1dc us 111ort· .1fr.1id. and tl1L' othl'r hor~L'S didn't

w:int to gn with him. Whl'n ht· c:11111.: to mt·. ht' trit'd to pull lllt' out f:1~t. I k pulled ,111d pulled. I couldn 't go wllh hi1n .

Wt' WL'rt' stupid YL'~ 1 But Wt' didn't know him, and lw wa, v,.:ry afraid.

Tht'rL' was morl' .ind lllOrl' ,mokl'. A11d thl'II wl' ~aw thl' rt·d light of firl' fro111 tilt' f-loor abov,.: our hl.'ads. So111dlody ~hollll'd · Firl' ! · mn,idL', .md 111ort· rnl'n c lllll' illlo the ,t.1bk.

Thi.' \ou11d of chi.' firl' was loudl.'r .111d loudn. And rht·11 .)amt'~ was ,1t my ht'ad. I k spokl' to lllt' quil'tly: 'Co111t·. my Ul.'aury. We hav,.: to go 110w. Wakl' up .u1d co111t' with 111e. We'll ~oon gl't out of this ~111okt'.'

He put a roat round 111y he.1cl and owr 111y eyl'\. Then I

couldn't ~l'e the tire, .111<l I wasn 't .1fraid. I Ii.: ,pokt: to 1111.: ki11dly and we walked nut of the ~table.

· I-Inc, somebody,' Jame, calkd. · Takt: chi~ horsl.', ,1ml I ' !1 go

back for the othL'r hor~L': A big man took 1111;:, and J;.1mL's ran into tht: stable again. I was

very unhappy when I saw him do chi~. I made a lot of noisL'. (Nt'xt day, GingL'r said,' When I heard you, I wasn't afraid. So I

camt: out with Jamt:s.')

A lot of thinbrs happenl.'d all round me, but I watched the stable door. There was fire and smoke inside, and things fdl to the ground.

Mr Gordon ran to the stable. 'James! James Howard!' he called. 'Are you there?' There was no answer, but I heard more noises in the stable. Ocher things fell from the top floor. I was

very afraid for James and Ginger. I was happy when James and Ginger came out through the

smoke to us.

12

He spoke I<> 111c ki11dly a11d 111c ,,,11/ked <>Ill <!f thl' s1<i/1IC'.

· ( ;ood hoy!· Mr ( :nnlo11 ~;ta! to J.111tl'' · · /\ n· you .ill right ?·

J.1111t·~ rou ld11 '1 ,,w.,k lll'C,lllSl' or thl' \lllllke. hut hl· w.1, filll'.

I k put .1 h.111d 011 ( ;111gt·r·~ lll'.td .111d lool-.nl lt.tppy.

Chapter 8 Little Joe Green

J;11m·~ .111d Cingt·r Wl'l't' ill I hl' nt·xt d.,y. Thl' slllokl' w.,~ h.1d

for thl'lll. So Wt' srayt·d i11 Ayksbury for rh.11 d.,y. llut .1ti t·r

:1110\hl'r night rhnc. tht·y Wl'l"l.' lx·ttcr. In thl' morning ,w ,will

to Oxfi.ml.

J.111ws did t·wryll1ing for Cingcr. Hc ,poke to oldn g-roo111,

.111d they told hi111 the best ways. Whl't1 ,w .irrivnl l111111e .ll

llirtwick !'ark. we were all tint·.

John heard J:1111cs I low.ird's scory, and ht· looked .tl ( :i11gn

.llld lilt'.

'You did wcll.J:i,m·s,' hc sa id .' A lot of pL'opk c:111 't gt·t lmr~c~

nut nf a stabk whcn thcrc's a firt·. Why don't thcy want tn mow ?

Nobody knows. ( )nly a fril'nd c1n take thl'lll out. ThL'y h.,vt· to

know :ind lovc hi111.'

lkti.>rc hc kft us for his new job,J:1111cs .1skcd. · Wlw's going to do my job) Do you knm,y)'

· Yes,' Joh11 said.· Little Joe Grt·en.'

' Little Joe Crt·cn ! 'said Ja111t·s.' He's only :1 child!· 'He's fourtce11 ,'Jol111 s:1id.

' But he's very small,' said J:imcs.

'Yes, he's small, bur he's quick,' said Jo hn. 'A11d he wants to

ll'arn, and he's kind. His father will be happy, :111d Mr Cordon

wants to have hilll here.'

James wasn't wry happy :ibouc it.· He's a good boy,' he said.

· Uut you ·11 haw a lot of work because he's small.'

· Well,' Jo hn said,' work and I art· good friends. l '111 n ot afraid

of work.'

14

· 1 know th:11: s.11d J.11m·s. · And I ·11 try h.1rd lo hl· thl' s.um·."

The lll'Xt d.,y, Jol· r.111,l· 111 1hc ,t.1hk~. J.1111l", w.111Lnl Lu ll'.ldt

hi 11, lwfore hl· ,w11t.JnL' k·.1rn1 10 ck .111 Ilic ,t.1hk .. 111d IO hring 111

our li.1od. I le l·k.111l'd tl1L· h.,rncs,L·s, .111d hdpnl to wash the

r arri.,ges. 1---k co11ld11 ·1 groo111 ( ;ingl·r ur 11w hl"ClllSl" ht· wa, too

,111.,II. So J.1111cs lwlpL·d h1111 groo111 Mt·rrylq~~-

Mnrylq .. ~ was11 't w ry h.,ppy. · The hoy know, 1wthi11g: he

,.,id. But .1til'r ., wn·k or 1wo hl· ,.,id.' I think thl' hoy will hL·

good. 1"11 hdp hi11, to learn LJUlckly.'

Littll' J<>L· (;n:t·11 wa, ., h.1ppy boy. I k s.111g wlll'11 lw worknl.

Wl' soon liked hi111.

Chapter 9 I am Ill

One night, :1frcr J:1111L'S \Wilt .1\v:iy, I he:ird John our~idl'. I It- r.111 rn

thL· ho u~c, then hL' r.111 ro rhc ,r.,hle. I k opennl rlw door .111d

t'.lllle to llll".

' W:,h· 11p, lkauty ! ' he ,.1id. · You haw to run now!·

1-k p11t a s.,ddk 011 11w wry lJllickly . . 111d hl' _j11111pcd on 111y h.1ck. Then hl' rotk• lllL' quickly ro thl' hou,e. Mr Conlon w,1s

there. with a light in hi~ h.111d.

' Now, John," he ,.1id,' yo11 h.,w to ride .1s r:,st as yo11 c:111. M y

witi.· is very ill. Give this kttn to I )ortor Whirl' in 1--krtford. I

w:im hi111 to conic quickly. Yo11 c:111 ro111e ho111c when Black

lk 111ry is re:1dy for thl' journey.'

John took rhc letter, :ind Wl' went away.

' Now, lkaury,' said John. · Do your best!'

It was night, but I knew thl· road. TherL' WL'l'L' no peopk o n it

because they were all in bed and asleep. I wenr very "fast - faster

than every journey before rhat night.

When we came ro the bridge, Jo hn pulled thl' reins. I ,wnt

across it morl' slowly.

· ( :t1nd. lk.1111 y ! ' l1l' ,.aid .

Wllt'n \Vl' wcrl' .1crm, 11 . I Wl'llt fast .1gai11. Wl' \Vl'lll 11p .111d down.

past f-il'lds .111d lmust'S, :111d tht'II through the ~trl't't~ or I ll'rtliird.

M y shot·s 111.1tk .1 11ni~c 011 the road wht'n I s tnppcd .1t lilt'

doctor·~ donr. 11 w.l\ thrt·t· o'dnck 111 th1.· 111orni11g. Tht' doctor\

window opcnnl, .111d I )octor Whilt: looked olll of it.

· Wh.ll do you w;111t ? ' he askl'd.

· Mrs (:ordon is wry ill,' John w ld hi111 . 'Mr C:ordon wrnt~

you to go quickly, or sh1.·' II di t'. I krc's a ll'ttt:r li-0 111 hi111 .'

• I ' II ro1111.• down ,' s:1id tll\.' doct or. I It- shut d11.· window and ht·

w.1~ mon .1r thl' door. I k read rh t.· kut:r.' Yt·s,' he said. · 1 ·11 haw ro

i-;n. But lllY old horse was Olli all day, .111d he ·s w ry tirl'd JH)W. My

0Ll1er horse is ill. Wh:ir can I do ? ( ::111 I h.1w your horse ?'

' I le r:111 fast 011 tht: way hnl',' John said.' l3ut think lw can

t.lkl' ytHI.'

' I' ll be ready soon ,' tht: doctor s:1id, and ht: Wt.'lll imo Llw

house :1g:1in.

John ~rood 111.•xt to 1111.: and put his h :111d 011 111y head. I was

wry hot.

The don or r;1 rnt: oul in his riding dotht:s and with a riding

whip.

' You won't want a whip,' John said.' 131;1r k llt::rnty will go ,1s

fast as ht: can.'

'Thank you ,' tht: d octor said. He gaw the whip to Jo hn and

spoke to 1111.:: · N ow, l31ac k Lkauty ! ' The doctor was a bigger man than John, and ht> wasn't a very

good ridt: r. Uut I r:rn for him.

I was wry tirt>d, but Wt' arrived at Uirtwick Park very quickly.

Then I nearly fell down. Mr Cordon ht>ard us. H e ran to tht:

door and cook the doctor into the house.

Little J oe Crt:en was outside the door, and he took mt: to tht:

stable. I was happy now. but I was very. very hot. M y coat was

hot, and water r:111 down my legs.

16

Jo<.: wa~ young .111d w ry , 111:ill, IH ll ht· trit·d. I It- dl'.llll'd 111y lq!;\ ,111d 111y back. hut ht· didn't put .111yd1i11g owr llll'. I k tl1o ugl1t, ' T h<.: ho rs<.: i, hot .111d h<.: wo11 't likl' it.' I IL' brought 111L' a lot of water. It was cold a11d very nin·. :llld I drank it.Then he gave 1llL' ~om c food.

· N ow ~lcep, lkam y,' he ~aid .. 111d he went away. Soon I sta rtl'd to feel cold and ill. I tri <.:d to ~lc<.: p, but

I couldn't. I wa~ very ill wh<.: 11 Jo hn c:1111c. I IL' walked from Hertford, but

he carnt: to me. I was 0 11 the Aoor. · O h, lk:111ty ! ' he said. ' Wh:it did we do to you ?' I couldn't tell him , but hL· knew. I le put Lhing~ over me and

made 111e warrn .The11 ht: ran to his house and bro ught hot water. He 111ade a good drink fo r me. He was angry.

I heard him with the other men. 'A swpid boy 1' he said. 'A stupid boy ! He puts nothing 0 11 a ho t horse! He gives him cold Welle r! O h, lk,1uty ! .

I was very ill fo r a wt:ek. John was with rne fo r hours every

day, and IK c:m1e to me two o r threl' t imes every night. Mr Gordon c:1me every day, too.

' D <.:ar Beauty,' h<.: said on<.: day. ' My good horse ! My wif<.: didn ·r di<.:, and we can thank you for that! Yes, we have to th:1nk you ! '

I was very happy about th:it. We all loved Mrs Gordon. I )ocror White came o ne clay when he was at Uirtwick Park. He put a hand o n my head :ind cold John, ' Mrs Go rdon is here today because this beautiful horse brought 111e here quickly.'

Jo hn said to Mr Gordo n, • Ulack Ueauty went very fast that night. Do you think chat he knew?'

I did know. Jo hn and I had to go fast fo r dear Mrs.C ordo n. I knew that very well.

17

C hapte r IO I Move A gain

I w.,s l1.1ppy .,t Binw1ck l'.irk for .1110tltl'r yl',t r. 0 11ly 011l' tltillg

1n.,dl· u~ s.id : Mr~ Cordo11 got hl'tll'I', hut sht· w:is oltt·n ill .1g:1i11 .

Tltl'n tltt· d\lctor ,.,id. ' You .111d your wifi: h.tw to go :1w.1y .tnd

liw i11 tltl' so111lt of' Fr:111n·. Mr Cordon.'

' We' ll go.' s.1id Mr Conlo11. · We'll 1n;tkl' .t nl'W lmnlL' thl'l'l'.'

We \Vl'l"L' wry s.1d. Mr ( ;onio n w.1s unlt.1ppy, 100, hut hl' sc.ined

to )!;l't rl':1dy. Wl' hl'.1rd a lot oft.ilk about it in thl' stabk . .Jol111 w.1~

wry s.td . j ol' lll'arly stopped singi ng wht·n hl· workl'd.

Mr Cordon's little girls c.1n1t· to thL' st.1bk. Thl·y visitl·d

Ml'rrykgs for the I.1st tinll'. They cried. but thl'y told Mt·rryll'gs:

· You ' ll bl' h:ippy. o ld friend. F:ithcr is g iving you ro Mr Cood.

tltL' kind o ld d1urd1 1n.1 11 .You'II t,lkL· his wit~· ti-0111 pl.KL' to pl.in·.

but you will m·wr work hard.jot' will go with you. I k \ goi ng to

hl' the groo1n :u1d hL• 's going co hdp i11 rlw1r house next to tht·

d1urrh. You' ll ~L'l' your frit·nd, 131:Kk lk:iury .ind (;ingl'r

~0111eri111l's. F:11hn is st·lli11g tl!l'lll to Lord Wl'~tland at E.1rls H.111. Tint is11 'r :i long way.'

Mr Cordo11 w,111tnl to timl a job for Joh11 , wo. Bur John

wantl·d to opi:n a school a11d tl'aclt young horses thL·ir work.

· A lot of young horses .ire :ifr:iid when tht·y k:irn 11cw thin!-,>s,'

he said. ' H orst's arc 111y friends, :i11d they like me. I chink thl'y'II

karn bcttL'r from a ki11d person. I want to tt·ach chem.'

' Nobody can do it bettn than you, Joh11,' Mr Cordon said.

' Horses love you. And 1'111 very sad because I won't see you.'

The last day came. Ginger and I took rhe carriage co the door

of the house for the bsc time. People c:1111e to the door whrn

Mr Gordon brought his wifr down in his arms. Many people

cried when we moved away.

18

Mr Cord(>//:, /i11/c ,{!iris 11isi1crf Mcrryh;{!sjiir tltc last 1im<'.

Chapter 11 Earls H all

Tlw l lL'X l 111orni11g, .Jot· c1111c :111d he took Mnrylq,r:; away to

Mr :ind Mr, C:oml\ IHH1,c.

John ro(k ( :ingn and look 111c lO E.1rls 11.tll. It was ,1 very big

house with :i lot of.~ubks.

At the ~t.1bks, John askl'd for Mr York, the bms of the driver\

.incl grooms.

Mr York ca111e and looked at m . · Very good,' he said. • They

look wry good, but horses arc very Jifforem. You and I know

chat. What can you cell me about these two ?'

· Well,' John said, ' there arcn 't any bl'ttcr horses than the~c in thl·

cuumry. Uut they arc clifforent. L31ack Ucauty is never angry or afraid

because nobody was unki11d to him. When she ca111l' to us, Ginger

was very unhappy. She often bit and kicked people. She changed at

Birtwick Park. We wcrL' kind to her, and site's very good now. Uut

people will have to bt: kind to ha, or sht: will bt: bad again.'

' I ' II rt:mrn1ber that,' Mr York said. ' But there arc a lot or driver~

and g roollls here. I can 't watch ,1II or them.'

Before tht:y went out of the stabk, John said, ' I have to tell

you something. Not om· of our horses at Uirtwick Park used a

bear ing rein .'

'Well, they' ll h.1w to have a bearing rein here,' said Mr York .

· Oh,' said John.

• 1 don't like bearing reins, and Lord Westl:rnd is very kind to

horses,' said Mr York. '13ut Lady Westland - she's diffe re nt. Fo r her,

everything has to look good. H er carriage horses haw to have

their heads up. So they have to have bearing re ins.'

John spoke co us for the last time. Then he wem, and we were

wry sad.

Lord Westland came to us the next day.

• Mr Gordo n says they are good horses. I think he 's right.' ht•

sa id. · Uut we can't have one black horse and one brown horse in

20

li-0111 ()r ,I l ,1rri.1gl' in I 0 11do 11 . 'l'hl'Y l',111 pull till' l ,1rri.1ge hl'l'l' Ill

thl' l lllllltry . . 111d 111 I 011dn11 \Vl' r.111 rail- tl1l·111 .'

'Thl'y didn't l1.1vl' hl',1nng rl'111, .1t Mr C:ordon\.'\,lld MrYork .

'John told llll' .'

· Wl'II.' Lon! Wt·\ tl.1m! s.11d. · put ll1t· hl'arn1g n: in~ oi1. hlll 011!y

pull thl'111 up ~lowly. I'll SJ)l',1k to L.1dy Wntl.rnd about it .'

l II tht..· .1ti:ernoo11 :1 gn,0111 h.irnt·s~nl ( ;i11ger and 111e ro .1

carriage, .111d tl1t·11 thl' gmo111 rook u~ to the front or the houst·. It w,1s v1._•ry big - bigger th:111 Hinwick 1':1rk - but I didn't likl' it

wry 111uch.

Lady Westland c.1111e o ut or the housl'. Shl' wa~ :1 t:1 11 won1:111.

She w:1lkl·d round m :md !ookt·d at u~. She wasn't happy about

so1m·Ll1ing, but \he didn't ,.1y anything. Shl' got inl<l the c.1rri.1ge.

York put thl' whip lightl y across 111y bark, and Wl' walkl'd away.

T hl' bearing n·in wasn't bad th.IL d.1y. I .ilw.1ys walked with 111y

hl',ld up, .,ml tht· rein didn't pull it up highn.

• Will Cingn be JIIW)' with the rci11? · I thought.

Bur she was wry good .

At till' ~:lll1L' tintt· thl' lll'Xt d:1y ,w went to thl' door .1gai11.

Lady Wl'stl:ind c:1111L' out :ind s:1id: · York, pull those horSl'S ·

ht·ads up.'

York got down and s:1id, · Pkasc don'L be :rngry with me,

Lady Westland. These horses didn't use a be:iring rein before now .

. ind Lord Westland said, " Pull their heads up slowly." Do you

want me ro pull them higher now ?'

' Yes!· she said.

York came ro our heads .111d made the reins shorter.

When we cli1nbed to higher ground, we wanrcd to put our

heads down. We had to pull harder. The bearing rein stopped us,

and our k gs and backs had to work harder.

Ginger said co me, 'This isn't too bad. I won't say anything

because they arc kind to us here in every other way. I don't want

to be bad, but lx·aring reins make me very angry.'

21

C hapter 12 Ging er is Ang ry

( )ne d.1y L.1dy we~tl.111d C lllll' OUl in VL·ry L'Xl'l'll~IVl' clothe~.

· Driw ll> L.1dy H.irhn1011d\ housL·.' ,hl' ~.1id. llut ~he did11'1 gt·t inw the r.11T1,1ge. · Whl.·11 ,lrl.' you going to gl't d1o~t· hor~l.'s· hl'.1d~

up. York ? l'ull thl.'111 up now!·

Ynrk l'.11ne lO inc first. I k pullcd 1ny lll'.1d b.1ek with llll'

hl'.1ring rein. It hurt 111c, .111tl tl1t· hit cut 111y 1noutl1.

Then he ,wnt ro (;inger and he bq.?;all to pull hn ht·ad b.Kk.

Gi11gn scoml up on hn b.ick lq. .. ~. I kr t'.lr~ ,w,11 h.ick. and hcr

eycs Wt-re wry .rngry. Sht· bq!;,111 to kick .111d ~hl.' tried to gt·t .1w.1y

ti-0111 the c.1rri.1gc. York and tl1t· groolll couldn't srup lwr. Thcn

~he c ,uglll ht·r k gs in rhc h.1mess and fi:11.

York s:ir on Gi11gn's hc,1d. I k role! the groo111 ro get .1 k111ti:

.111d cm the h.,rness. Lady Westl.111d we11t into the homt·.

Nobody h.1d tillll' fill· llll', I ~rood with 111y he.id h.1ck.Tht· bit

hurr 111y 111outh.

Thc11 Yo rk c 1111t· .111d took .1w,1y rl1c he:1ri11g rl'in. 1 k said.

· Why do ,w h.1w to haw tht:st' bl·aring rt·ins? Tht·y lll,1kt· good

hor~L'~ had, .111d thl'y 111akc our work h:mkr. Lord Wl'stl.rnd wi ll

hc angry. But how c.111 I ,.1y 110 to his wifi: whl'11 f,c lll'Vl.T dol.•~? ·

Thcy never put Cingt:r into c 1rriagL' h.1n1t·s~ .1gai11 ,ll E.1r!,

1-1:111. When she was well again after hn fol l. onc of Lord

Wcstbnd's you11gt•r sons cook her for his ridi11g horsl'.

I worked with the carriag<:, and for four months tht· bt•:iring

rcin hurt Ille cvery day. I worked with Max .. 111 older horst:. He

c:1n1e from Lord Wesrland's stable in London.

' Why do they have co hurt us with bearing reins?' I ask<:d hi 111.

' They do thi116,s that way in London,' he said.' I 11 London the

rich pt:opk's horses have to have their he:ids up. It m;ide 111<: ill,so

1·111 here now. I' ll die soon.' He looked at me sadly. · 1 hope you

don't have to havt: the be;iring rein every d:1y. Yoll 'II die before

you'rt· o ld, coo. People are very stupid.'

22

C hapter 13 Re uben Sm ith

111 April. I ord .111d I :1dy Wl'sll.111d Wl'IH to llit·ir I omlo11 IHHl~t·

.111d took York w11h 1lw111. (;111gt·r .111d I .,ml thrl'l' or llHlr l>thn

horsl'S s1.1ynl .ll E.1rls I I.di. Their so11~ a11d their som' frie11d~

rod,.: us.

R t·ubl'n S111i1h was tht· hms ot" tl1e stahk·, wht•11 York w:1, .l\v,1y.

I le wa, .1 wry good driw r .111d .1 good groo111. I le liked horst·, , .111d horses lih·d hi111 . Why w.,~ he only di t· groo111? Why wasn·1

he .1 boss, too ' Max \Old 1111: .1bm11 hi111.

Rn1be11 S111ith so111eti111es got dru11k. Whe11 he w,1s11't dn111k,

hl' was wry good .1t his work. Ewrybody likl'd hi111. But whl'11

hl' was dru11k, hl' was11't the ,a111e 111:111.

· I'll m·wr g1: t dru11k .1g.1i11,' Ill' wk! York . A11d so York w.1,11't

.1fr:1id to k.1Vl' thl' horses with Smith whl'n ht'. York . was away.

♦

011l' 1hy Lord Westland's yo1111gcr so11 wanted to go lO Lo11do11.

· I'll gl't 011 tht· 1rai11 .11 1--lertfi.ml,' lw told S,nith. ' I wa11t you ro

driv1.· 1111.• there in 111y carriagl'. It c.111 st.1y in tlw c.irri.1gt·- m.1kn\

i11 I lertford, bl'c1use I w:111t him to do some work 011 it. So bring

,1 saddle and ride Ul.ick lk :wry homl' to Earls Hall.'

R eubl'11 Smith drove me to thl' clrriage-111:iker's. Then Ill' put the saddle 011 111e and rodl' llll' to thl' White Horse hotel. There

ht· asked the hotd groo111 for SOllll' good food for nil'.

· Haw him ready for me .it four o'cloc.:k,' he said.

He went to the hoed, and he llll't some men at the door. He

c 1111e out again at fiw o 'c.:loc.:k and told the hotel groom,' I don't

want to go before six. 1'111 with some old frirnds.'

The groom showed Smith one of my from shoes.' That shoe

will fall off ~oon.' he told Smith. · Do you wane Ill<.' to do

som ething .1hot1t it ?'

23

· Nu.' S11llth ,.11d.' It ('.111 '1 1:dl offlll'forl' \Vl' j.;l' l l1u11H·.'

Thn\l' Wl'l'l" , 1r:111gl' wonk R c ulK• IJ S11111h "'·" 11\11.dly t·.1rl'lul

.1hout our \ hOl''·

• I k didn 't ronll' m1t ,ll , ix u'dul k or .11 \l'Vl'll o r .ll t· igln. A1

nilll' o'tlod, li l' Clllll' Olli ortl1t· hotl' I with a lot 01°1101w.

· You! ' h l· sh outl'd tlJ the hoLL·I groo1n. · Bring llll' 111y hor,l' ! ·

I k w,1s wry .111gry w ith Lhc grornn w1Ll1 l'Wrybody I ll thl'

hotl'I.Why? I didn't know.

Wl· Wl' rl'n't o ut or I krtford w hl' ll he \ l.lrll'd lO Int llll' \Vlth

hi\ w hip. I ,wnl .,, fo\l ,I \ I could. I k w hippi:d llt t· .1g.1i 11 .

IL W.t\ dark, and I couldn't ~l'l' wry wdl. Tht' m:1d w.i, w ry

hard, and b:1d in placl'\, and 111y s ll<ll' soon 1-;: II off.

Bur S,nith w.,s drunk .111d didn 't ~n· it. I k didn't , top. I k

whipped Jil l' and ~llOutl'd .H llll'.

· Fastl'r ! 1:astl'r ! · hl' c ried .

The bad nnd cut 111to tht· Ii.mt witho ut .1 ~hot· .111d hurt l\l l' .

And tl1 l'11 I ti.-11 :md thrl'w Slllith owr 111y hl·:td 011 10 thl' m.1d .

le wa\ a11 .1ccidc:11t.

I k didn 't mow.

M y legs hurt, but I ~rood up. I 111owd w the g r:I\, ll l'.lr the

road :rnd waited.

Chapter 14 An Accident

I waited there for a long time.

It was nearly m idnight when I heard a ho rse's feet. Then I saw

Max and a cart. They cam e down the road. I called to Max, and

he answered me.

There were two grooms in the cart. They wanted to find

R euben. One of them jumped down from the cart and ran across

to the man o n the road.

24

I thrt•11, Smith over 111y head 011 to the road.

· It\ l~ndw11 . . 111d ht· 1,11'1 n10vi11g,' ht· ,.11d. · 1 k ht·\ dl'.1d

cold .ind (k.1d ! '

The other groon1 got out of tlw c trt .111d c.11tll' 10 lltt·. I k u,l'd

Olll' of I he c.1rt :, liglu, .rnd looked .11 the had cuts Oil my ll'g,.

'131.tck lk:mry fcll ! . lw ,aid . 'Black Bcaucy ! Wh:n h.1ppencd ?.

I k 1rinl to 1:1kc nll' to the c;1rt, .111d I ne.1rly fdl .1g;iin.

·Oh!' lw said. · Bl.ick lk.n1ty\ 1<.)ot is h.1d, 100. /\nd loo k -

rlwre \ nn shoe! Why did R.euben ridl· a horsl· withnut ,1 shoe ?·

I k lookl·d .1t thl· other g roo1n, rhe11 said,· 1-k w:is drunk .1gain ! · Tlwy put Rl·uben Slllith imo tlw earl. and tl1t' ll om· of tlw

groo 111s drovl' it to Earls Hall. The other 111.111 put son1cthing

round my b.1d foot .111d Wl' walked on thl' gr.1ss nl'.H Lhl' ro.1d.

The cues 011 my kgs and 111y b:td fimt hurt n1e, but .1ftn so1nc

tillll' Wl' gm hontl'.

♦

\V:IS ill for \Vl'l'ks .tlrn thar. Thl· grooms did l'Wryrhing for Ill(',

hut thl· cuts Wl' rl' wry b:1d. Whcn I could walk, tlll'Y put ntl' into

.1 , m.tll tidd. My le.mt .ind 111y khrs got hl'Ltl'f, but only :tfrl.' r n1.111y

wel·ks.

( )11l' day Lord Westb11d c:1111e to the fidd with York . I le

lookl'd at my k gs .111d was ,111gry.

· We'll havc to sd l hi111,' he sa id. ' ( ' 111 wry sad. because 1ny

fril'nd Mr Gordon wantl·d 13lack lkaury to havl' a happy ho1nc

hcre. But you'll haw to send hi111 to HJmpstead.'

And so I went to Hampstead. One day each week thcy sdl

ho rscs there.

A lot of pcopll' camc and looked at 111e. Thl.' richcr pl·opk

went away when they saw my legs. Other peopk looked at my

teeth and eyes, and they felt my khJ';· I had to walk fo r chem.

Some people's hands wcrL' hard .111d cold. To tht'111 I was o nly :i

ho rsL' for work. 13ut soml' h.1d J...111d h.111ds. and tht'y spoke to 111e

kindly. They learnt morl' .1hrn11 llll' th.111 the ocher pcopk.

( likl'd Oll t· or the ki11d lllt' l l.. , C.111 lw h.1ppy W illi hi111 .' J

dwugh1. · 1 k likt·\ hm,l", .111d ht·'s ki11d tn d1t·111.'

I k w.1s .1 s11 1.1II m.111 . bur hl' 111owd well .111d 11111ckly .. 111d l11s

h.111d~ .111d hi~ l'Yl'~ Wl'l'l.' fril't1dly. · I' ll giw twl'my- thrcc pounds for this ho rsl',' ht· s.11d.

· Say c,w11ty- tiw po u11ds, Mr Uarkl'r, :1 11d you GIil k1w him,' .111otht·r 111.111 said . I k sold thl' horst·s - it wa~ his job.

· Twl'nty- tcn1r :111d 110 mort·.' the little 111.1n s:1id.

· All right, I 'll t.1kc rwe11ty- fo ur pounds,' ~.,id tht· otht-r 111.111.

· You'w got a w ry good horsl' for your 1110 111:y, jl'rry Uarkl'r. I k ' II bl' w ry good for cab work. Yo u'll be w ry happy with hi111.'

Thl· little man paid thc 111011ey, then he took me .1way to a hotel. There was a saddlc thac for mc. Hc gaw me some w ry good food , ,llld soon wc werc 0 11 our way to London.

Chapter 15 A London Cab H orse

Then· wcrc a lot ofhorscs :llld carriages and ca rts in the streets of

the great city. Ir was 11ight, bur there were .1 lot of people 011 thl'

roads and u11dcr the street lights. T ht'rl' were streets and streets and streets. Then Jerry Uarker

callcd to somebody, 'Good night, George.'

Cabs w:1itcd in this street.

· Hello, Jerry!' came chc answer.' Have you goc a goo<l horsc?' · Yl's, I think I have,' said Jnry.

· That's good. Good night.'

Soon Wt' wem up a little stn:t·t, and then into :1 stn.:t•t w ith small houses. Opposite che houses there were stables and

carriagt·- houses. JL'rry B.irker stopped me at o ne of the little houses and called,

· Arl' y1H1 .1,kl'p?'

The .111,11 111w11cd. and a young woman ran out. w ith ,1 liccle girl .111c\ ., 1,.,,

27

· I k ilo I I kilo! I kllu ! · tll l'Y , ho utl·d h:1ppily.

M y rtdl'! g, ll d11w11 fi-0111 Lh1· ,.,ddk.

· 1 kilo!· ht· ,.11d. · Now. I 1.irry. Djll'll I he , 1.,hlt- door .111d I'll

br111g hin1 111,id1·.'

Snn11 Wl' Wl'l'l' .di i11 1h1· lntk s1.1bk.Th1· wo1 11.111 h.,d ., liµ,ln 111

her h.111d .. 111d dl l'Y lnokn l .1l lllL',

· b lw good, F:1thn? . :i,knl c li l' little girl.

· Yl's, I )oily .. ,~ good .is you .1n .. •. Co1t1l' .111d put .1 h:md on h1111 .'

T he li11k girl w.1s11't. afi-.1id.

'Shl''s 11ice .. l!ld ,ht·\ ki11d.' I thought.· 1'111 going t1l low lwr.'

· I' ll gt·r hin1 s< >111 t· 11icl' ti,od.Jt·rry.' tl1 L' wn111.111 ,:11tl.

· Yt·s, .ill rigln. l'olly.' ,:llll Jt-rry. Jerry loved hi~ wik l\illy . . 111d hi, s011 :111d d.n1ghtn. I Ii , ,011 .

11.,rry, w.1s twdve )'l',1r, old. I Ii, d.111gl11n. I >oily. w.,, L' lght.Tht·y

loved him. roo.

I llt'Vl'r k11 t·w l1.1ppit·r pl'opk.Th1·y didn't h,,vl' ., lo t nf111nm·y.

hn·.111Sl' pt·opk d1d11 't p.1y c.1b dr1vt-rs wry wdl. Blll Llwy

\\lt'rt· :1lw.1r kind. and tlit·ir loVl' Clllll' OUl of the li11k IHHl\l' ({)

the s1.1bk.

Jt·1-ry h.,d ., t".th .111d two hor,c~. Till· ntlwr horw \\·.,, ,1 h1g o ld

whitl' horse called <:aptai n. That night, ( '..1pt.1i11 told lllt' :ihout

rhc work of ,1 l 011do11 r.1h horse.

· Only one horst· pulls tht· rah,' lw s.1id. · Mr B.,rkl'r works for

:1bour sixtl't'II hour~ c;1ch d:1y from Monday ro S:mmby. but you and

I will only work for l'ight hours. It\ hard work, but Jt•1-ry is nevl'r

u11ki11d.A lot ofcab11tl'II arc u11ki11d, but 11otJnry.You' ll low hi111.'

And hl' was right.

Captain went o ut with thl' cab in the morning. I larry caml'

into the stabk aftn school and gave me food and water.

Whe11 Jerry came home for his dinner, Polly cle:int·d rhe c:ib.

H:irry helped Jerry to put the harness 0 11 llll'. T ht·y did it slowly

because rhl'y didn't want to hurt me. There was 110 61:aring rein.

and the bit didn't hurt.

• 1 tl1i11k lw'll hl' h.1ppy w11h tl1.t1 .'Jl' rry ~.ud .

· Wli.11\ h i~ 11.1111c ? · !'oily .,~kl·d .

· T hl' 111.111 111 I l:1111pstl·.1d did11 ·1 kuow,' ~. ,id Jl·rry. · Wl· ran c dl

h1111 J.1ck . We c ,lkd our last hor~l' Jack . Wh.1t do you think, Polly?·

' Yl'~ .. di rig ht.' ~.,id his wire.' It 's .I good 11:1111e.'

So J.1rk was 111y lll'W 11,lllll', .111d I ~Llrtl'd work.

I was :1 London rab horsl' !

Chapter 16 Jerry Barker

Wl· wt·m down thl' strl'l't :llld Jerry cook me to a pbc e lwhi11d

thl.'. othn cabs.

A big c.1h111:i11 c:1111e to 111e with other driwrs. I k w:,s thl'

o ldest cabman thne. I IL' looked at me and put :i hand 011 111y

bac k and legs.

· Yl·s,' he s:i id, ' he:~ thl· best horse for you , J erry lhrker. You

paid :i lot or111011ey for him, but you did well. He's :i good horse.

and hl'' II work hard for you .'

My work was wry hard. The great city w:1s :, nl'w pl.tee for

111l'. I wasn't happy with the noise. the thousands or pl·oplc, the

horses, carriages and carts in the streets. 13ut Jerry was a wry

good drive r, and I wanted to m :ike him happy. We did well.

Jerry never whipped me. Sometimes he put the whip 011 my

back. That meant •Go!' IJut he usually only moved thl· re ins

when he w:t11ted me to go.

He and Harry groomed us well. and Captain and I always had

good food , clean water :md a ckan stable. H arry was clever

with stabk- work, and Po lly and Dolly cleaned the cab in the

mornings.They laug hed and talked.They wen:: a happy fami ly.

One morning an old cab stopped next to o urs. The horse was

tired and thin. She was a brown ho rse and she lookl·d at me with

tired eyes.

30

· Bl.tck lk.1uty ! · ~Ill' ~.11ll. • I, 1t rl•,1lly you ?'

· ( ;i,ign?' I \,1lll.

11 111,1s Ci11gn. li11t ,1 Vl'ry diflL-rL·11t Ci11ger. Sl1L· told 111l· he r

story. It w:1~ :1 Vl'ry ,;,1d story.

· Alia .1 yc:tr .11 E.1rb I I.ill. thcy sold 111t·: ,,11d ( :111gcr. · But I

w,1s ill :1g.1in ,llld .1 hor~l·- doctor c 11nt·. Thc 11 a r.1h111:111 bou ght

till'. I k\ got :1 lot o( r.1h~ .111d othn c:1b111t·11 u,t· tht·111.'l'hl·y pay

hi111 for 1hc 111. The,;e 111t· 11 .lrl·n't alway,; c 1refu l or kind. 'l'ht·y

whip lll l' and I h,,vt· to work seVl' II d,1ys .1 week. M y lit~ is hard .

1·111 Vl'ry tired 110w. 1'11 lw h.1ppy whcn I dic.'

· 1'111 vcry mrry. Ci11gl'I',' I ,.nd.

I p 111 m y nosc ne:i r hL· rs. I thi11k shc w:1\ h.1ppy.

· You Wt'tT :1 good fril·nd: ~hc s:1id.

Sonic wt·cb .tfin this. :1 c.1rt Wl'lll p.1,t us. Tht·rc w:1s .1 de.id

hor~L· in tht· bac k. It w;1s a brown hor\t'. I think it was (;ingt·r.

Son1t·ti111cs .1 pnson w,imcd Jl-rry to go t:1st in thc c.1b. ( )!ten

Jcrry s.1id, · No. Yo u want to go fast hccau,c you gor up l.1tc.

You have to ~t:1n your journL'Y early. :ind then you c 111 g1.·t there

more slowly.'

So111eti111es peopk w;uned to giVl' hi111 n1rnT 11101tl·y. but he

did no t go faster. But after I learnt to go throug h the Lo ndon

streets. we could go f:l,tcr than 111ost c 1bs.

· We' ll go fost whl'll so 111cbody h:is to gn so 111ewhcre 4uic kly,

Jack .'J l'l'ry s:1id to 111c.

We k1ww the ttui c.: kest roads to the h ospitals i11 London. and

so111cti111cs we made very quick journeys to them.

♦

Om· wet day we took a man to his hote l. Aftn he.: went inside, a

young woman spoke to Jerry. She had a little boy i11 her arms,

and he was very ill.

' Where is St Thornas's Hospital ?' she asked.' Can you tt'II m e?

I'm from the country, and I do n 't know Lo ndo n . The doctor

31

g.1w 111c .1 k 1tn l<ir St ' lfo >1 11.1,\ I lo,p11.tl . l'l1t· ltm 1111. il 1 .111 lt l·II' 111y ~011.·

· 11·~ ;1 1011g w:1y. dl'ar: Ja ry ,.,id.· Yo u c 111 't w:tlk 1hnt· 1101 i11

llm r.1i11 .111d w 11h ti ll' hoy i11 yt>ur .1ri11, . ( ;l't i11 to tl tl' c 1h ;111tl I' ll

1.1kc you thnl'.'

' 'l'lt.mk you.' sltl' ~ai d . ' hut I c.m't do th:11. I lt.1w 11't got a11y

IIIOltl'y.'

· I >id I s.1y .111yth111g .1hout 1110 11t·y? · s.1id Jnry. · 1'111 .1 !:1thcr .

. 111d I low r hildrrn . I'll t:tkl' you . Pll'a~l' gl't in.'

I k hclpl'd IH:r imo t lw rah. She: st.1rtl'd to cry .111d hl' put .1

h.111d 0 11 her an11. ·1·hc11 hc dinthl·d 11p .111d 10o k thl' rc 111s. ' Ll't\

go,Jack; hl' said .

At thc hospital jl:rry hdpl·d thl' you11g won1.111 through Lill'

big front door.

· I hopl' your little boy w ill soon lw hl'ttl' r,' hl' said.

'Thank you, th.111k you !· shl' ~.,id .' Yo u'rl' a good, kind 111a11 .'

A woman GUIil' out o f thL' hospital. Shl' ht·ard thl· words and lookl'd at the: 'good. kind 111a11 '.

' Jl'rry lbrkl'r ! '~hl' s;1id. · Is it you ?'

Jerry s111ikd.

' C oml.' the woman s:i id. ' I cw 't find a cab today. 111 this

weather. and I h:ivc to c 1td 1 ,1 train.'

'I'll takl' you,' said Jl'r ry.'Whc:rl' do you want to go?'

· Paddington Station ,' said the wo111a11 .

Chapter 17 More Changes

Wl' took the woman to her train . Hl'r name was Mrs Fowler and

shl' knew !'o ily.

She asked a lot o f qul'stio ns about Polly and the two childrl' tl.

Then she s:tid:'And how :m: you , Jcrry?'

32

· 1·111 .,II right 1111w, Mr, 1=mvkr.' ,.11d Jl'rry. · llut I w;a, wry ill

l.1,1 J.u111.iry. l'olly dol's11 '1 likl' till' lo wurk i11 h.1d WL',tlhn , hut I

l,,w<' to work.'

' Thl· cnld Wl',11 hn i~ h:1d for you . Jnry.' ~.11d Mr~ h,wln.

· You'll h.1vc lo li11d difli..-rl'tll work. You c:1 11't bl' .1 c.1h111.111 11ow.'

· I 'cl likl' to fi11d work i11 till' cou111ry.' ,.,id jl·rry. · l'olly .1ml till'

chddrl'n likl· thl· country. Um tl1crl' isn't .111y work fix till' then:.'

lldi1n· ~hl· c ,uglll her 1r:ii11. Mrs Fowler g:1w Jerry sonw

111011l'y for the c hildrl'll .

· l'l'opk i11 the country w.11H good grooms and dnvcrs,' shc

~aid.· Whl'11 you ~top c.,b work. wrilL' to 111L·.'

· Th:111k you.' ~.11d Jerry.

l ivery yl'.1r Jc.:rry was di 111 till· willtlT. But hl· didn't .~top

working .. ind hl' got din .md tlln .

♦

011l' yL1r .. II Chris1111.1s. WL' took two 111e11 to ,1 homc. and rhcy

~.,id to JL-rry.' Co111l' line .1g.1i11 .It ekwn o'clock.'

Jerry arrived :n thc right ti111c. but rhc mcn did11 't cotllL' out of rhc hmtSl'. We w:111cd .md w.1itcd. It w:is :1 wry n)ld night, .,nd it

snowcd.Jcrry put :111 old coat OVl'r nw. thl.·n hL· tril·d to ~ray warm.

At 01 1c o'clock thc t,vo 111c11 Clllll.' our of thl' hou~c .111d got

into thc c:1h. ThL·y didn 't ~ay 'Sorry, wc 'rc late.' Thcy didn't say

,lllything.

Whl.'11 we arriwd horn<.', Jerry w.,s ill. He couldn't work the

next day, or thl' next day.

Po lly cril'd about it.' Wh.n ca 11 I do ?' shl' said.

Thcn, onl' day, a lcttn caml' for l'ully. It was from Mrs Fowkr:

Dl'ar Pt>//)', J\ l y groo111 is le,111i11,1t. /--fr is ,l!oi11g 1,1 do orlll'r 111or/.i, ,11,d l,c

111a111s /1> ,I!<> 111•x1 1111>////,. I {is 1/l[f<' 111il/ J!.CI 111itl, l,i,11, a111f shC'

is my wok. 1'14n,/d )'Cit/ like I<> 111ark.fin Ill<'? Jerry cm, be my

33

.l!r,,,,,,, ,11,tl ti,;,,,.,·. ,111d / lr1rry 1,111 lw/1, /1i111. ) j,,, "'" f,c 11111

111,1/..•. '/'/,ar is,, li11/c /1,,11s,'Jc>r ,,,,,,.

l'lcasr s,1y )'11/1 111ill tome.

i\ l,,ry [ ,,,,,,/er

Jerry and Polly t.ilked .1hm1t il fi>r two day~. Thl'll l'olly wroll'

.111 :111swl'r. I kr klll'r s.1id. · Yt·~.Jnry :ind I w:111l to work ft>r you.

Mrs 1:owkr.'

I was wry happy for che111, buc I ,v:1~ s.1d. too. I loved Jerry ,1 11d

l'olly and the two children.

Some ofJerry's c:1b111t·11 frit·11tb wanted to h:1w 111e, but Jerry

wa11tl'd 111e to h.1vt· .1 hl'lll'I' lm111c.

'Jack's gt·tting old.' he said,' and tht· work of a cab horse is too

hard.'

Ikfore Jerry. l'olly and tht· c hildren welll away, Jerry sold 111e

to a farnier. H i~ 11a111e was Mr Thoroughgood, and he knew

about hor~t·s.

' I'll take Jac k. your horse.' he sa id.' I' ll g ive hi111 the best food

.111d so111t· weeks in a good field. T hen I' ll find a new ho111e for

hi111 - with a good, kind person.'

Mr Thoroughgood rook 111e away. It was April.

Jerry was ill after a bad tinie in January and February, but he

ca111e outside, with l'olly and Harry and Dolly. He saw me for the

last time.

• You ' II be happy, dear o ld Jack.' Dolly said.' I ' II always remember

you.'

Chapter 18 My Last H o m e

Mr Thoroughgood was very kind to me, and I had a very happy

time on his farm.

' I feel younger,' I thought. But I wasn't a young horse now.

34

( )nl' day Mr Thoroughgood w ld thl' µ.roon1 , ' Wl· h.1vc to li11d

,1 good ho111l' l<>r J.1ck. I le c.111 work. I think. hut uo l too h:1rd.'

'Tlw wolltl'll .1t ltosl' I I.di .m· looki11g for .1 good hor~t· for

tht"ir s111.dl c 1rri.1ge.' s.1id tltt· gmolll. · Thl·y do n't w.1111 .1 young

ho rsl·. Yo ung horso ~0111c ti111t'\ go too 1:1s1 or run ,1way.'

Mr Thomt1ghgood thoug ht .1lHHlt th.tl. T ht·11 he s:1id. ·ru tak1.·

J.1ck to thc111. I k \ die..· horst· for thc..·111. lhn will illl'y lw .1fra id

w hen they set· his legs? I k hurt 1hrn1 so111l·wht-re. I' ll 1.1kl' hi111

to Rost· I I.ill to111ormw.Tlwy c.111 look .tl hi111.'

The lll'Xt morning thl' g rnon1 c k :111l·d n1y hi.ir k ro:it. ,111d rlll'll

MrThoroughgood took 1111.· to R ose 1 lal\.

The wo111e 11 Wl'n.' .tl ho111l', but their drivl' r w.,s :1w;1y. 0111.' o(

tht· wo111l'll. Miss Ellc11, liked n1l' w h1.·11 ~hl' saw llll'.

' I k h.1, :i w ry good, kind face,' \ ht· said .' Wt•'II soon low him .'

' I k \ w ry good.' Mr Thoroughgood said .· llut h t• (di down.

Look :it his legs.'

·Oh!' Mi\\ Elle n \ older \ istl' r \:iid . Sl11.· was Mis\ Uloo111fidd.

' Will he foll again ?'

' I don't think he wi ll,' the farmer said .· I k fi:11 because he had a

bad driw r. T ry him. Mi~s Uloo111fidd . St'nd your d r iver for him

ro111orrow. I le can try Jack for a day or two.'

Miss Uloomfidd was happier.' Yo u alw:iys sell us very good

ho rses, Mr T horo ughgood ,' she said. 'Thank you. We'll do chat.'

The next mo rning a 111ce young man came to Mr

Thoroughgood's farm. He looked at me and at my legs. T hen he

asked Mr Thoroughgood, ' Why are you selling this horse? I ' rn no t

happy with his legs.'

The farmer answered,' I won 't sell him before you try him.

l3ut I think you ' ll like him. Ride him, and then telJ !11e. Say yes,

and you can have him. Say no, and he can com e ho me here.'

The g room took m e to Rose Hall. That evening he began to g room m e. Whe n my face was

clean, he stopped. H e loo ked at the white star.

35

· 1 n·1t1(·111lwr lll.1ck lk.111ty\ whlll' , t.1r,' lw ~.11d. · 1 k w,1, .1

wondnfi.d lmr,l'. /\nd whl'II I look .ll thi~ l10m·\ hl';1d. I rL·111l'111hn Bl.1ck lk.111ty\ hl',1d wo. Wht-rl' is Bl.irk lk.1uty now ? I'd likl· to know.'

Whl'11 hl' C.lllll' 1n 111y hack. hl' swppnl .1g.1i11. · t krl''s so111l' whill' on his h.1ck,' hl' ~aid. 'That's str.rngl'. Whl'n I lonk .1t it. I

fl' llH.'111l1l'r thl' whitl' 0 11 lll.1ck lkauty\ b.1ck ! ·

Tiu: groo111 ~rood .111d loo kl·d at lllt'. · 131.ick IJL'.lllly's \ tar! 111:ick lk.1111y\ lrnc whitl' font! Thl' whitl' 011 Black lka111y·s

b.1ck ! It is Black IJL',HIIY ! · hL· said .· Yo u ,m: lll.1ck lk.1uty, 111y old friend I IIL'aury ! Beauty ! I )o you know 111c ? I was littll' Joe

Crl'l'II, .111d I nearly killt·d you.' And hl' put hi~ :1rn1s round 111y hl'ad.

I l'l'llll'lltbcrl'd a s111.dl boy, and this w.1s :1 111.111. But it was Jol' Crl'l'n, and I was wry h.1ppy. I put my nosl' up to hin1 in a

fril'ndly way. And I nl'wr s;1w a happin man tk111 him. ' This is wonderful. Beauty.' hl' said.' WL·'ll try lo m.,kl' you

happy hen:.' The lll'Xt day Jot· groo111l'd 111e .1gai11 and harnessed lllL' to .1

wry good s111all carriagl'. Miss Elk11 wanted to try llll', and Joe

Grl'l'n went with hL·r. Shl· w:1s .1 good driver. and she was h:1ppy with llll'.Joe t:i lked to lwr about nil'.

'Ht':~ Mr Cordo n's o ld l3lack Licauty ! ' Joe said , happily.' rk's a wonderful ho rse!'

Whl:'n WL' c:1111e back to ltosc H;11l, Miss l31oomfidd caml' to

the door. ' He's a beautiful horse,' she said. ' Is he a good horse, too''

· Yes,' Miss Ellen said. · Very, very good. His naml' is l31ack Ueaury, :rnd he was at l3ircwick Park with Mr Cordon. Our dear

friend Mrs Co rdon loved him .'

· Ueauty nt'arly died wht'n ht' got the doctor for Mrs Cordon,' said Joe. And he told them the story.

' I'm going to write to Mrs Gordon. I'll tell her about Ulack Beauty,' said Miss Ellen.' She'll be very happy.'

36

I he next d.1y they h.1r11n~nl llll' to thl' c 1rr1.1µl', .111d Mi~,

llloo111fidd dmw 111 it. Shl' ,.1id 10 Mi" l:lle11, · We'll haw tlw

hor\L' .111d Wl'0

ll 11,c hi~ old 11.1111l'. lll.1r k lk.uny.'

♦

It is ,1 yt·:1r l:itn now. _lol' i~ thl' hl'Sl .ind J...i11dl'q µroo111 . . 111J

cwrybody lnws 1m:.

Miss Elll'll ,.1y,, · Wt·'ll 11t·vn ~di you, lk.1uty.'

Sn ( 'II work luppily for d1n11. 1'111 llOl .1fr:11d or m yt hi11~.

Chapters 1-6

Before you read

ACTIVITIES

1 Read the Introduction to the story. What will happen to Black

Beauty? Will the story be happy or sad?

2 Find the words in italics in your dictionary. They are all in the story.

a Which animals:

- wear these? bit collar harness reins saddle

- can you ride ?

- bite?

b What do you find :

- on a farm?

- in a field?

c Where do you usually find these?

grass stable star

d What do people do with these?

carriage whip

e What is the adjective from beauty?

f What does a groom do? g You have to leave soon. Do you have to leave now or in a short

time?

After you read

3 Who says these words? Who or what are they talking about?

a 'Always do your work happily. Never bite or kick. Then he'll

always be nice to you.' b ' Now he'll have to learn to work. He'll be a very good horse

then.'

c 'One day she bit James in the arm and hurt him.'

d ' He is kind to the horses, and the horses like him.'

4 Work with another student. Student A: You are Mrs Gordon. Your husband is late from the

city. Ask him about his journey. Student 8: You are Mr Gordon. Tell your wife about your

journey. Tel1 her about Black Beauty and the bridge.

39

Chapters 7- 12

Before you read

5 Black Beauty is going to leave Birtwick Park. Why? Whal do you

think?

AHer you read

6 Use the best question-word for these questions, then answer them.

What Who Why

a ... starts a fire after he smokes in the stable?

b ... isn't Black Beauty afraid of the fire when James takes him

out of the stable?

c ... does John give a letter to at three o'clock in the morning?

d ... is Black Beauty ill after the ride from the doctor's house? e ... does John Manly want to do after he leaves Birt wick Park?

f ... does a bearing rein do?

7 Is Black Beauty's life better or worse with the Westlands? Talk

about it.

Chapters 13-18

Before you read

8 Will Black Beauty always work in the country? Whal do you think ?

9 Find the words in italics in your dictionary :

a Who or what pulls a cart?

b Who drives a cab these days?

c How do people feel when they are drunk?

After you read

1 O Who or what:

a gets drunk? . b dies in an accident? c does Lord Westland sell?

d lives with Jerry Barker?

e dies after a hard life in the city streets?

f does Jerry sell Black Beauty to?

g does Joe Green see on Black Beauty's face? 11 Will Black Beauty be happy at Rose Hall? Why (not)?

.. H)

Writing

12 How was Ginger's life different from Black Beauly's? How do you

feel about Ginger's life?

13 Which person in the story do you like best? Which person do you

not like? Why ?

14 There was a lot of work for horses in Anna Sewell's time. What

work do horses do in your country today?

15 Write a letter about Black Beauty to a friend. Did you enjoy it?

Write about the story. What did you like? What did you not like?

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P e n g u i n R e a d e r s F a c t s h e e t s l e v e l

ELEMENTARY

Black Beauty

S U M M A R Y

ublished in 1877, Black Beauty is one of literature’sbest-loved classics and is the only book that AnnaSewell ever wrote. Four films of the book have been

made, the most recent in 1994.In the book, Black Beauty, a horse, tells the story of his life

in his own words. It is a story of how he was treated withkindness and love when he was young, but how histreatment changed at the hands of different owners: somewere kind and cared for him properly, but others werecareless or unkind, and this led to illness and injury. BlackBeauty spent his young life with his mother on Farmer Grey’sfarm. Farmer Grey was a good, kind man and the horses hada good life. His mother told him that not all people were goodand she gave him some advice: Always be good so peoplewill love you. Always work hard and do your best. BlackBeauty tried to follow this advice all his life.

First, he goes to live with Mr Gordon and his family, whotreat their horses well. He becomes friends with two otherhorses, Merrylegs and Ginger. He is cared for by a groomcalled John, who never uses a whip. Black Beauty saves MrsGordon’s life when he runs very fast to bring the doctor toher. He becomes ill himself because a new groom doesn’tlook after him properly.

The Gordons move abroad and Black Beauty and Gingerare sold to Lord Westland at Earl’s Hall. They have a goodgroom, but Lady Westland is unkind and makes the horseswear bearing reins so that they hold their heads up high. Oneday, a groom called Reuben Smith is left in charge of thehorses. He is drunk and ndes Black Beauty very hard anduses a whip. Black Beauty loses a shoe and eventually falls.Smith is killed in the accident and Black Beauty’s legs arebadly cut. He survives but his legs are scarred and LordWestland decides to sell him.

Black Beauty’s next home is with a London cab driver,Jerry Barker. Jerry and his family treat Black Beauty verywell, but the work is hard and the hours are long. Jerrybecomes ill and has to sell Black Beauty to a farmer, whopromises to look after him and find him a good home. Thefarmer takes him to some women at Rose Hall. There, BlackBeauty is reunited with a young groom who used to look afterhim at Mr Gordon’s home. The women want to keep BlackBeauty, so once again he has a kind and happy home.

Anna Sewell was born on March 30, 1820 in Yarmouth,Norfolk, England. Her father was a bank manager and hermother was a well-known and popular writer of books foryoung people. The family were Quakers and stro n g l ybelieved that they should show love for all and compassion

for those in less fortunate circumstances. This also includedthe animals that shared their lives. In Victorian England,horses were used in industry, and were often treated badly.Anna and her mother were appalled if they saw a horse beingmistreated and often showed their disapproval to the horse’sowner.

When she was fourteen, Anna suffered a fall in which sheinjured her knee. This never healed and left her unable towalk without the help of a crutch. Over the following years,she became increasingly disabled. However, she learnt todrive a horse-drawn carriage and took great pleasure intaking her father to and from the station on his way to work.She was a very skilled driver and was known for her ability tocontrol the horses by the sound of her voice alone. She oftendrove with a very loose rein and never used a whip.

Anna was very concerned about the humane treatment ofanimals and her Quaker beliefs meant that she was opposedto tormenting animals for pleasure and to hunting for sport.After reading an essay on animals by Horace Bushnell (aleading American theologian), Anna declared that she wished‘to induce kindness, sympathy, and an understandingtreatment of horses’.

Sewell’s introduction to writing began in her youth whenshe helped to edit her mother’s books. During the last sevenor eight years of her life, Sewell was confined to her housedue to her failing health. She spent this time writing BlackBeauty, a fictional autobiography of a gentle horse, whichdrew on all her memories of the abusive treatment she hadseen. The book gave readers a unique insight into equine life.The character of Beauty was based on her brother’s horse,Bessie, and Merrylegs was based on Sewell’s own much-loved grey pony. Although the book only earned Sewelltwenty pounds at the time it was published, it wasinstrumental in abolishing the cruel practice of using thebearing rein. It had a strong moral purpose and highlightedthe need for a more humane approach in the treatment ofanimals. Unfort u n a t e l y, Sewell never saw the eventualsuccess of her book. She died on April 25, 1878, only a yearafter Black Beauty was published. Ironically, at Sewell’sfuneral her mother noticed that all the horses in the funeralprocession were wearing bearing reins and she insisted thatthey be removed.

Today some critics think that Black Beauty is toosentimental, but it has sold over thirty million copies since itwas published and is a favourite with animal lovers.

Society was unequal in nineteenth century England, and

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A B O U T A N N A S E W E L L

B A C K G R O U N D A N D T H E M E S

P

T e a c h e r ’s n o t e s

by Anna Sewell

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great poverty existed alongside the wealth of the aristocracyand the middle classes. The Industrial Revolution led to thegrowth of towns and cities as the rural population moved intourban slums to work in the factories and mills owned bywealthy families. The horse played a vital role at this time.Horses worked in coalmines, pulled barges along canals,ploughed fields and also provided transportation.

However, the horses were often mistreated. They werebeaten by their owners and made to pull over- l o a d e dwagons. Many died of exhaustion where they stood in theirh a rnesses. There were also some very cruel fashions,including the ‘docking’ (cutting short) of the horse’s tail toimprove its appearance. This was extremely painful for thehorse and prevented them from swatting flies away, causingthem to be stung and bitten. There was also the bearing rein,which was used to pull the horse’s head in towards the chestin order to give a noticeable arch to the neck. This wasconsidered to be a very desirable look, much sought after incarriage horses, but it meant that the animal was unable tob reathe properly and would later develop re s p i r a t o ryproblems. The method also meant that horses were unableto look from side to side and found it difficult to pull theirloads properly.

In Black Beauty this mistreatment of horses is vividlyportrayed and eventually led to the abolishment of thebearing rein.

The following teacher-led activities cover the same sectionsof text as the exercises at the back of the Reader, andsupplement those exercises. For supplementary exercisescovering shorter sections of the book, see thephotocopiable Student’s Activities pages of this Factsheet.These are primarily for use with class readers but, with theexception of discussion and pair/groupwork questions, canalso be used by students working alone in a self-accesscentre.

ACTIVITIES BEFORE READING THE BOOK1 Ask students if any of them have seen the film ‘Black

Beauty’. If so, ask them to tell the other students aboutit. Did they like the film? Did they like the story?

2 Ask students to work in pairs to discuss this question:

What jobs did horses do in the nineteenth century? Thendiscuss ideas as a class.

3 Photocopy the pictures on pages 3, 5,13,19, 25 and 29as many times as necessar y. Cut off the captions. Putstudents into groups. Hand out a set of photocopies toeach group. Ask the groups to match the pictures withthe captions.

ACTIVITIES AFTER READING A SECTIONChapters 1–6Have a quiz! First look through the section and write 20questions. For example:

Who was Mr Gordon’s head groom?

Divide the class into two teams. Ask each team a questionin turn. Teams score two points if they get their ownquestion right. They score one point if the other teamcannot answer a question and they can.

Chapters 7–121 Put students into groups of four. Divide each group into

two pairs, A and B. Pair A writes four sentences tellingthe story for each chapter from 7–9. However, they puttheir sentences for each chapter in the wrong order. PairB does the same for chapters 10–12. Each pair thenhands their sentences to the other pair who have to putthem in the right order

2 Ask students to work in pairs to discuss this question:

Why do Lady Westland’s carriage horses have to havebearing reins? How are the reins bad for the horses?

Chapters 13–18Put students into small groups. They make a list of the tenmost important events in these chapters. Then, as a classactivity, elicit these events from students and write them onthe board.

ACTIVITIES AFTER READING THE BOOK1 Put students into small groups and ask them to discuss

each of Black Beauty’s owners. Then they choose whichowner they like the best, and give reasons. Have a classvote on the best owner.

2 In small groups, students talk about the life of horses atthe time of the story compared with now. What sort ofwork do horses do now? Are horses ever treated badlynow?

It will be useful for your students to know these new words. They arepractised in the ‘Before You Read’sections of exercises at the back ofthe book. (Definitions are based on those in the Longman Active StudyDictionary.)

Chapters 1–6beauty (n) the quality of being beautifulbit (n) a metal bar that is put in the mouth of a horse and used tocontrol its movements

bite (v) to cut or crush something with your teeth carriage (n) a vehicle with wheels that is pulled by a horse collar (n) a leather band fastened around an animal’s neck

farm (n) an area of land using for keeping animals or growing foodfield (n) an area of land that is used for growing crops, keepinganimals, or playing a sport

grass (n) a very common plant with thin green leaves that grows acrossfields, parks, etc.

groom (n) someone whose job is to take care of horsesharness (n) a set of leather bands fastened with metal that is used tocontrol a horse

rein (n) a long narrow band of leather that is fastened around a horse’shead in order to control it

ride (v) to sit on and control the movement of a horse, or bicyclesaddle (n) a seat made of leather that is put on a horse’s back so youcan ride it

soon (adv) in a short time from now, or a short time after somethingelse happens

stable (n) a building where horses are keptstar (n) a shape with five or six points sticking out of it

whip (n) a long thin piece of leather or rope with a handle, used formaking animals move faster

Chapters 13–18cab (n) a carriage pulled by horses in which you pay the driver to takeyou somewhere

cart (n) a vehicle with two or four wheels, that is pulled by a horsedrunk (adj) unable to control your behaviour, speech, etc. because youhave drunk too much alcohol

C o m m u n i c a t i v e a c t i v i t i e s G l o s s a r y

T e a c h e r ’s n o t e s

P u b l i s h e d a n d d i s t r i b u t e d b y P e a r s o n E d u c a t i o nF a c t s h e e t w r i t t e n b y Y v o n n e H a r m e r

F a c t s h e e t s e r i e s d e v e l o p e d b y L o u i s e J a m e s© Pearson Education 2001

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1 Work with some other students. Look at picture on thefront of the book. Talk about these questions.

(a) Why is the horse called Black Beauty?

(b) What is Black Beauty like?

2 Read the Introduction in your book. Now close thebook. What can you remember about Anna Sewell?

(a) What year was she born in?

(b) Where was she born?

(c) How old was she when she had an accident?

(d) How many books did she write?

(e) Why did she write Black Beauty?

(f) How did the book help horses?

CHAPTERS 1–6

Chapters 1 & 21 Match the words (a–e) with the meanings (i–v).

(a) carriage

(b) harness

(c) bit

(d) saddle

(e) collar

(i) a seat made of leather that is put on a horse’sback

(ii) a metal bar that is put in a horse’s mouth

(iii) a leather band fastened around an animal’s neck

(iv) a set of leather bands fastened with metal

(v) a vehicle with wheels that is pulled by a horse

2 Write five things that a horse has to learn.

3 What does Black Beauty’s mother tell him always todo?

Chapters 3 & 41 Answer these questions.

(a) Who told Black Beauty to work hard?

(b) Who was small and fat?

(c) Who was afraid of Ginger?

(d) Who was the head groom?

(e) Who wanted to try Black Beauty but had someother work?

(f) Who thought of the name ‘Black Beauty’?

2 Work with another student.

Student A: You are Black Beauty. Ask Merrylegs aboutlife in Mr Gordon’s stables.

Student B: You are Merrylegs. Tell Black Beauty aboutMr Gordon’s stables, and about Ginger.

Chapters 5 & 6These sentences are wrong. Make them right.

(a) The stable boy’s name was John Manly.

(b) Ginger and Black Beauty went fast when the driverwhipped them.

(c) On Sunday the horses stayed in the stable all day.

(d) Sir Clifford wants to find a good horse.

(e) It was sunny when Mr Gordon went to the city.

(f) There was an accident because Black Beauty crossedthe bridge.

CHAPTERS 7–12

Chapters 7 & 81 What happens first, second, third, fourth ...? Write 1–8

next to the sentences.

(a) James helped Joe groom Merrylegs. __

(b) A groom smoked in the stables. __

(c) James and Ginger came out through thesmoke. __

(d) Joe came to the stables. __

(e) Black Beauty woke up and was very unhappy. __

(f) James put a coat round Black Beauty’s head. __

(g) James and Ginger were ill. __

(h) Black Beauty saw the smoke. __

2 Talk with another student or write your answer.

Black Beauty is very afraid in the fire. Talk about this.How does James help him?

Chapters 9 & 101 Who says these things? Who are they speaking to?

(a) ‘What did we do to you?’

(b) ‘Give this letter to Doctor White in Hertford.’

(c) ‘Yes, we have to thank you!’

(d) ‘You have to run now!’

(e) ‘Mrs Gordon is very ill.’

l e v e l

ELEMENTARY

Black Beauty

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PhotocopiableStudents can do these exercises alone or with one or moreother students. Pair/group-only exercises are marked.

Activities before reading the book

Activities while reading the book

S t u d e n t ’ s a c t i v i t i e s

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Studen

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© P

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(f) ‘A

stupid boy!’

2You are Jessie. W

rite a letter to a friend. Tell themw

here you are going and why, and about M

erryleg’snew

home.

Ch

apters 11 &

121

This is what happens in C

hapters 11 and 12. Com

pletethe passage w

ith the words in the box.

hurt bearing drivers hold Ginger slow

ly angryfell boss pull carriage caught shorter harness

John took (a) .................... and Black B

eauty to Earl’s

Hall. M

r York, the (b) .................... of the

(c) .................... and grooms looked at them

. He said

that Lady Westland’s (d) .................... horses have to

(e) .................... their heads up so they have

(f) .................... reins. Lord Westland tells Y

ork to

(g) .................... their heads up (h) .................... Lady

Westland w

ants York to m

ake the reins (i) .................... .

Ginger w

as very (j) .................... . She (k) ....................

her legs in the (I) .................... and (m) .................... .

The reins (n) .................... Black B

eauty every day.

2Talk w

ith another student or write your answ

er.

Is Lady Westland kind to horses? H

ow do you feel

about her?

CH

AP

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RS 1

3–1

8

Chap

ters 13 & 14

1Join these beginnings and ends of sentences w

ithbecause.

(a) R

euben Sm

ith wasn’t a boss

(b) R

euben stayed in the White horse hotel

(c) R

euben didn’t see Black B

eauty’s shoe fall off

(d) B

lack Beauty fell

(e) Lord W

estland was angry

(f) B

lack Beauty liked M

r Barker

(i) he w

as drunk.

(ii) he had to sell B

lack Beauty.

(iii) the bad road cut his foot.

(iv) he som

etimes got drunk.

(v) he liked horses and w

as kind to them.

(vi) he w

as with som

e old friends.

2Talk w

ith a partner or write your answ

er.

What kind of life w

ill Black B

eauty have in London?

Ch

apters 15 & 16

1A

nswer these questions.

(a) W

hat was there a lot of in the streets of London?

(b) W

ho was H

arry? What did he do for B

lackB

eauty?

(c) W

hat was B

lack Beauty’s new

name?

(d) H

ow m

any days did Black B

eauty work? A

nd howm

any hours each day?

(e)W

rite four kind things that Jerry Barker did.

2W

ork with another student.

Student A

: You are Ginger. Tell B

lack Beauty your story.

Student B

: You are Black B

eauty. Ask G

ingerquestions.

Ch

apters 17 & 18

Finish these sentences.

(a)P

olly didn’t like Jerry to work in bad w

eather because ...

(b)Mrs Fow

ler wrote to P

olly because ...

(c)Jerry sold B

lack Beauty to M

r Thoroughgood because ...

(d)The w

omen at R

ose Hall didn’t w

ant a young horsebecause ...

(e)Joe knew

the horse was B

lack Beauty because ...

1W

ork in small groups. Look at the nam

es of thechapters in the book. W

rite a different name for each

chapter and write one sentence to say w

hat happensin that chapter.

2Talk to tw

o other students.

Did you enjoy this story? W

hy/Why not? W

rite down

what you think. Then read it to the class. D

o otherstudents think the sam

e as you?

3You are a new

spaper writer. W

rite about the treatment

of horses in the nineteenth century.

Ac

tivitie

s afte

r rea

din

g th

e b

oo

k

@) BLACH BEAUTY

P e n g u i n R e a d e r s A n s w e r K e y l e v e l

ELEMENTARYBlack Beauty

1 Open answers.2 a horses horses dogs, horses, etc.

b Open answers.c On the ground/in a field/in the garden

On a farm/in the country.In the sky.

d They go on a journey.They hit animals.

e beautifulf He/She works with horses.g In a short time.

3 a Black Beauty’s mother. She is teachingher son. She wants farmers to be kind tohim.

b Mr Gordon is talking about Black Beauty.c Merrylegs is talking about Ginger. Ginger

is an angry horse. She was veryunhappy.

d John Manly is talking about James.4–5 Open answers.6 a Who... A hotel groom.

b Why ... Because James talks quietly tohim and puts a coat over his eyes.

c Who... Doctor Whited Why ... Because he is very tired and hot.

Then Joe gives him cold water and doesnot put anything over him.

e What ... He wants to open a school foryoung horses.

f What ... It pulls a horse’s head up.7–8 Open answers.9 a A horse.

b A taxi-driver.c They feel happy – or ill.

10 a Reuben Smith.b Reuben Smithc Black Beautyd His wife Polly, his son Harry and his

daughter Dolly.e Gingerf Mr Thoroughgood, a farmer.g The white star.

11–15 Open answers.

■ Communicative activities

Activities before reading the book

Open answers

Activities after reading a section

Open answers

Activities after reading the book

Open answers

■ Student’s activities

Activities before reading the book

1 Open answers2 (a) 1820.

Answers to Factsheet activities

Answers to Book activities (b) Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England.(c) Fourteen.(d) One.(e) Because she wanted to tell people that

some horses had to pull very heavythings and had to work for hours andhours.

(f) Many people were kinder to horses afterthey read Anna’s book.

Activities while reading the book

CHAPTERS 1–6

Chapters 1 & 2

1 (a) (v)(b) (iv)(c) (ii)(d) (i)(e) (iii)

2 Possible answersnot to move when a man puts a harness onhim or a bit in his mouthto have a saddle on his back and to carry aman, woman or child on his backto walk, go a little faster, or go very fastto walk with shoes on his feetto go in carriage harness to pull a carriage

3 Always be good, Always work hard and doyour best.

Chapters 3 & 4

1 (a) Farmer Grey.(b) Merrylegs.(c) Jessie and Flora.(d) John Manly.(e) Mr Gordon.(f) Mrs Gordon.

2 Open answers

Chapters 5 & 6

(a) The stable boy’s name was James Howard.(b) Ginger and Black Beauty went fast when the

driver wanted them to go fast.(c) On Sunday the horses stayed in a field all

day.(d) Sir Clifford wants to find a good young

groom.(e) There was a strong wind when Mr Gordon

went to the city.(f) There wasn’t an accident because Black

Beauty didn’t cross the bridge.

CHAPTERS 7–12

Chapters 7 & 8

1 (a) 8 (b)1 (c) 5 (d) 7 (e) 2 (f) 4 (g) 6(h) 3

2 Open answers

Chapters 9 & 10

1 (a) John to Black Beauty(b) Mr Gordon to John(c) Mr Gordon to Black Beauty(d) John to Black Beauty (e) John to Dr White (f) John to the other men

2 Open answer

Chapters 11 & 12

1 (a) Ginger (b) boss (c) drivers (d) carriage (e) have (f) bearing (g) pull (h) slowly (i) shorter (j) angry (k) caught (I) harness (m) fell (n) hurt

2 Open answers

CHAPTERS 13–18

Chapters 13 & 14

1 (a) (iv) (b) (vi) (c) (i) (d) (iii) (e) (ii) (f) (v)

2 Open answer

Chapters 15 &16

1 (a) horses, carriages, carts, people(b) Harry was Jerry Barker ’s son. Harry

groomed Black Beauty well.(c) Jack.(d) Black Beauty worked six days and eight

hours each day.(e) He put the harness on slowly so it didn’t

hurt; he never whipped Black Beauty; hedidn’t put a bearing rein on Black Beauty;there was always good food, clean waterand a clean stable.

Chapters 17 & 18

(a)... he was ill in the winter every year.(b) ... she wanted Polly to work for her.(c) ... he wanted Black Beauty to have a better

home.(d) ... young horses sometimes go too fast or

run away.(e) ... he had a white star, a white foot and white

on his back.

Activities after reading the book

Open answers

2

© Pearson Education 2001■