The Boot and Shoe Manufacturers' Assistant and Guide. / Containing a Brief History of the Trade. History of India-rubber and Gutta-percha, and Their Application to the Manufacture of Boots and Shoes. Full Instructions in the Art, With Diagrams and Scales, Etc., Etc. Vulcanization and Sulphurization, English and American Patents. With an Elaborate Treatise on Tanning.

INTRODUCTION.

The readers of the “Guide” will be interested in an examination of the various styles of shoes, or rather “coverings for the feet,” that have prevailed, dating some fifteen hundred years prior to the advent of Christ. Some of the most unique, we have had engraved from Cantrell’s designs, which we here furnish, to give correct views.

The first attempt, of which we have any account, to give style to the coverings of the feet, produced the Sandal. These differed in style, though slightly varied in form. Those used by the poorer classes were constructed of flat slices of the palm leaf, which, lapped over in the centre, formed the sole, and a double band of twisted leaves secured and strengthened the edge; a thong of the strong fibres of the same plant was affixed to each side of the instep, and was secured round the foot, while those indulged in by the more wealthy classes were made of leather, and were frequently lined with cloth, the point or end turning up like a pair of modern skates. The sandal reached its greatest perfection among the Romans. The emperor Aurelian gave the royal permission to the ladies of his time to wear sandals of various colors, the men not being permitted to indulge in so great a luxury. The Roman senators wore buskins of a black color, with a crescent of gold or silver on the top of the foot, while the soldiers wore simple sandals fastened by thongs. In the reign of Edward the Third, of England, those who worked at the shoe trade, were denominated the “gentle craft,” as they produced shoes of the most gorgeous description, the richest contrasts of color were elaborated and the greatest variety of pattern devised.

Fig. 1 in this plate displays a beautiful design. It is supposed to be worn by one of the royal family.

The English shoe of the middle ages is “beyond all Greek, beyond all Roman fame.” The second specimen in the engraving is simpler in design, but not less striking in effect, being colored jet black, and worn with red hose. Another curious fashion of those times was—see Fig. 3. The left shoe was black and the stocking blue, the other leg of the wearer being clothed in a black stocking and a white shoe. This shoe was cut very low over the instep, the heel being entirely covered, and a band fastened by a small buckle or button passing round the ankle secured it to the foot.

Coming down to the reign of Richard II., boots and shoes were made of great length, so that they were chained to the knee of the wearer, that he might walk with some degree of freedom. Of course, only the nobility could afford so expensive a method of locomotion. Extremes were introduced from time to time, as in our own day. During the reign of Edward III., it was enacted that any shoemaker working for the “unprivileged classes,” should not make any shoes, the toes which should exceed two inches in length, under a penalty of twenty shillings. This edict had the effect to widen the toes to a most absurd extent; this fashion was followed by a proclamation from Queen Mary, that the width of the toes should not exceed six inches.

The mania for wearing expensive shoes, in 1588, was only exceeded in folly by the Tulip excitement at a later date in Holland. Large sums were expended in shoe decorations. The poet Taylor alluding to this extravagance thus writes of those who,

“Wear a farm in shoe strings edged with gold,

And spangled garters worth a copy hold.”

In the reign of Charles I., boots, which were made of elegant Spanish leather, of a buff color, were cut so large and wide at the top, that the wearer was obliged to stride so ridiculously, that it afforded much sport for the satirists of that age. In the time of Cromwell, large boot tops were worn by the Puritans, but were not adorned with lace. Upon the restoration of Charles II. came the enormous French boot, in which the courtiers of “Louis le grand” delighted to show their legs.

The accompanying cut will furnish an idea of the amplitude of the tops. The boot is adorned with lace around the upper part, and that portion of the boot into which the leg is inserted was fitted with pliant leather; over the instep is a broad band of leather, beneath which the spur was fastened.

The shoes in the following cut were such as were worn by the ladies during the reign of William III.

The clog beneath the shoe on the left side, was simply a piece of stout leather, evidently intended to protect the feet from excessive moisture. The distinguishing mark of gentility in the reign of George I. and II., was red heels. The ladies preferred silk or velvet to leather, and the favorite shoe worn by the ladies of the court were made of figured blue silk with bright red heels and silver buckles.

The above cut was the style worn in 1780. Ten years later a change occurred by which ladies’ shoes were made flat and low, like the slipper of the present day.

A picture by Fores was published in 1791, of a shoe worn by the duchess of York. The shoe was made of green silk, ornamented with gold stars, and bound with scarlet silk; the heel was scarlet and shaped exactly in the modern style.

Shoe buckles disappeared about the commencement of the present century, and were succeeded by the plain shoe string. In England the Prince of Wales endeavored to preserve the custom, by persisting in their use, in order to sustain the buckle-makers, but imperious fashion was too powerful for even the influence of the great.

The accompanying cut represents a variety of shoes worn by females.

No. 1 is the sandal of a Russian lady of 1768. The second that of a female of Finland, a low, slipper-like shoe, secured by a band across the instep, having an ornamental clasp, like a brooch, to secure it on each side of the foot; it was probably a coarsely made piece of jewelry, with glass or cheap stones set around it, as the people of this country at that time were fond of such showy decorations, particularly upon their shoes. No. 3 is a production of the same country, and is similar to those worn by the matrons of the upper classes. No. 4 is the shoe of a Tartarian lady of 1577. Nos. 5 and 6 are examples of the shoes of oriental ladies, which are sometimes highly ornamented; the covering part being wrought with gold, silver, and silk, and perhaps set with jewels, real or imitated. The shoes of noblemen are of similar construction. They were no doubt easy to wear.

Not so are the ladies shoes, for they only were allowed the privilege of discomfort, fashion having in this country declared in favor of small feet, and the prejudice of the people having gone with it, the feet of all ladies of decent rank in society, are cramped in early life, by being placed in so strait a confinement, that their growth is retarded, and they are not more than three or four inches in length, from the toe to the heel. By the smallness of the foot the rank or high-breeding of the lady is decided on, and the utmost torment is endured by the girls in early life, to insure themselves this distinction in rank; the lower classes of females not being allowed to torture themselves in the same manner. The Chinese poets frequently indulge in panegyrics on the beauty of these crippled members of the body, and none of their heroines are considered perfect without excessively small feet, when they are affectionately termed by them “the little golden lilies.” It is needless to say that the tortures of early youth are succeeded by a crippled maturity, a Chinese lady of high birth being scarcely able to walk without assistance. These shoes are generally made of silk and embroidered in the most beautiful manner, with flowers and ornaments in colored silk and threads of gold and silver. A piece of stout silk is generally attached to the heel for the convenience of pulling up the shoe.

The Turkish ladies of the sixteenth century, and very probably much earlier, wore a very high shoe known in Europe by the name of a “chopine.” This fashion spread in Europe in the early part of the seventeenth century, and it is alluded to by Hamlet, in act ii., scene 2, when he exclaims, “Your ladyship is nearer heaven than when I saw you last, by the altitude of a chopine,” by which it appears that something of the kind was known in England, where it may have been introduced from Venice, as the ladies there wore them of the most extravagant size.

Coryat, in his “Crudities,” 1611, says: “There is one thing used by the Venetian women, and some others dwelling in the cities and towns subject to signiory of Venice, that is not to be observed (I think) among any other women in Christendom.” The reader must remember that it was new to Coryat, but a common fashion in the East. The engraving is intended to represent a singular fashion once adopted by the Venetians. It is called a chapiney. They were of various heights, some half a yard, the tallest being worn by the shortest women, although the height and ornament usually designated the nobility. They were curiously painted and gilded. It required the utmost skill to balance upon the chapines: the ladies always in public, were supported by two servants or old women, upon whose heads the ladies placed their hands, and in this ridiculous manner proceeded to their gondolas.

The sabot, a shoe peculiar to France, is here represented. They are quite clumsy, but warm and comfortable. Those usually worn are entirely plain, and the color of the wood.

The modern styles of boots and shoes do not require any particular description. The Gaiter Boot inaugurated a new era in the history of “coverings for the feet,” and its introduction is attributed to the Countess of Blessington. This boot was found to be troublesome, owing to the necessity of lacing and unlacing, the tags breaking off, holes wearing out, and such like annoyances. All these difficulties were obviated in a great measure by the introduction of the Elastic Gaiter. American skill and ingenuity has completely rivalled the most elegant specimens of Parisian handicraft, and the importation of French gaiters, which was once quite extensive, has almost or quite ceased. Most of the so-called French manufacture is the product of American artizans. This “amiable deception” is practiced in order to gratify the whims of those who lack confidence in the skill and taste of American manufacturers. An anecdote illustrative of this prejudice is general in its application. The incident related, occurred in a Broadway establishment, New York.

A lady, after examining the slippers of the tradesman, said, “Mr. ——, why do you not import your slippers from Paris?” “Madam,” was the reply, “I have already sent out an order, and I expect every day the arrival of an extensive assortment; if you will call in in about a week, I think I can furnish you with just the article you desire.” The lady left, promising to return, and Mr. —— visited his printer and had a number of “tickets,” bearing the name of an imaginary French shoemaker, struck off, and by her next visit he was prepared with a “very extensive assortment.” She was fitted with a pair, and after extolling the style, elegance, and comfort of her slippers, insulted the tradesman by enquiring “why he did not make such shoes.”

The Americans are rapidly securing to themselves a superiority over all other nations in this important manufacturing interest, and in a few years boots and shoes of American manufacture will be regarded as the ne plus ultra of the art.

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