174 METEOROLOGY. 



not sure of the cleanliness of the bed. If your trowsers are wide, you can 

 even wear it at the end of a day's journey. Of course a fresh flannel under- 

 vest must always be in the knapsack. The best gaiters to wear, are those 

 used by the French when shooting. They are made of the strongest soft 

 leather, with straps to tighten if necessary. They should be as high as the 

 knee, and buckled over the trowsers, so that however dirty the roads may 

 be, on throwing them off, you find your trowsers quite clean and dry. The 

 great difficulty in walking is to keep the feet in good order. This can be 

 done if a little attention be paid at first. For some days before starting, dip 

 your feet in hot water as often as possible for a few moments, and then rub 

 them quite dry. Let this be done morning and evening till you find the 

 feet quite free from a damp feeling. Provide yourself with a good sized tin 

 box, full of the best yellow, or, as it is called in some places, soft soap. It 

 has something the appearance of honey in the comb. Before starting in the 

 morning, rub the soles of the feet, especially about the heels and toes, with 

 the soap, until it has the appearance of a good lather for shaving, and then 

 put your woollen stockings on. Let this be done every morning before 

 starting, and you will find, even in the hottest or wettest weather, you will 

 be able to do a great deal of work, and at the end of the day find your feet 

 cool and free from blisters. 



Instead of washing the feet at the end of a journey, rub them first with a 

 damp cloth, and then dry them completely. In some places on the conti- 

 nent it is not possible to get this soap : but in almost every apothecary's 

 shop you can purchase Stag fat, which does very well : and if you cannot 

 get Stag fat, buy Goose fat or Hog's lard. With these fats, 1 first rubbed 

 the feet with spirits, which is an improvement ; but nothing can stand 

 comparison with yellow soap. Have your stockings washed as often as 

 possible ; and if they have not time to dry during the night, they can easily 

 be buckled on the outside of the knapsack. By attending to these directions 

 and by instantly rubbing yourself dry and putting on fresh flannels and 

 linen at the end of your day's work, and eating as much animal food as possi- 

 ble, yet drinking no more than is necessary, both body and feet will be in 

 the highest condition. 



To prevent thirst in hot weather, nothing is better than to take a great 

 quantity of fresh butter with your bread for breakfast. Avoid drinking wa- 

 ter as you would poison : in short, drink as little as possible of any thing, and 

 do not give way to the first sensation of thirst. I strongly recommend start- 

 ing at day-break, having previously taken breakfast — Dublin Journal. 



METEOROLOGY. 



There has always been one great obstacle to the cultivation of those 

 branches of Natural History which depend upon continuous observation ; 

 and this arises from their very nature — namely, that while the powers of 

 Nature are ever active and require no interval of rest, the mind of the most 



