Cross under the tongue. So as per an earlier post, the chains catch the trailer tongue if the hitch fails.
Otherwise the tongue digging into the road at 6_+ mph can flip the trailer. Or cause other means of injury to the horses.
The tricky part is if the crossed chains are tight enough to work in that circumstance, sometimes they can interfere with normal turning. They tighten at an inopportune moment and drag the trailer, so it doesn’t follow the towing vehicle properly.
You can tie up the chains with something light that will readily snap under pressure if, in an urgent situation, the chains are ever needed. Simple string will do, as long as it holds. They say about 5 inches from the bottom of the chains to the road.
I see some people twisting chains to shorten them, even on how-to videos. Fairly certain that doing that will mean that, in an emergency, the increased pressure of the twist means they will snap when needed most.
I have personally known at least one person who had a ball hitch shear off at 65 miles an hour on the highway. The chains caught the tongue and supported it as intended. Smart lady, she kept thinking and was able to maneuver off the road with the trailer following as it should. Even though the trailer did smack the back of her vehicle and leave a good dent. But she was safe and the horses were safe. Best outcome.
