The Harness Makers' Guide. 



CHOOSING LEATHER. 



Harness in Great Britain is almost universally made from leathei 

 stained black on the grain, and this equally applies to Europe, 

 Canada, and the United States ; but in many tropical countries, 

 more especially in South Africa and Australia, brown harness 

 leather, natural colour, or stained a light London colour, or even 

 a rich orange is in use. 



It is difficult to account for this, unless it be that in hot, dry 

 countries the dust would be more apparent on black leather — and 

 brown boots are certainly more in demand there for this reason — 

 or whether it is that the native product in a young country is 

 brown for the sake of economy, and the prejudice becomes 

 "rooted." But in a chapter on "Choosing Leather," it is of 

 greater importance to decide the relative merits of each. 



Now, it is natural that if a man wishes to buy brown leather 

 he selects it of a bright, attractive, even colour throughout, but 

 to produce leather of this description, practically no grease 

 whatever can be used in the dressing, and as grease (the more the 

 better) is the very life and vitality of leather that is exposed to 

 weather and hard usage, it follows that brown leather dressed 

 according to the accepted methods in vogue cannot possess the 

 same durability as black leather, the colour of which is not affected 

 by the amount of grease it is fed upon during the various currying 

 processes. It is, however, only right to add that one London firm 

 of old standing has broken free from the limitations of prejudice 

 and solved the problem of how to produce a brown leather, 

 bright, even, and attractive in colour, and yet with sufficient grease 

 in it to lubricate the fibres and make it sufficiently waterproof to 

 withstand the attacks of damp and weather. 



Harness leather may be obtained direct from the currier, or from 

 the saddlers' ironmonger, in the form of backs [i.e., with the bellies 

 cut off) or hides. Both are cut dowm the backbone after leaving 

 the tannery, as it is in this form a piece of leather is more easily 

 dealt with, and the currier can set out the grain better. It is a 

 question for the harness maker himself to decide whether to buy 

 hides or backs, as it is entirely governed by the class of business 

 which he does. If the bulk of his trade is jobbing work, more 

 especially in country districts, there are many opportunities for 

 profitably using the bellies, and as the price of hides is from l^d. 



