The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1897-12-25
Taking Care of Boots and Shoes.

The woman who allows her boots and
shoes to take care of themselves, SO to
speak, is BY no mean, Tdrd orts. In
sharp contrast to her Partisan sister, who
makes point of being bien chamssee, she
often spoils the effect of dainty costume
by appearing in footgear the reverse Of
respectable. ont of shape, down at heel.
and often. when of patent leather, distg
ured by several cracks. Nothing could be
in worse taste, and these slariug defects
could have been prevented, in nine cases
out of ten. by the exercise of little fore
thought. outlay and discrimination,
1t is bv far the best plan to have several
pairs Of boots and shoes in wear at one
time. \ boot which will fit the foot COM
fortably on il cold day or early in the day
will feel much too tight when the foot is
enlarged somewhat by heat OF exercise.
Easy ones should he at hand to suit the
wearer : requirements. and will consist Of
those which have already seen some ser
vice. Boot trees are also Il sin" On" mn"
with the woman who desires her fnt@ear
to retain its pristine shape during the whole
nf its existence They are t" he had at
very low prices in these days. and will S""l'
repay one for the outlay. When h"";>
ama shoes are not is use. they should lac
carefully fitted on their respective boot
frees.
When l,,,,tS are IL he cleaned. all rough
dir should be brushed oil with :he dir
brush. after the worst # it has been re
u.,vc~l I.y means Of i piece Of soft wood.
and not I'm old knife us sometimes recon
mem,led for this will scratch and cat the
leather. \ backing mixture is then ap-
piled. and this is followed by the Use "f
the polishing brush which must be used
LIGHTLY and rapidly 50 as t" avoid the pre-
mature drvin" of the backing. If the
boot be placed on the tree. Il very high
polish can be thus obtained and is far PIE
terable to many Of the cheap CLOSES t" be
purchased for application with IA sponge, as
these. unless Of undeniabe quality, will
cause the leather t" dry and crack. \
/ very good blacking may be made by mixing
/ four ounces of ivory black, three ounces OF
coarse sugar. tablespoonful of sweet oil.
and pint Of small beer. Another equally
good one is made by mixing tw" teaspo"n-
fuls of spermaceti oil, hall pint of vine,
car. three ounces of molasses and fon
ounces sl finely powdered ivory-hlack
adding the vinegar last. \ good water
proof mixture is composed of one ounce III
beeswax one ounce of turpentine. quarter
of an ounce Of Burgundy pitch, melted
over slow fire with half a pint Of oil.
+ BE cautious with the turpemtine,
Patent leather requires only :, little milk
and sponge to remove the dirt. When
not in use it should be kept in warn
temperature coll causing the leather Il
crack \ little cotton wool stuffed in the
tips Of patent leather shoes will keep them
from bending and cracking. No leather
! should be exposed to the extreme heat d
a fire as it is thereby deprived of its vi
talitv Creakin. boots may lie cured by
boring Il small hole in the sole. to admit
air or takin" them to Il shoemaker. amt
getting him to insert Il little French chalk
( between the Solcs If castor oil be wei
( rubbed into the leather about once a month
the wear of boots and shoes will be greatly
prolonged and they will polish perfectly
well with ordinary backing after using tho
oil An obstinate tightness in boot ol
shoe can usually he remedied by applca
tion> of cloths dipped in hot water, eithe1
while the shoe is on the foot or on the last
When boots have become thorough,
soaked with water. fill them with dry
warm bran. and lace or button them VI
tightly. Suspend them in Il warm p lace
not too near the fire. The bran will alb
sorb all the moisture, and can be shaker
out afterwards. while the leather will b.
soft and pliable. and not so likely t" cracl
as if dried in the ordinary way. Whel
dry. the leather should be rubbed witt
neat S-foot oil