, 1889-06-20
SHOES OF ALL NATIONS.
LARGE COLLECTION AT THE MU-
scum IN WASHINGTON.

'NAot ~ NAANANAAA INpIlt AAllGl III
fcrcnt conditions. All the shoes made
ave one thing in common, and that is
n sole. There arc shoes consisting of n
sole without an upper, but non that
consist Of an upper without n sole. Not
10 have n sole on ones shoe has been
taken fGuratively to represent extreme
restitution. So when one wants to
speak of n person who is in i~mpecunious
circumstances. one, if he uses slang, is
likely to say: He is walking on his
uppcrs."
Tn oldest form Of n shoe or sandal
seems to have been merely a fiat sole
secured to the foot by thongs.
FIRsT EFFORTS TO PROTECT THE FEET.
This form can be seen represented in
Roman and Greek sculpture. The Egyp-
tians had similar soles or sandals made
ordinarily of leather. but sometimes of
palm leaves or papyrus. In the Ninth
and Tenth centuries the common form
Of shoe in Europe was the wooden shoe.
Even the nobles and princes wore clumsy
wooden shoes, such as now arc found
among tho peasants. The Fourteenth
century produced the grotcsquo long
pointed shoe. The points had been cx-
tended by fashion so far that in the days
of Richard III they were secured to the
knee by little chains. The church thun-
dercd against this absurd and useless
fashion, but almost without avail, for it
held sway for 200 years or more. In 14G3,
however, so much Roadway had becn
gained against the mode that n decree of
tho English parliament was obtained to
oppose the decree of fashion.
An act was passed prohibiting shoe
k from making points more h
two inches long for the unprivileged
classes. Henccforth the long point be-
came n badge of the criminal class. But
n reaction came, the long point went out
of fashion, and people went to tho OPP
posite extreme. The toes of shoes were
made of grotesque width. This absurdity
was carried so far that Queen Mary felt
called upon TO issue n proclamation re-
stricting the width of toes to six inches.
If there were any of her subjects who
had n natural spread of tho toes greater
than six inches they had togo b~arefooted.
In the Sixteenth century boots were
generally worn in England and France
taANA AAAf ~ ~ AAA' - aAAiAn 4 ~
with enormously wide tops, that were
rolled or folded over. After tho restora-
ton the tops of the boots were orna-
mented, at least by the tops of the day,
with lace. The simple form of shoe,
which has held its own among Euro
peans and Americans TO tho present day,
made its appearance in tho Seventeenth
century. This shoe has undergone sew
eral notifications. 1t was fastened with
a buckle before shoe laces and buttons
camc into vogue.
In the National museum in the depart
ment of ~ethnology are gathered together
specimens of foot wear from all over the
world. Shoes are studied not alone from
the economic standpoint. Ethnologists
sec in tho development of shoes, the
growth of the heel, the sole and the up
per, the process of evolution, Just as
the naturalist secs it in the mechanical
fitness of the p~rehcnsile tail TO the CON
ditions of life of tho monkey that has it.
Many drawers are filled with shoes, and
in one of the alcoves of the museum arc
stored away another collection of shoes.
If there was n procession representing all
nations and even tho subordinate divi-
sions of all nations, the representatives
of the different countries and localities
could all find in this collection the proper
boots or Shoes 10 wear.
~FooTGEAR ROY ALL NATIONS.
Then, scattered through the museum,
are ettigies-armics of very little ones in
cases, representing the dress and the inn
plements and ceremonies of different
people, and here and there large figures
startling in their lifelike character, and
on each Of these tho students of shoes
ohn find an interesting study. Wooden
shoes, or sabOts, are worn now among
he peasants in many countries in Eu-
rope. Their advantage is in their cheap
ness and durability. In France and Bel
GUM are factories where they are made
of maple and ash. There are some in the
museum from Norway and Belgium, and
some used among the Scandinavian set.
tiers in the northwestern states and ter
ritories tina seem heavy and clumsy to
one accustomed to fine leather. The shoe
is made all Of one piece, followed out.
They are fashioned in the form of the
foot, and sometimes have a little carving
outside to represent buttons and the top
caps on leather shoes. The uppers are
about a quarter of an inch thick and the
soles twice as thick.
On pair of wooden shoes in the
museum, from Belgium, even a repre-
sentation OF tho little knob supposed to
be made by the wearer's corn appears.
An attempt was made to establish the
manufacture of wooden shoes in this
country during the war, but the indus
try never reached large proportions.
Some, however, are made now and sold
among the foreign born people of the
northwest or exported to Europe. In the
tin district of Cornwall, Egypt made
wooden shoes or pattens are used.
One of these in the museum is simply
a flat piece of wood, with an iron ring
fastened underneath. The ring is on
the ground, and raises the fiat shoe and
its wearer above the ground. The shoe
is fastened to the foot with straps. Shoes
with wooden soles are very
They are used in some countries Tor or
binary wear, and many arc made for
the special use of persons employed in
bleacheries or damp places. The imper-
vious wooden soles keep the feet drv.