Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1886-10-17
SHOES NTHE coNrEDERAcY.
Grotesque ExPedients Caused by the
Dearth OfLeAther-WOOden sOles Worn
by Many People. q.

LAECNAcnts CAuetu DIV Enf
Dearth OfLeAther-wOoden SOles Worn
by Many People.
"a AaGRtie Monthly.
The dearth of leather also drove the
people to all sorts of g~rotesque ~expedients.
Sole leather especially, owing to the diff.
Guilty which the small tannerics experien-
eed IN its production, was extremely scare.
Wood, which had long been worn TO a
limited extent by the slaves in some local..
ties, now came into general use in the
making of shoes. A wooden shoe was
among the very first inventions patented
under the Confederate government. In
the beginning variety Of shapes prevailed.
Some!cOuld do no better than dig out a rude
wooden receptacle for the foot, a trayestry
on the sabot worn by the French peasants,
a strip Of leather being attached 10 the
top; by e Of which the clog was
secured to the ankle. But by far the best
and most comfortable style, and one
which was adopted whenever the addition
al leather required was to be had, was a
simple sole of ash, willow or some light
wood, to which the full leather uppers
were fastened with taeks. At first these
were made so thick, in order to insure
durability, that among their various other
effects was that of adding very sensibly TO
the stature Of the community. Later ON
it vas found better to make the soles
thinner and protect them from wear by
mailing on their bottoms light irons, SINH
lar IN shape to a horseshoe. They were
necessarily the noisiest shoes ever worn,
announcing the approach of their wearers
ut a good distance. When the air was
clear and the ground frozen one was,by this
means kept well appraised of the movements
OF his immediate neighbors. Especially
did their tell tale chatter make them the
abominatiOn Of the negro in his nocturnal
ambles. The dismay of nervous people
and careful housewives, their effect in
doors was indeed something terrific, though
after irons came into vogue and lessened
the impacting surface the chatter was toned
down 10 something under the tramp of q
horse. Nor were they much less destruct-
i've to floors, while carpets simply did not
exist in their wane. Despite the scrubbings
and scourings of n quarter century, their
marks are yet TO be seen in some houses.
The use of wooden bottoms for shoes was
by no means confined to the negroes. They
were worn by the majority of the laboring
people, as we'll rs by many of both sexes
who had been reared in atfiuence. The
scarcity of the last winter of the war drove
whole families into them, except the little
feet which could not be trusted to steer
such craft, but bore their share of martyr
dom by being imprisoned indoors through
ont the EvelOng dreary months.
Great skill and caution are requisite to
keep atOot in wooden bottoms ut all. A
queer spectacle it was, too, to see ones
tellOw-beingS stepping gingerly around, as
ifthere We're universal misSiyings rs to the
~SateneSs of the earth's crust, One may
forget his first feat with firearms, and even
his first exploit On skates, but never his
first fight On-Or, to be accurate, his first
abduction on wooden bottoms. If the
SOles, which in 4 clumsy attempt to hit the
foot were shaped like rockers, were once
set in motion they persisted in ~inexOrably
fitting one forward, especially in descend
ing 4 hill, till v~OlitiOn was utterly lost,
and nothing short OF an ascent or a fall
could arrest them. However, in time they
became comparatively manageable, one
getting able to choose his own path, as
we'll rs to have some small voice i'll stop
pages.
UDpers were made of such random pieces
Oflelther, or anything bearing the falntest
resemblance to leather, rs could be lighted
on. Carriage curtains and buggy tops
were acceptable. In some cases old mo-
rocco pOcket-bOoks were converted into
childreu's shO,s, while many ladies man
aged 70 fashion themselves a sort Of moe
clsin out Of the most heterogeneous and
unprOmiSing materials. WOe TO the care
less wight who suffered his Saddled horse
to stand ont near the church, store or post
Office after nightfall! The chances were
that when he went to mount he would find
that some one had appropriated his saddle
skirts for sole leather, unless he had Tor
stalled such an act by a~pprOPriating them
- tb,f ap1 bimsalF