Sore feet are generally due to carelessness, neglect, or
ignorance on the part of the soldier.

The most important factor in the care of the feet and the marching
ability of the soldier is the shoe. Civilian shoes, particularly
light, patent leather, or low shoes, are sure to cause injury and
in time will ruin a man's foot. Only the marching shoe issued by
the Quartermaster Corps should be worn, and they must be properly
fitted to the individual. It will not suffice to order a marching
shoe of the same size as one's ordinary civilian shoes, for it
must be remembered that a soldier may have to march many miles
daily over rough roads and carrying a heavy pack. The pack itself
causes the foot to spread out to a larger size, and the rough
roads give so much exercise to the muscles of the feet that they
swell greatly through the increased blood supply. (For directions
as to measuring the foot for the marching shoe see General Order
No. 26, War Department, 1912, a copy of which should be on hand
in each company.)

Do not start out on a march wearing new shoes. This is a frequent
cause of sore feet. New shoes should be properly broken in before
beginning a march by wearing them for several hours daily for a
week before the march, and they should be adapted to the contours
of the feet by stretching them with shoe stretchers with adjustable
knobs to take the pressure off painful corns and bunions. Such
stretchers are issued by the Quartermaster Corps, and there should
be one or more pair in every company of infantry. Should this
be impracticable, then the following is suggested:

The soldier stands in his new shoes in about 2-1/2 inches of
water for about five minutes until the leather is thoroughly
pliable and moist; he should then walk for about an hour on a
level surface, letting the shoes dry on his feet, to the
irregularities of which the leather is thus molded in the same
way as it was previously molded over the shoe last. On taking
the shoes off a very little neat's-foot oil should be rubbed
into the leather to prevent its hardening and cracking.

If it is desired to waterproof shoes at any time, a considerable
amount of neat's-foot oil should be rubbed into the leather.
Waterproof leather causes the feet of some men to perspire unduly
and keeps them constantly soft.

Light woolen or heavy woolen socks will habitually be worn for
marching. Cotton socks will not be worn unless specifically ordered
by the surgeon. T