But the first efforts will, if she is wise, be made on roller-skates, for though the tide of fashion has set against this form of skating, and it is only in far-off Simla and a few scattered places that it still holds its own, it is unrivalled as a means to the end of skating on ice. On roller-skates the learner can follow up her study systematically day after day, independent of weather conditions, and can acquire the two primary essentials of successful skating, viz., balance and confidence. When these have been acquired you may then make your first attempt on ice with every prospect of success. With steady practice you will soon learn to manage your skates, but never forget during these early days that you must ever be on your guard against the countless tricks which beset the beginner at every stage of her progress. Some people will indeed advise you, when you first put on your skates proper, to walk about a carpeted room with them, while others will tell you to make your first efforts on the ice itself. In this you will probably be guided partly by the age at which you begin the pastime--whether, that is to say, a fall is a serious matter or one to be disregarded with the smiling carelessness of youth--and partly by the degree of confidence you have acquired on the roller-skates. In any case, when you find yourself on the ice for the first time, you will endeavour to walk forward on your skates with short and careful steps. If you have assistance to prevent you from the inevitable tumbles that will otherwise be your lot, your progress will be safe but slower than if you take your courage in both hands and carry out unaided the good old nursery maxim of "try, try, try again," till the delightful foretaste of success comes to you, in the first quivering glide forward _without_ a too sudden descent at the end. Remember, when making these first efforts at walking, that the foot on which you are resting on the ice should have both the ankle and knee kept stiff, or you will find your ankle twist sideways. You must also take care to keep the feet well under you, as until you have found your balance they will have an inclination to slide apart, and thus render a fall imminent. After a short experience of this tottering effort after equilibrium, you will probably almost instinctively begin to slide forward with both feet, and for the moment you will find sufficient pleasure in movement of any kind. I have indeed seen quite a rapturous expression of triumph come over the face of a middle-aged beginner, when she first managed the smallest of small slides without it ending in a catastrophe, or in a wild clinging to her guide. The good lady doubtless saw in the dim future the end in view for which she was willing to expend so much patient effort, and so shall we, and in a shorter time, if fewer winters have passed over our heads before we make our first venture.