SHOES. 



marked, that the workman may make no miftakes in putting 

 the fhoes together. 



The leather for the welts is cut into ftrips of about an 

 inch wide : for this purpofe, the piece is fpread on a flat 

 table about two feet fquare, the furface of which is 

 covered with fmall iron rulers the width of the intended 

 ftrips, and fcrewed down upon the wooden table, leaving 

 between them fufficient fpaces to admit the point of a knife. 

 Several fmall pins projeft up from thefeiron rulers to pene- 

 trate the leather and hold it fall. To confine the leather 

 down whilft it is cut, a frame of iron is fixed to the table by 

 hinges at one end, fo as to fold down horizontally upon the 

 leather, and the frame is covered all over with Cmilar rulers, 

 the intervals between them correfponding exaftly with thofe 

 between the rulers on the table. The cutting is performed 

 by a hooked knife, fixed into a long handle. The workman 

 holds down the frame upon the leather, and introducing the 

 hooked point of the knife between the bars, draws it to- 

 wards him ; this cuts through the leather, and he repeats it at 

 every interval between the rulers, and thus divides the whole 

 leather into flips of the fame breadth as the rulers. 



To prepare thefe flips for ufe, each one is fplit lengthways 

 into two other flips, by an oblique cut along the middle of 

 it ; thus producing two flips, which have bevelled or fea- 

 thered edges, fimilar to a ruler for drawing. The fplitting 

 of the Itrips is performed by a very complete machine, con- 

 fining of a pair of brafs rollers, one of which is turned 

 by a winch, and the other receives its motion from it by 

 means of a pair of equal cog-wheels, one wheel being fixed 

 upon the ends of each of the rollers. The rollers are mounted 

 one above the other in an iron frame, in a fimilar manner to 

 thofe ufed for laminating : the lower one has a groove formed 

 round it, which is of a proper fize to receive the ftrip of 

 leather before it is divided, and the prefTure of the upper 

 roller comprefTes it into the groove. A guide, confiiting 

 of an iron ftem, with a fquare hole through it, is fixed up 

 before or in front of the rollers, to conduft the leather into 

 the groove ; and on the oppofite fide, or behind the rollers, is 

 a (lem, or ftandard, which receives a cylindrical flcel pin, and 

 holds it fall in an horizontal pofition, in the direflion in wliich 

 the ftrip of leather will move when it comes through the 

 rollers. The end of this (teel pin is flattened and ground 

 to a fine fharp edge, like that of a chifTel, and prefenting itftlf 

 to the end of the ftrip of leather as it is pafft-d through the 

 rollers, will evidently divide the ftrip longituduially into two 

 pieces, when the leather is forced forwards againft the edge of 

 the cutter by the motion of the rollers. This edge is placed 

 obliquely to the axis of the rollers (or to the furface of tlie 

 leather which pafles between them), and therefore will divide 

 it by an obhque cut, fo as to produce two narrow feather- 

 edged pieces from each ftrip. The prefiure of tlie rollers 

 upon the leather tends to confolidate its texture, and fupply 

 the place of hammering. 



Preptiralion of the Sole*. — The leather is hardened by 

 pafling it between rollers, to produce the fame efteft as 

 hammering does in the ordinary method of fhoe-making. 

 The rollers ufed for this purpofe are made of brafs, about five 

 inches diameter, and as much in length ; they are mounted in 

 the ufual kind of frame, except that inftead of fcrews to 

 hold down the upper roller, and regulate its diftance from 

 the lower one, two plain cylindric pino are inferted into the 

 holes which ufually receive the fcrcws, and thefe pins have 

 a ftrong lever bearing upon their upper ends, to prefs the 

 upper roller down upon the lower, by the adtion of a 

 weight at the extremity of the lever. Thefe pins are only 

 about four inclies dillant from the centre or fulcrum of the 

 lever, and the weight (of about 100 pounds) is at a diftance 

 ■ Voi. XXXII. 



of four feet from the centre, it therefore prclTei dovrn the 

 upper roller upon the lower, with a force of nearly 1 200 

 pounds. The lower roller has a cog-wheel upon the ex- 

 tremity of its fpindle, which is moved by a pinion upon the 

 end of an axis turned by a winch ; one man turns this winch 

 and another puts the foles between the rollers. Two foles 

 are prefented together, being laid one upon the other, with 

 the flefh fides of the leather towards each other, and an iron 

 plate is placed between them, which is made thick in the 

 middle, and diminifhes every way to the edges, where it is 

 thin. The grain or hair fide of the leather of the two foles 

 is outfide, fo as to be in contaft with the rollers when the 

 foles are prefented to the machine which draws them in ; 

 and when they have nearly pafled through, the man who 

 turns the winch reverfcs the motion, and rolls them back 

 again, then forwards, and fo on for four or five times, in the 

 fame manner as the motion for mangling linen. After this 

 operation the leather becomes hard and folid, and much re- 

 duced in thicknefs, particularly at the middle part. 



The heels being fo fmall cannot conveniently be rolled ; 

 but to produce the fame efFeft they are ftampcd in a fly- 

 prefs : for this purpofe, a heel-piece is put into a fmall box 

 or cell of call-iron, of a proper fhapc to receive it, and x 

 thick plate, which is fitted to the box, being laid upon it, 

 the whole is put beneath the fcrew of the prefs, one blow 

 of which is fufficient to prefs the iron plate upon the leather, 

 with a force which will render it hard and folid. 



The fole is made complete by joining to it the fmall femi- 

 circular piece at the heel ; for this purpofe, the parts which 

 are to be joined together are cut bevelled, fo that they will 

 overlap without incrcafing the thicknefs, and then three or 

 four nails are driven through the bevelled parts, to hold 

 them together. To cut the joints bevelled, a fimple prefs 

 is ufed ; the fole is laid flat upon the edge of the bench, and 

 a piece of iron is prefled down upon it by a lever, upon 

 which the workman leans his elbow. The edge of the 

 bench is bevelled, and faced with iron, and this, together 

 with the upper piece of iron, guides the knife, fo that it 

 vi'ill cut the joint bevelled : the heel-piece is then cut in the 

 fame manner, but reverfed. 



/Ipplieation of thejhort Nails. — The leather for the fole is 

 next mlaid with (horl copper or iron nails, which are put 

 through holes in the leather, in the broad part of the foot, 

 where the greateft wear will take place ; and there is alfo a 

 double row of fimilar rivets, inlaid round the toe part, at 

 about three-quarters of an inch within the edge of the fole. 

 The holes for thefe nails are firft purched m the leather of 

 the fdle by a punching machine, and then a fecond machine 

 cuts the nails, and infcrts them into the holes. 



The punching machine is moved by the foot of the work- 

 man, who is feated before a fmall femicircular table of call 

 iron, on which he places the leather. This tabic is fup- 

 ported by a ftrong column, rifing from the floor to a height 

 of about two feet above the table, which is joined to the 

 column by a projedting bracket, lo that the column is on 

 the oppofite fide to that where the workman is hated. The 

 upper part of the column has two arms, projrfting forwards 

 from it towards the workman, and extending over the table ; 

 at their extremities they are formed into fockets, to fuftain 

 a fquare iron rod or perpendicular flidcr, which at the lower 

 end has the piercer or awl fcrewed into it : one of the 

 fockets guides the upper part of the flider, and the otlur 

 the lower part, fo that it has a freedom of motion in a per- 

 pendicular direction, but no other. The flider is cauled to 

 defcend by means of a treadle moving on a centre pin, at- 

 tached to the foot of the iron column, beneath the bench ; 

 from this treadle an iron rod afcends through a hole in the 

 4 G bench 



