The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1883-06-14
SUNNY SIDE SHOES.
Tricks by Which the Poor are SwlndIcd-
F,u'i. by Shoe Dealers.

"Iou newspaper fellows have had your
whack at great many Of the frauds Of
the day, but you have thus far overlooked
the commonest and in some respects the
mcanest Of all frauds, that in shoes.
Why don't you expose ~" The speaker
was q middlc.aged man of natty dress,
evidently member of the craft known
as commercial travellers, and the one ad-
G0<cite. The latter. overlooking the
ilippancy with which Journalists had
been cIassed ~ fellows" asked for
shoes and was enlightened in this wise.
1T would take too much Of vOur
space TO 90 into minute details as 10 how
frauds are pcrpctratcd on the purchasers
OF shoes, so numerous and ingenious are
they. will therefore merely tell YOU
about some Of the most ordinary ways Of
pcarancc. Coed leather of all kinds, ns
you are aware, costs money and Il great
deal OF 1t, in comparison with prices
twenty five years ago, and great deal OF
Yankee ingenuity has been expended in
devisIng methods for making y little of
The tanners product go great way.
Sole leather is the most expensive of all,
and naturally there is more fraud in the
solea Of shoes than in aprcrs. In :.
great many Of the cheaper grades of
shoes now sold the soles consist Of Il very
thin sheet of leather for the bottoms,
just enough to hold it together, and
thes pace between it and the so.
called insole, which usually consists
of n strip of muslin, is filled
either with leather shavings pressed to.
gether or with common straw board.
The wcarers of this kind of leather goods
should always be careful to avoid the
shady side Of the street, ~ dampness is
Irnlnous to this sort of shoe, causing the
biggest part Of the sole to crunble to
pieces.
"The uppers, which the seller always
assures tho purchase are genuine calf
skin, are sp!, COW hides, and wear little
If any better than the so!es. The heels
are in strict keeping with the other parta
consisting OF thin outer rim Of leather
and slender bottom Of the same mate
rial, the remainder being made up Of
scrap leather. Half the ready made
shoes worn in littsburg, don't hesitate
to assert, are shams of one sort or anOth
cr, in part or in whole.
1Ho ldisIuCUtlDH IL llOL COnIlncu 10
mems shoes oh, no. There is fully as
much or more fraud in women's foot
gear. There is pebble goat made out of
blackencd muslin, with soles of plated
hash,' as pressed scraps arc termed.
Sheep skin is skillfully dressed to i'm.
itnte kid, and many Of the shoes made of
it aud sold for sewed work are merely
pasted together and dissolve, so to speak,
the first time they arc wet. This sort of
frauds sets hardest on tho poor, who
must economize from force Of necessity,
and always buy things that are cheap
without much reference to their quality
or durability. Shoes at half price are
always a temptation to the poor, but if
they would give the matter n little study
they would soon discover that one pair of
honest shoes, sold at IL fair price, would
outlast three or four pairs of the other
kind, though when first put ON the latter
look just as nice or nicer than the better
kind"