October 24, 19 14 
LAND AND WATER 
CHOOSING KIT 
(Contimud fiom page' 47) 
f*" lightness. Certainly it is very light and portable, and folds 
into half the space occupied by the ordinary waterproof fabric 
ground sheet. But it must be said that if the ground sheet 
is to be used for ordinary campaigning purposes and laid 
down on all sorts of ground it will very soon show an array 
of holes and tears. It is not to be trusted for hard wear, 
and if a ground sheet is to be used, then the ordinary fabric, 
thoroughly waterproofed, should be used. 
Sleeping Bags 
But the ground sheet is not in it with the sleeping bag. 
A thoroughly waterproofed sleeping bag takes up very little 
more room than a ground sheet, and the weight is no more 
than a ground sheet and blanket put together, while the 
actual use is far more than twice as much. Warmth and 
thorough protection from wet are afforded in a normal way, 
and there is also the bag for use as a kit bag when folded. 
Quality is a great consideration here ; the sleeping bag must 
be of the very best material, and is one of the items of kit on 
which no expense may be spared. 
Nurses' Kit 
Reverting to leather goods, mere nas recently been 
designed a very light leather coat to fit under a nurse's 
cloak. The ordinary regulation cloak worn by nurses is not 
an extremely serviceable garment ; it is a relic, rather, of 
other times — a" regulation " affair — that needs supplemert ;i g 
for full warmth and protection. For the warmth, ard to a 
certain extent for the rain-resisting qualit es desiied, the 
light leather cloak, three-quarter length is to be recom- 
mended. It is made in three lengths — eiii eras short jacket, 
as full-length cloak, or in three-quartei kr.gth ; and of these 
1 recommend the three-quarter lenttli, which weighs about 
2 lb. and affords full protection agamst all kinds of weather. 
It is windproof and rainproof, though not absolutely water- 
proof against days of rain ; but then nurses under any 
conditions are not likely to undergo more than five or six 
hours in the rain at a stretch, and the three-quarter length 
cloak will keep this out and leave the wearer comfortable. 
Several of these cloaks have been made and supplied to 
order, and they have given every satisfaction in field use. 
Waterproofing 
The waterproofing question is a vexed one. Oiled silk 
does not stand hard wear very well : leather can never be 
considered absolutely waterproof, for it absorbs a certain 
amount of rain and gets heavy and damp-feeling, even if it 
does not let the rain through. Rubber-proofed materials 
bring in the trouble of ventilation and cause stuffiness, while 
another drawback is that when a waterproofed fabric is 
folded several times in the same way the folds lose their 
waterproof quality. The ideal fabric for keeping out con- 
tinuous rain has yet to be devised, and up to the present the 
rubber-proofed material is about the best. 
The Ways of Officers' Servants 
The maintenance of rubber-treated fabric, so far as the 
fficer is concerned, consists very largely in the possession of 
a good servant, and in the training of the man to the care of 
clothes as well as to his other duties. The training of the 
man is largely a matter for the oflBcer himself, and when 
waterproofs are in question the man should be taught that 
he must not fold a coat always the same way. It takes very 
little time and trouble to teach a man the reason for this, to 
point out to him that if he persists in folding a rubber-proofed 
article always in the same creases these creases will lose their 
waterproof quality, whereas if he will fold the thing in a 
different way each time — either for the saddle or for any 
other form of carriage — he will increase the life of the garment 
and add to his master's comfort. The average man on service 
who takes up the duties of " officer's servant " is a bom 
valet, but he needs instruction in the little points which will 
make him careful of his master's pocket as well as of his 
personal comfort. And the time taken up in teaching a 
man how to fold a waterproof, how to make boots comfortable 
by the application of grease outside or French chalk and 
boracic powder inside — all the little tricks that make for 
increase of comfort — is well repaid by increased efficiency. 
It is repaid also in the decrease of expense as regards upkeep 
of kit ; your average officers' servant looks on his master as 
a man with plenty of money to spend, one to whom the 
saving of a shilling is a matter of no consequence. It is an 
idea of which men should be disabused as soon as possible, 
especially on active service, where economy of kit often pays 
in other ways than that of mere money. 
(To be coMtinutd nsxt w€«k) 
Junior Army & Navy Stores 
LIMITED 
YORK HOUSE, 
15 REGENT STREET, LONDON, S.W. 
SPECIALISTS IN 
GAMP EQUIPMENT 
MILITARY TAILORING 
Etc. 
Young Officers may safely rely upon the 35 years' experience of 
the Junior Army and Navy Stores. Every detail of Uniform and 
Equipment correct. 
INQUIRIES INVITED. 
CASTLE & CO., 
MILITARY TAILORS. 
{Ealabllshed 1889.) 
.V.v«*T"'^'>. 
8 
Kcuns. 
ABSOLUT! LY CORRECT. 
STORE PRICES. 
37 PICCADILLY, LONDON, W. 
(FACING ST. JAMES'S CHURCH). 
'Phone Regent 56Z4. 
Civif®. "'Mifitamj Cfailbrs ^^ 
Bt 
Roy>l 
Wirninl 
to H.M. 
the Kini! 
of Spain. 
£3 
3 

2 
2 

1 
1 

3: 
15 

OFFICERS' SERVICE KIT. 
As previously nolifitd the following re\ised prices are quolfd 
on a basis of io% piofil, vhich profit wili be banded to the 
Prinre of Wales's National Relief Fund. 
Service Tunic (Finest Quality Khaki) 
Bedford Cord Ridirg Eieecbes 
Infantry Trousers 
Britifh Warm 
Full Kit Prices on application.^ 
;mufti. 
The New Model Ovciccats, together with the New W'inier 
Materials, designed by H. Dennis Bradley exclv,si\ely for the 
House, are now on view in both establishments. 
By our system of trading upcn a cash baeis only the productions 
of the firm are offered at the inost moderate prices compatible 
with their quality. 
Loun&e Suit* 
Slip Overcoats 
Town Overcoats 
Evening^ Suits' 
froK 
4 guineas. 
4 
6 
Upon application we shall be pleased to forward our book, 
•THE MAN OF TO-DAY," dealing exhaustively with mens 
dress in every phase. 
14 OLD BO>fI> STREET.'^JK® 
11-15 SOUTHAMPTON KOW^^C 
49 
