UPPER LEATHERS 83 



flesh. In the waxing, one of two courses may be adopted. 

 The butts may be blacked with lampblack and oil, 

 " bottom sized " with glue, soap and logwood, and then 

 " top sized " with glue, dubbin, beeswax and turpentine ; 

 or they may be given a " soap-blacking " of soap and log- 

 wood and lampblack, applied by machine, and sized once 

 only. 



Dressing hide butts may also be given a grain finish, 

 such as the " memel butts " for heavy uppers. The butts 

 are soaked, shaved or split, sumached in drum, and pre- 

 ferably thoroughly scoured on flesh and grain. They are 

 then sammed and heavily stuffed in the drum. The grain 

 is buffed and stained black with logwood, ammonia and iron 

 solution (curriers' ink). The butts are then dried, set out, 

 thinly sized and slowly dried. 



When dry on the face they are printed or embossed 

 by machine to give the characteristic memel pattern 

 and dried out completely. They are then grained four 

 ways. The grain is finished by a coating of linseed oil 

 containing resin, and the flesh is whitened, French chalked 

 and glassed. 



Shoulders for " satin " receive a currying which strongly 

 resembles the " waxed " finishes, but the smooth finish is 

 on the grain side. The grain is buffed, and blacked, 

 dubbined, set and reset, with intermediate drying, and is 

 sized and finished by compositions similar to those used for 

 waxed leathers. The flesh is whitened. Satin hide and 

 satin calf are dressed similarly. 



Shoulders may also be finished for " levant." After 

 soaking, splitting, and shaving to substance, they are 

 drum-sumached, machine-sammed, and oiled up to 

 dry. They are stained with logwood on the grain, and at 

 once printed with the typical " levant grain/' blacked 

 and dried out. They are then softened by machine, 

 seasoned with logwood and albumen, glazed, grained and 

 oiled lightly with mineral oil. It will be observed that 

 stuffing is omitted. 



Bellies may be dressed for linings. After soaking and 



