people will only take the pains to fulfil, by a little attention, the needful condition of setting their feet down evenly and steadily, preserving the due planes of the several parts of the foot, as they successively come in contact with the ground; instead of walking on the outside of their foot, which was not adapted exactly for that purpose! This uncomfortable and careless habit is owing to the idle gait of turning the toes in instead of out, whereby the necessity of the case flings the weight of the body on the outside of the foot, thereby extending the base in order to obtain firmer support for the body. The only wonder is that a whole regiment of corns are not formed there, by the unnatural stress of friction and pressure. Another important result of this careless trick is the throwing out of shape of the inner ancle, and also of the outer, to the distortion, ultimately, of the whole ancle-joint, unless rectified in time. We have indulged in a little "pencilling by the way;" but the great discomfort of bad, heedless walking, is too everyday an occurrence, and subject of general experience, to be a matter of trivial value to those who know the miseries of a crambling shoe, a cramped gait, and tender foot. Those who have suffered from these penalties will heed our humble suggestions: they who are well need not physic!

We here beg leave to refer the reader to two treatises, on the proper shape of the shoe, published within the last two years, one by Dr. H. Meyer, Professor of Anatomy, Zurich, the other by a practical shoemaker, Mr. Dowie, of Charing Cross.

The work of Professor Meyer is chiefly on the proper form to be given to the sole of the shoe or boot. He points out that, in the natural shape of the foot, a straight line drawn through the centre of the great toe, if prolonged to the heel, would pass through its centre ;

D

and he asserts, quite correctly, that the sole of the shoe, in order to fit the normal foot, should be so constructed as to allow the great toe to have its normal position in the shoe. In the sole of the shoe, as usually constructed, a straight line drawn through the position occupied by the centre of the great toe falls to the inside of the heel, and a shoe constructed on a sole of this shape will have a tendency to push the great toe towards the centre of the foot, which, as is well known, it actually does. But if the great toe be pushed towards the centre of the foot, its metatarsal joint will be injured, the ligaments strained, the joint itself partially dislocated. The consequence is an unsightly projection, which is exposed to pressure, bruises, and other injuries, whereof bunnions are the usual result; and in the case of a gouty subject, as the gout usually fastens upon a part that has been injured, the common seat of the gouty attack is in this poor, partially dislocated and systematically injured great toe.

In soles of shoes constructed on the principles laid down by Professor Meyer, when the shoes are placed side by side, with the heels in contact, the inner margins of the front part will be found to lie close together, just as the normal feet, when placed close together, will be found to be in contact all along their inner borders, from the heels to the end of the great toes. Shoes constructed on this principle will preserve the natural shape of the foot, and give the pedestrian the full power of his toes in walking, which he cannot have in shoes constructed in the ordinary fashion, when the great toe is forcibly thrust into the middle of the foot, probably overlapping some of the other toes, which in their turn are squeezed out of shape and proportion by the similar inclination given to the outside of the sole.

Mr. Dowie's great claim to be considered a reformer consists in his introduction of a piece of" elasti

cated leather" into the middle of the sole of the boot or shoe. By this simple and ingenious contrivance he gives to a thick-soled boot or shoe all the flexibility of a slipper, and the foot in walking retains all its natural springiness. Another innovation of Mr. Dowie's is in the heel of his shoe, which is very wide, and scarcely thicker than the rest of the sole.

39. There is a patent shoe come out lately, which professes to have a double recommendation, viz.— impenetrability to damp, and a power of absorbing the moisture within the shoe, by means of a preparation of horse-hair placed between the soles of the shoe. It is called the Impilia Shoe or Boot. It may be worth a trial-though we don't credit every new or puffed article. We have not tried it ourselves yet, but will do so.

40. We should say that two pair of easy, light-made buckle shoes, for bright weather, would be sufficient, with a pair of slippers, to put on in the evening. One of these latter will go snugly into a side pocket of your coat, with a sock turned inside out around it.

41. In wear the heels often lose their level surface owing to the pressure of the foot, especially the constant endeavour of the foot, in the play of its various joints, to rectify that mal-position of the toes induced by the ridiculous shape of the ordinary boot or shoe, whereby natural movements are outraged, and corns up and down the foot bear significant testimony thereto. When the heels are made high this evil is increased. If the heel be much worn down to one side, a vast comfort is obtained by rasping down the high side, and so restoring the bed of the heel to its level again. Of course both shoes must be attended to, especially when one has been more worn down than the other. The depth of each heel-piece must be kept the same.

CHAPTER IV.

ACCOUTREMENTS CONTINUED.-CAP-A-PIED.

Coat, Pantaloons, Knapsack, Hat, Stick, and Gloves.

42.

OST men are accustomed to wear a frockcoat, and beyond all question it is the neatest, and,under ordinary circumstances, the best style of coat, and therefore,

though we shall take occasion to suggest

another kind as presenting, on the whole, more advantages for the traveller, yet we do not mean to say anything against the frock-coat as such. Colonel Shaw recommends it:-"For a coat nothing is so good as a surtout, made of the finest cloth; it should button up close to the neck to avoid cold." This requires, however, from its limited accommodation in the pocket way, the use of a knapsack for stowing away your linen and general travelling baggage in case you are going to exceed two or three days. What we are going to recommend will carry three days' change, &c. without encumbering you in your tour. We mean the adoption of

43. A Shooting Jacket as being capitally suited for walking in-fine or wet, windy or frosty. There are

many kinds of material now introduced, such as the plaids and similar manufactures, any of which will keep you warm enough in winter, or, in summer, as cool as can be accomplished, consistently with anything like provision against showers of rain and windy weather. The velveteen is the most durable for wear; there is no end, in fact, to such a jacket; the colour varies, the lighter colours have the advantage of freedom from smell, to which, particularly when wet, the black dye is always necessarily liable. On the whole we are inclined to think the plaid jackets the best, all reasons considered. You don't get so soon chilled by wind or wet in this woollen* as you do in the cotton (velveteen) article. This remark, of course, does not apply to any such luxurious dress as velvet itself, which is silk, and no doubt unexceptionable save on the score of expense— to some a matter of inferior moment. It would be foreign to the direct object of this little treatise, were we to digress into the various scientific reasons for every suggestion. Most readers know that the fact of an article being a conductor or non-conductor of caloric and electricity, regulates the choice of its use in the variations of climate-the object generally being to keep in, the animal heat by winter's clothing, and to keep out

* "Coat, waistcoat, and trousers.—In nine cases out of ten, tweed shooting costume is the best, but should be of thick, not thin material, for all except damp and tropical countries. There should be no hem to the bottom of the legs of trousers, as the wet is materially retained by one.

"Socks.-The hotter you expect the ground to be on which you have to walk, the thicker should your socks be; have plenty of woollen socks.

"Braces.-Do not despise them unless you have had abundant experience of belts, for belts do not suit every shape. If you use braces, take at least two pairs, for when they are drenched with perspiration they dry slowly."-GALTON's Art of Travel.