EEPOET OF THE BtJEEAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTEY. 



423 



This leather is run through a machine before it is blacked, and a 



Eiece taken off the flesh side, which is known as a split. This is 

 lacked and finished similar to the grain. 



The export of buff, grain, and split leather for the past five years 

 has been in value as follows: 



1884 $2, 062, 651 



1885 2,578,991 



1886. , 2, 505, 456 



1887 $3, 073, 833 



1888 2,849,208 



PATENT AND ENAMELED LEATHER. 



Large, spready green hides are used for this leather. These are 

 soaked, limed, uiinaired, fleshed, and bated in the usual manner. 

 On removal fro in the bate the hides are worked in a hide-mill, through 

 which passes a stream of water; then they are worked over with a 

 bate stone, then placed in a wash-wheel, where they are worked for 

 twenty minutes, and then go into handlers, where they are properly 

 prepared for the reception of the tan-liquor. The hides are tanned 

 in vats having a circular bottom, when a revolving wheel agitates 

 both liquor and hides. When about one-third tanned, a buffing is 

 takcr> Oil' by hand or machine. They are then put in the belt-knife 

 splitting-machine and divided into three parts. The grain side is 

 enameled in various colors for carriage tops or upholstery purposes. 

 The middle split is used for splatter-boards, or carriage and harness 

 trimmings, and the flesh split for shoes. These splits are tanned in 

 a wheel with gambier liquor, scoured by machinery, stretched on 

 frames, and taken out and dried. Then a mixture of about equal 

 parts of white lead, litharge, and linseed oil, boiled to a sirup, is laid 

 on for a ground work; they are tacked on frames and put in driers 

 face down, then taken out and rubbed with pumice stone, then 

 coated with a mixture of linseed oil, ivory-black, and a little spirits 

 of turpentine, and dried thoroughly after each application except the 

 last one, when they are rubbed down with fine pumice applied with 

 flannel. The sides are finished with a varnish of linseed oil and tur- 

 pentine in equal parts, copal varnish half the same, and a little 

 asphaltum or ivory-black. This leather is exported to some extent. 

 The exports for the past five years have been: 



1884 f 116, 817 



1885 291,948 



1886 194,600 



1887 $175,062 



1888 143,598 



CAEEIAGE AND FUENITUEE LEATHEE. 



Hides for this leather are selected specially for being very large 

 and spready ; must measure at least 6 feet long by 6 feet wide. Hides 

 are soaked, fleshed, limed, unhaired, and bated in order to free the 

 grain entirely from lime, then laid in sour liquor as whole hides. 

 After a month's tannage they are taken to the splitting-machine and 

 split evenly in two-parts. These two parts receive slight further tan- 

 ning, and are then split again, making four splits altogether, which 

 are known as grain buffing, machine buffed, middle split, junior split. 

 The first or grain split is used for pocket-books, book-binding, and 

 linings for hats, being stained for this purpose. The machine-buffed 

 is employed in carriage-lop leather, carriage-cushions, and for furni- 

 ture upholstering. The third or middle split is for dash-boards and 



