Horses in warfare of today's English saddle. Both the Scythians and Assyrians used pads with added felt attached with a surcingle or girth around the horse's barrel for increased security and comfort. Xenophon mentioned the use of a padded cloth on cavalry mounts as early as the 4th century BC. The saddle with a solid framework, or "tree", provided a bearing surface to protect the horse from the weight of the rider, but was not widespread until the 2nd century AD. However, it made a critical difference, as horses could carry more weight when distributed across a solid saddle tree. A solid tree,
Tree girth measurement tree age. Girth measurements may be taken remotely using photographic means or through the use of a telescopic reticle. In these cases the diameter as seen from the surveyor’s position is actually measured and the girth is calculated by multiplying the diameter by π (pi). A monocular w/reticle is a telescope with a built in scale that can be used to accurately measure the width of objects such as the diameters of trees from a distance. When sighting through the monocular the width of an object can be read as so many units of the scale. The farther away the