The integument of the foot varies in different animals, according to the nature of the ground upon which they tread and other circumstances. Thus the Elephant, the Hippopotamus, and the Rhinoceros, living in jungles and in marshy districts, have a more or less soft covering of skin. Oxen and Horses gallop about upon dry ground; and their feet are soled with thick hoofs of horn. The Dog has tough pads of skin with thick cuticle upon his feet; and the feet of the Feline tribe are muffled with fur so as to enable them to approach their prey with a noiseless tread. Man’s foot is, by nature, like the rest of the surface of his body, comparatively unprotected; but as the foot, by its efficiency, emancipates the hand from the drudgery of carrying, so does the latter make some return for this relief by providing artificial coverings which enable the foot to tread upon various surfaces, and protect it against the inclemencies of the seasons.
On Shoes.
A few words on the subject of Shoes. No one will dispute the correctness of the principle that the shoe should be made to fit the foot; yet it is not a little remarkable that this principle is so often departed from in practice, and that the usual plan is to make the foot adapt itself to the shoe. That is, the shape of the shoe is determined according to the fancy of the maker or the dictates of fashion, and the foot is expected to mould itself accordingly. This is particularly the case with the fore part of the shoe, into which the toes, or most compliant parts of the foot, are squeezed. Thus, the shape of the sole of a sound foot is about that represented in fig. 47; the great toe is seen to be free from the others, and the line of its axis, prolonged backwards, traverses the centre of the heel. Compare this with the outline of the sole of a shoe as usually made; and the violence that is done to nature is at once perceived. The shoe is made quite symmetrical, or is curved a little in the part between the heel and the sole—in the “waist” as it is called—when the shoes are to be worn on the left and right foot respectively; and the toes, instead of being allowed to spread out a little, are pressed together, and made to converge to a point in the line of the middle toe, as seen in fig. 48.
Figs. [47].
[48].
[49].
