60 THE AMERICAN HORSEWOMAN. 



very difficult to get off, the lady usually being 

 obliged to appropriate the gentleman's bootjack 

 for the purpose. The best boot for riding pur- 

 poses, found to be the most comfortable, and 

 one easy to get on and off, is made of some light 

 leather, or kid, for summer use, and of heavier 

 leather for winter; it extends half way to the 

 knee, laces up in front, has broad, low heels and 

 wide soles, and is made a little longer than the 

 wearer's foot, so that it may be perfectly easy, 

 as a tight boot in riding is even more distressing 

 than in walking. 



The corset is indispensable to the elegant fit 

 required in a riding habit, but should never be 

 laced tio^ht. It should be short on the sides and 

 in the front and back. If long: in front it will 

 be almost impossible for the rider to pass her 

 knee over the second pommel when she at- 

 tempts to mount her horse, and will cause her, 

 when riding, to incline her body too far back ; 

 when long at the sides it will be even more in- 

 convenient, for, if at all tight, it will make the 

 rider, when in the saddle, feel as if her hips were 

 compressed in a vise ; when too long behind, it 

 will interfere witli that curvina* or hollowinir in 

 of the back that is so necessary to an erect posi- 

 tion ; it will also tend to throw the body too far 

 forward. If the rider have any tendency to 



