Wichita eagle., 1888-05-06
ABOUT SHODDY SHOES.
eOLES THAT LAST A WEEK, AND
WILL NOT EEAR WETTlNG.s
Gross Imposition and Deception Carried
on at the Expense of the Poorer Classes
Coming Home Observation-Disclosures
ture of Shoddy Goods.

In the manufacture of boots and shoes
grossest i1npositions and receptions are
carried on. A well informed mechanic
said to a reporter the other day:
at is an outrage that manufacturers of
boots and shoes should be permitted to
throw such trash as they do upon the
market Why, just look at my shoes, and
only bought them last week. My feet
are almost on the ground. l might be
said to be walking on my uppers. ~
whats the troubles'' was asked.
'.Trouble! why, there's trouble enough;
and am only one out Of thirty or forty
thousand persons in this city who have
been victimiZed by the manufacturers and
retailers of these shoddy shoes. When
first put on the shoes l am now wearing
they looked as well as any TO be seen In
the Broadway or Fifth avenue stores; but
with the first rainStorln the sOles began to
peel off, and upon examination l found
that the bottoms of my shoes were made
up Of paper and scraps OF leather, which
at first had the appearance OF leather. L
went to the store where L had purchased
them, but the boss gave me no satisfac-
faction. He said he didn't make them;
told me l had bought them cheap, and
somewhat insolently wanted to know what
| expected to get for So. / told him in
plain words that l expected to get good
shoe for that money. l showed him the
paper soles in my shoes, but that's all the
good it did me. | accused him of being a
swindler, pointed to the numerous boxes
of shoes about the store from which l had
seen him take the same as mine, but he
took the matter so coolly that made up
my mind he was used to it. He had
well appointed store, and professed to keep
good stock, which, on account of big
trade, he could afford to sell compare
lively cheap. At the time there was
number of web dressed women Ing the
store, and when they saw the paper soled
shoes / held up, and heard what | had to
say about the goods on hand, they gath
cred up their skirts and walked out; but
the proprietor didn't seem to mind it, as
he knew that his low priced shoes that
were labeled in the windows would draw
in plenty of custom. / tell you, sir, I'm
h&a,d working man, and have large
family to care for, but it's money, money
all the time to buy shoes for my children.
I'm a mechanic, and 1 know how good
work ought to stand"
Another workman with whom the re-
porter conversed related pretty much the
same experience in regard to shoes that
he had bought for his boys, and incident
ally mentioned a recent experience of his
wife. She had on pair of low cut shoes,
and, ch;-ncing to get caught in heavy
rainstorm, came home almost barefooted.
The water had soaked through the paste
or composition, and the outer sole, appar-
emily of leather, had nearly peeled off.
eo1n .1xy
mans experience was that these shoes
would wear off SO gradually in very dry
weather that good many couldn't notice
it; but let them be worn out once or twice
in rainstorm. and then the wearer
would wonder what made the soles peel
off He said that he had to buy as cheaply
as possible, and no matter in what store
on the Bowery or about the avenues he
traded, the proprietor or his clerk was
always willing to take an oath that the
shoes were regularly sewed. II tell you
what, sir" he said, bluntly, ''these are
the days for trying mems solos," and the
speaker laughed at the old joke.
Several reputable shoemakers denounced
the impositions that were practiced in the
manufacture of shoddy shoes, as it was
very severe upon men who have to work
hard for their money, and only get small
wages at the best. One of these shoe
makers said:
''Most Of the cheap goods sold in New
York and elsewhere are made in Massa-
chusettes, mostly by machinery, and the
manufacturers use the offal of leather
splits, skivers, paper or composition
leather, or split horsehide. In many mems,
women's and children's shoes the insideis
of pasteboard, and the lining is coarse
enough to sift pears through; and then the
shoe is polished and heel balled. Only
experts can tell the difference between
this sort of shoddy shoes and hand made
work, so handsomely are they finished.
From the top to the bottom Of the shoe
the whole thing is deceptive. The manu-
acturers of shoddy shoes are constantly
competing with each other, and every one
daily studies how he can turn out the
cheapest and best looking goods These
shsddy shoes are sent all over the United
States, and persons whose means are
cramped are taken in by them. The bar
gains they think they are getting are the
worst sort of sells"
Several other custom work shoemakers,
In speaking Of the subject, said that in all
these machine made shoes the cheapest
material was used in mems, women's and
children's shoes; horsehide being split and
dressed up to represent calf, and poorly
tanned sheepskins being made up in imi-
tstion of pebble goat.
From the various manufactures down
east these shoddy goods are shipped to
wholesale houses, whence they find their
way to retailers about Town, by whom
they are sold mostly to the poorer people,
who think they are getting bargains. 1t
is variously estimated that from SIS, 900 to
$40, 900 day would not cover the guam
tity of this sort of trash that is sold in
this city alone, and it is too bad that the
/ loss should fall upon those who can
I'll afford it. There are scores of shop
keepers who sell mems, women'S and
boys boots and shoes from 50 down
to IS cents less than half the cost of
the material of good article, let alone
the cost of making up. These goods are
known to the trade as ''turn shoes, - from
the fact that the inside paper sole is first
secured to the upper and then the shoe IS
turned inside out, when the sole is secured
/ by nails, paste and perhaps stitch or
two. The soles of these cheap shoes the
storekeeper viii swear are leather, and so
they really are. but ii is not the dressed
hide intact. They are called patent SOL
Ing, anu are CuiikDscO Oi scraps gIOuL4u
up, skivers and other waste materials
formed into composition and rolled into
various thicknesses by powerful machin-
cry. From each strip. when il comes
. from the rollers and is dried. two pairs OF
soIes can be cut, and the waste is used for
filing in. In dry weather such soles Will
: wear tolerably well, but in wet weather
they soon melt away. This patent selling
is mostly used by manufacturers in their
lowest priced goods. though many cobblers
about town use il in half soling and heel