"About half-past seven o'clock in the evening, some ten days or
a fortnight after Mr. Pickwick and his friends returned to London,
there hurried into one of these offices, an individual in a brown
coat and brass buttons, whose long hair was scrupulously
twisted round the rim of his napless hat, and whose soiled drab
trousers were so tightly strapped over his Blucher boots, that his
knees threatened every moment to start from their concealment.
He produced from his coat pockets a long and narrow strip of
parchment, on which the presiding functionary impressed an
illegible black stamp. "
At about the same time, Field-Marshal Von Blucher of the Prussian army was also faced with the problem of designing more practical shoes for his soldiers, who complained of the difficulties experienced in pulling their boots on and off. The result was the "Blucher," a half boot with two flaps just below the ankle, for loosening the boot and making it easy to slip on and off quickly. When on the foot, the boot was fastened and made snug by tying the laces, which were drawn through a couple of ey elets in each flap. This shoe has enjoyed a much happier fate than the "Napoleons" and "Wellingtons" which have passed into oblivion, for today, many men are wearing a type of shoe still known as a "Blucher" which features the same flaps. The modern version, with its simple style of lacing, retains the same attraction of comfort and convenience.
Julius Caesar, that noble Roman
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