Cloth and leather materials are joined together in ladies’ work in all sorts of proportions. In regard to this practice it may be said that those kinds of shoes in which the higher part is made of cloth or lasting, and the lower and forward parts of leather, are to be preferred for one reason: the softer part at the ankle allows of more freedom and ease to the muscles, while the leather below serves all the purposes it would if extending throughout, and thus the advantages of both are combined. There is no difficulty in making this union, whatever the _cut_ of the boot may be—whether gored, laced, or buttoned. Tender feet may find what suits their wants in the softer kinds of kid and morocco, when cloth is not preferred. There is no reason why a woman’s boot, though a heavy one, should be hard and stiff; as a good quality of oiled morocco, pebbled calf, or calf-kid leather, to be obtained almost anywhere, will commonly be found pliable enough, even for moderately sensitive corns. Still more softness may be given by double linings of flannel. There is no leather worn by ladies that is water-proof, and that quality ought not to be expected. Their heaviest boots are made with a double sole and double upper, which give additional warmth, and protect against ordinary dampness. But the only thing they have as a sure protection against wet is rubber. Rubber sandals or shoes for the sidewalk or a rainy day, and high rubber boots for snow, are a complete security. Men are, in this respect, better provided for. There are several kinds of leather worn by them which, if saturated with grease or special preparations, will be water-proof, though exposed for a considerable time. They have the benefit of rubber besides. The Napoleon tongued boot, for a heavy one, is supposed to have a superiority of fit about the ankle, and is more tasteful in a general way. The double-footed boot is considered, with some reason, to be _warmer_ than a single one of the same thickness. For men’s feet that are very sensitive to cold, perhaps the best thing is a doubled boot, having the inside part, or foot-lining, made of fur-calf—calf skin dressed with the hair on—or some other kind of fur. Arctic overshoes are very excellent for riding in cold weather, provided they are not too small. Cork soles, covered with wool or flannel, for either sex, are another help toward keeping the feet warm, with which, in addition to flannel linings and other provisions, the most cold-footed ought to be tolerably comfortable. It must not, however, be expected to keep the feet warm in any kind of a covering that is _tight_.