And These Are Not Leather? 



They feel like seal, morocco, and cowhide; 

 but suitcases, pocketbooks, bags and auto- 

 mobile seats, are made of cotton nowadays 



DO you suppose that the luxuriant upholstery of a 

 modern automobile and the seats and backs of most 

 library chairs are made of leather? If you do, you 

 must change your notions entirely. Things are not 

 always what they seem. Your silk socks were once part of 

 a tree that grew in a forest ; leather is nowadays as often a 

 form of downy cotton as the tanned hide of a steer. 



It may startle you to know that these new forms of 

 leather are varieties of gun-cotton. Fear not; they are 

 not dangerous. The "gun" has been taken out of the 

 cotton. A chemical compound which can blast a subway 

 or blow up a Czar is converted into a necessary and 

 peaceful substitute for cowhide for articles of clothing. 



Originally, leath- 

 er substitutes were 

 manufactured sole- 

 ly for the purpose 

 of producing a 

 cheap upholstery 

 material which 

 would look like 

 what it is not. In 

 course of time, 

 various impro vet- 

 men ts in processes 

 and materials were 

 made so that a 

 real substitute for 



leather was produced which actually wore 

 better than some kinds of hide. Indeed, 

 these substitutes were in part composed 

 of leather; for they were, in reality, thin 

 sections or sheets cut from the under side 

 of the hide and coated and embossed so 

 that they looked like real top side uphol- 

 stery leather. 



These "split" leathers and leather substi- 



Those jaunty little 

 outing caps — who 

 cares if they are 

 not real "leather?" 



That fine-looking "seal" pocketbook which you 

 admire in a shop window is nothing but dyed and 

 embossed sheepskin and is quite inexpensive 



tutes have become 

 of increasing im- 

 portance because 

 of the war. Not 

 only are they 

 cheaper, but they 

 conserve leather. 

 For harness, belt- 

 ing, saddles, boots, 

 etc., leather of 

 good quality is indispensable; and just now 

 there is not enough of it to meet these essen- 

 tial requirements. 



Since the leather "split," which is coated 

 and embossed or grained to resemble real 

 hide, is really nothing but a foundation, 

 manufacturers must have asked themselves^ 

 "Why not use a fabric base instead ?" The 

 experiment was made and a base secured. 



Stronqest aid 

 irable 

 part. used 

 upholsterin 



At left: Thin sections 

 or sheets cut from the 

 under side of the hide 

 and coated and em- 

 bossed to look like real 

 top-side upholstery 



At right: Only 

 the heel of this 

 shoe is leather. 

 The top, facings, 

 tip, tongue and 

 heel counter are 

 of substitute ma- 

 terial. Yet it 

 will wear well 



