Page:Why the Shoe Pinches.djvu/42

 The supposed advantages of these drawings rest then, in a great measure, on a delusion; and no less deceptive is the idea that a shoe with a broad sole must fit, simply because the sole is broad.

After what has been stated concerning the structure of the foot, and the evils arising from an improperly-shaped sole, the principles on which a proper one ought to be constructed may be arrived at without difficulty.

The main point to be attended to is, that the great toe shall have its normal position, so that those functions which are proper to it may be called into play in walking. It must, therefore, as has already been pointed out, lie in such a position as that its axis, when carried backwards, shall pass through the centre of the heel. In a straight line, therefore, in which the centre of the heel and the axis of the great toe are included, we have the primary line necessary to designing the entire sole, and a proper sole may now be formed in the following manner:—

The length of the foot from the back of the heel to the point of the great toe is laid down in a straight line, a b. The half of the breadth of the heel c d, should then be marked off on this line, and the centre of