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152 HONDA THE SAMURAI.
often decorated with the notched strips of white
paper which are the symbols of the Shinto religion.
Then came the fine breed of choice form, good
wind, bottom, and speed, for the use of chief men
of the clan, and which in the daimio's processions
were caparisoned and led in mere pomp. Under
this elect grade was the ordinary saddle-horse, and
after this the pack-horse, a most ungainly, unkempt
brute, fed on the cheapest food.
To take care of these horses a considerable number
of men and several monkeys were necessary;
for without a red-faced ape no Japanese stable of
high pretensions was thought to be completely furnished.
Let us look on the men first and then at
the monkeys.
The class of men living almost inseparably with
the pack-horses and always associated in idea with
them formed almost a caste, and had guilds or unions
of their own. The leader of the pack-horse was
called a "horse-side." The gentlemen's hostler was
called a betto, or " mouth-holder."
Whenever an officer or gentleman
rode out the
betto ran along in front of the horse to be ready
in case of need and to hold the animal when his
master dismounted. The betto's office, like that of
most trades in Japan, was hereditary, and the betto
was bred to it from infancy. They were lithe, light
men who could run as fast as a horse and often
keep on their feet for forty miles. Besides being
footmen, they were grooms, and occupied platforms
in the stable and took their food there. They were