The Spectator at war: Feet first

From The Spectator, 26 September 1914:

There is nothing that a soldier needs more than good footwear; he can fight if need be on an empty stomach, but he cannot march on bare feet. Still, the means of supplying his needs are circumscribed. A commanding officer can make arrangements for accepting cartloads of goods at a depot; but a general in the field has to think of his transport with his supply, and though he might be grateful for the stock of a dozen drapers’ shops, he has to move his troops besides clothing them, and he cannot pull unlimited quantities of flannel across a continent.