here is a tip an old army buddy told me.
may not work for your barges

rub vaseline on the inside of the boot,
twist it about a bit to work it in.
then place in a warm place.
you can also try lanolin, this comes in a liquid form
and a cream.
he also told me about a big footed regiment, the enemy was scared to death of them, when they got shot they never fell over, due to having enourmos feet.

P.S. wetting the leather could also bugger em up.