The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-01-24
HOW ENGLAND
TURNS OUT SHOES
Ahead of Army Needs Now,
With Plenty Of Pairs in
~>S'~" Dasaes''..S :. A&GR.~--sx~ -, x.r 4
Reservoir at An
Times.
SUPPLY OTHER PLACES
Besides Keeping Own Men Well shod,
They Send MiIIions to Russia
and Down Into
Italy.
SUPPLY OTHER PLACES s
[By Lowell Mellett, United Press
Staff C0rresnnndant l

[By Lowell Mellett, United Press
Staff Correspondent
LONDON, Jan. 24.-The other day
the United States dipped into Great
Britain's shoe reservoir, came up
with 100000 pairs Of shoes and It
didn't even make dent in the sup
ply.
one days work at full capacity.
would have replaced the shoes.
And there were still 3.500.O00 shoes
in the reservoir.
Great Britain has been on top of
the army shoe problem since Janu-
ary 1915. At one time there were
five million pairs in storage.
For just one short period. in May.
1916, the stock fell off to less than
SOC, 900 pairs, but that was due to q
tremendous call from Russia.
Between November 1914, and NO
yember 1917, there were supplied to-
tho army 24,500,000 pairs of shoes.
ono million pairs of service Doots
and 100000 pairs of rubber boots
| In addition, ten million pairs OF shoes
have been sent to Russia. three mil
lion pairs to Italy and smaller
amounts to Rumania and Serbia
Cost of the shoes has Increased
from fourteen shillings to twenty
four shillings since the outbreak or
| the war, for the regulation rlveted
shoes issued to privates. The manu-
| facturers' average profit Is now
placed at five percent.
! It is now figured, contrary to gen
eral opinion, that the life Of pair
of shoes issued to a private is about
six months This is due not only to
the sturdy build of the shoe, but to
an extensive repair system, whereby
no worn shoes are discarded until
ahsolutely worn out.
Taking care of Kitchener's first
million soldiers was the thing that
proved to the war Office the system
was inadequate. In November, 1914,
the government called Edward Pen
ton a business man with expert
knowledge of the shoe trade and shoe
manufacturing.
Penton first showed his capacity
when he supplied the French army
with something like two million pairs
of shoes, obtained in England while
the British war Office was still fumb-
ling around He told the United
Press today how he got ahead OF the
army's demands.
"It was mostly matter of getting
manufacturers to work. he said. Il
had to take chance on the war
lasting long enough to justify the heavy
expenditures incident to speeding up.
Most everybody seemed to be under
the impression that the war would
last only six months.
eve got the services of an expert
manufacturer as chief inspector.
'We don't have the big plants you
have in America. The largest out
put of any one is fourteen thousand
pairs week.
'In May, 1916, the government re-
Questioned the shoe trade. The
capacity and capabilities of every
plant in Great Britain was then
known The manufacturers were told
they had to deliver certain num-
Der of shoes. When they failed, they
we're penalized under the defense-of-
the-realm act.
cat the same time the government
began requisitioning leather. Now
/ the government sells hides to the
! tanner, buys back the tinisha
leather and sells it to the manrfac-
/ turer."