8 BULLETIN 1168, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
being tanned varied from 100 to 185, with an average of 151. The 
average days wear per 9 irons varied per lot from 59 to 87. The 
average days wear per 9 irons for all lots was 78.1. 
Chestnut wood extract tannages. — Data from 175 soles cut from 8 
lots of leather were summarized. All the hides were short-hair 
hides. Thev were classed as follows: 6 lots of ''Texas"; 1 lot of 
"Colorado"; and 1 lot of "butt branded" and "■Colorado." The 
number of days the leathers were in the yard being tanned varied 
from 55 to 140, with an average of 92. The average days wear per 
9 irons varied per lot from 71 to 97. The average days wear per 9 
irons for all lots was 80. 
Hemlock bark tannages. — Data from 103 soles cut from 5 lots of 
leather were summarized. Three of the lots consisted of short-hair 
hides. The hides were classed as follows: 2 lots of ll Texas " : 1 lot of 
"dry Texas"; 1 lot of dry " Buenos Aires"; and 1 lot of "'South 
American packer. ' ' The number of days the leathers were in the yard 
being tanned varied from 85 to 120, with an average of 99. The 
average days wear per 9 irons varied per lot from 62 to 102, these 
extremes being given by the two dry hide lots. The average days 
wear per 9 irons for all lots was 79.3. The average days wear per 
9 irons for green salted hides was 78.5. 
Oak belting tannages. — Data from 62 soles cut from 3 lots of leather 
were summarized. All the hides were "native steers." The average 
days wear per 9 irons varied per lot from 82 to 88. The average 
days wear per 9 irons for all lots was 85.5. 
Waxed chrome tannages. — Data from 82 soles cut from 5 lots of 
leather were summarized. The hides were classed as follows: 1 lot 
of "Texas": 1 lot of "Mara! bulls"; 2 lots of " domestic bulls"; and 
1 lot of "dry China buffalo" or "Java." The average days wear 
per 9 irons varied per lot from 80 to 118. The average days wear 
per 9 irons for all lots was 102. 
Unwaxed chrome tannages. — Data from 31 soles cut from 2 lots of 
leather were summarized. The hides were classed as "domestic 
bulls." The average days wear per 9 irons was 124 for one lot and 
128 for the other. The average days wear per 9 irons for both lots 
was 125.8. 
Fiber soles. — Data from 81 soles from 4 makes were summarized. 
The average days wear per 9 irons varied per lot from 102 to 144. 
The average days wear per 9 irons for all makes was 121.6. 
Most of the soles were worn in a very dry climate. The percentage 
worn in Texas and New Mexico, where there was practically one 
rainfall a month, was as follows: Oak-bark-tanned leathers. 79.5; 
chestnut-wood-extract-tanned leathers, 85; hemlock-bark-tanned 
leathers, 75; oak-bark-tanned belting leathers, 80.5; waxed chrome- 
tanned leathers. 69.5: unwaxed chrome-tanned leathers. 80.5: fiber 
soles, 63. 
There is no appreciable difference in the wear of the four classes 
of vegetable-tanned leathers, except that the soles cut from belting 
leathers wore a few days longer than those from the other leathers. 
Soles from the chrome-tanned leathers wore decidedly longer, those 
from the unwaxed chrome-tanned leathers wearing longer than those 
from any other tannage. The fiber soles wore well except for the 
imperfections previously discussed. 
The results with the three classes of sole leather would seem to 
indicate that the time of tanning — that is. the time the leathers were 
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