from wearing. We must confine ourselves to a description of that part of the machinery which strictly performs shoe-making. The leather is hardened by passing it between rollers, to produce the same effect as hammering does in the ordinary method of shoe-making. The rollers used for this purpose are made of brass, about five inches diameter, and as much in length; they are mounted in the usual kind of frame, except that instead of screws to hold down the upper roller, and regulate its distance from the lower one, two plain cylindric pins are inserted into the holes which usually receive the screws, and these pins have a strong lever bearing upon their upper ends, to press the upper roller down upon the lower, by the action of a weight at the extremity of the lever. These pins are only about four inches distant from the centre or fulcrum of the lever, and the weight (of about 100 lbs.) is at a distance of four feet from the centre, it therefore presses down the upper roller upon the lower with a force of nearly 1200 lbs. The lower roller has a cog-wheel upon the extremity of its spindle, which is moved by a pinion upon the end of an axis turned by a winch; one man turns this winch, and another puts the soles between the rollers. Two soles are presented together, being laid one upon the other, with the flesh sides of the leather towards each other, and an iron plate is placed between them, which is made thick in the middle, and diminishes every way to the edges, where it is thin. The grain or hair side of the leather of the two soles is outside, so as to be in contact with the rollers when the soles are presented to the machine which draws them in; and, when they have nearly passed through, the man who turns the winch reverses the motion, and rolls them back again, then forwards, and so on for four or five times, in the same manner as the motion for mangling linen. After this operation the leather becomes hard and solid, and much reduced in thickness, particularly at the middle part. The heels being so small cannot conveniently be rolled; but to produce the same effect they are stamped in a fly-press: for this purpose, a heel-piece is put into a small box or cell of cast-iron, of a proper shape to receive it, and a thick plate, which is fitted to the box, being laid upon it, the whole is put beneath the screw of the press, one blow of which is sufficient to press the iron plate upon the leather with a force which will render it hard and solid. The sole is made complete by joining to it the small semicircular piece at the heel; for this purpose, the parts which are to be joined together are cut bevelled, so that they will overlap without increasing the thickness, and then three or four nails are driven through the bevelled parts to hold them together. To cut the joints bevelled, a simple press is used; the sole is laid flat upon the edge of the bench, and a piece of iron is pressed down upon it by a lever, upon which the workman leans his elbow. The edge of the bench is bevelled and faced with iron, and this, together with the upper piece of iron, guides the knife, so that it will cut the joint bevelled: the heel-piece is then cut in the same manner, but reversed. VOL. XX. The leather for the sole is next inlaid with short copper or iron nails, which are put through holes in the leather, in the broad part of the foot, where the greatest wear will take place; and there is also a double row of similar rivets, inlaid round the toe part, at about three-quarters of an inch within the edge of the sole. The holes for these nails are first punched in the leather of the sole by a punching machine, and then a second machine cuts the nails, and inserts them into the holes. The punching machine is moved by the foot of the workman, who is seated before a small semicircular table of cast iron, on which he places the leather. This table is supported by a strong column, rising from the floor to a height of about two feet above the table, which is joined to the column by a projecting bracket, so that the column is on the opposite side to that where the workman is seated. The upper part of the column has two arms, projecting forwards from it towards the workman, and extending over the table; at their extremities they are formed into sockets, to sustain a square iron rod or perpendicular slider, which at the lower end has the piercer or awl screwed into it: one of the sockets guides the upper part of the slider, and the other the lower part, so that it has a freedom of motion in a perpendicular direction, but no other. The slider is caused to descend by means of a treadle moving on a centre pin, attached to the foot of the iron column, beneath the bench; from this treadle an iron rod ascends through a hole in the bench (and also through holes in the arms, which project from the column to sustain the slider), and at the upper end this rod is connected with a lever, which moves on a joint at the upper end of the iron column, whilst the extreme end of the lever is connected with the top of the perpendicular slider. By this arrangement it is clear that the foot, being pressed upon the treadle, will communicate motion by the iron rod and upper lever to the slider and piercer, and force its point through the leather, which is placed upon the small iron table. A short lever and counterpoise are provided to raise up the slider again the instant the pressure is removed. To prevent the piercer striking upon the iron of the table, and breaking the point, a screw is inserted in a piece projecting from the slider, and its point in descending comes to rest upon the upper of the two arms which sustain the slider, and thus stops the descent of the slider at the proper place. The piece of leather for the sole is fixed upon a pattern made of iron plate, cut to the same size and shape as the sole, which is united to it by two sharp gauge pins, which are fixed in the pattern, one at the middle of the tread, and the other in the centre of the heel; and these pins project so far that they will just penetrate through the leather, to hold it fast against the pattern, which is perforated with all the holes which are intended to be pierced in the sole. The leather is applied upon the pattern, and struck with a mallet, so as to force the gauge pins into the leather, and unite the sole and the pattern together; the pattern is then laid flat upon the table of the machine, with the leather uppermost, and is brought beneath the point R of the piercer, so that it will penetrate in the desired place. To ascertain this place, a small stud or pin is inserted into a hole in the table, in the exact spot where the point of the piercer descends; the stud projects a little above the surface of the table, but is only held up by a spring, so that it can easily be pressed down. The pattern being placed so that any of the holes therein receive the point of the stud, it is evident that, when the pressure of the foot makes the piercer descend, its point will make a puncture in the leather which is fastened upon the pattern, which puncture will be opposite to the hole in the pattern; and, though it perforates the leather quite through the thickness, the point of the piercer cannot be blunted against the iron, because it is received in the hole in the pattern, and the stud descends by the pressure, so that the pattern will lie quite flat upon the surface of the table. In this manner the workman pierces any number of holes in the leather, placing it beneath the point of the piercer by the aid of the pattern, and then pressing the foot to bring the point down and pierce the hole. As soon as the piercer rises he removes the pattern to another hole, and so on. A small piece of iron is fixed just above the leather which prevents its being lifted up and following the piercer when it rises. The piercer passes through a hole in this piece. The sole being thus pierced with holes is prepared for nailing, and the short nails are put into it by a very curious machine, which at the same time forms the nails, by cutting them off from the end of a strip of iron or copper, of the same breadth as the length of the intended nails. The sole is presented to this machine by laying it upon a small table similar to the last machine, and is directed by means of the same pattern; so that each of the holes in the leather will be successively brought beneath the point of a blunt piercer, which descends by the action of a treadle. In the upper part of the machine is a pair of shears to cut the nails: they consist of a lever, loaded at the extremity with a weight, and connected with the treadle, so that the end of the lever is lifted up when the treadle is depressed by the foot. Near the centre of this lever is a cutter, which is fixed to it and moves with it. Another cutter is supported by the frame, so as to be stationary, and in the proper situation to come in contact with the edge of the moving cutter when the end of the lever is lifted up. The cutters act in a manner similar to a pair of shears, to cut off a small piece from across the end of a slip of iron, which is introduced between the cutters. This piece forms the nail or rivet which is to be put into the hole in the leather; and immediately after it is cut it falls into a tube, by which it is conducted down to a small cell or tube, situated immediately over the leather. In this the nail stands perpendicular, and ready, when the piercer descends, to be forced down into the hole in the leather; because the cell which receives the nail is exactly beneath the point of the piercer, so as to hold it perpendicularly in the proper situation. The workman is seated before the machine, and with his right hand directs the sole, with its pattern beneath the piercer, in the same manner as before described. In his left hand he holds the strip of iron or copper which is to make the nails; and he introduces the end of it through a small hole which conducts to the cutters, pushing it forward with a gentle force: this causes the end of the strip to enter between the cutters when the shears are open. Then adjusting the sole by the pattern, so that one of the holes in the leather will be beneath the nail contained in the cell, he presses down the treadle: this forces the nail down from the cell into the leather, by the descent of the piercer, and at the same time closes the shears, and cuts off a nail across the end of the strip. The nail immediately descends by the tube into the cell, where it places itself perpendicularly, and ready to be put in its place in its turn. Thus the machine, at every stroke, cuts a fresh nail to supply the place of that which it puts in the leather by the same stroke. The strip of copper is turned over every time to form the nails alternately head and point. When all the nails are put in they are battered down with a hammer; and, as they are but very little longer than the thickness of the sole, this reduces them to an even surface. The welt, or runner, is a narrow slip of leather applied upon the sole, round its edge, to makc the sole of a double thickness round the edge, where the upper leather joins to the sole, although the sole is only single within. The welt is made from the feather-edged slips which we have before mentioned, and is fastened to the sole by tacking nails of sufficient length to pass through both the sole and the welt. These nails are arranged all round the circumference of the sole, and the holes are first pierced through the sole by the punching machine, which we have before described, but by a different pattern of iron, which is attached to the sole by its twe gauge pins entering the same holes which were made through the leather in the first operation. This pattern is pierced with a row of holes all round the circumference, which are arranged within the former row of rivets, or farther from the edge of the sole; but around the toe and tread of the foot, for half its length, the holes are in double number, or at half the distance that they are in the heel part. This pattern being used in the same manner as before described, the punching machine pierces the sole with holes, exactly corresponding to it; which holes are filled with tacking nails in a separate machine, something similar to the nailing machine before described. But, as the nails are longer, it would be too laborious to cut them by the same motion; the nails are, therefore, cut by a machine made on purpose, and applied to the leather by the nailing machine for long nails. This is made exactly the same as the punching machine before described, but with additional apparatus to supply the nails and put them into the holes. The additional parts are as follow:-A circular plate, or wheel of brass, about nine inches diameter, and of a thickness nearly equal to the length of the nails; it is perforated with a great number of holes, to contain the same number of nails; the holes being made round its circumference, as close together as convenient, and arranged in four circles, one within the other. The interior space within the circles is formed with six arms like a wheel; and in the centre is a hole, which fits loosely upon an upright centre pin, standing in the centre of a small circular table, which is fixed sideways to the upper of the two arms, which, as before mentioned, project from the vertical column of the machine, and sustain the upper end of the perpendicular slider. Upon this circular table the wheel is supported in a horizontal position, at the height of eighteen or twenty inches above the table on which the leather is placed, and with liberty to turn upon its centre pin. The wheel is filled with nails when it is used, one being put into every hole of its circumference, with the points downwards; and the holes are sufficiently large to let the nails drop through the wheel, except when their points rest upon the circular table which supports the wheel. At one part of the circumference of this table an opening is cut through it, and a small tube descends from it, to conduct a nail down to the point of the piercer. The motion of the wheel upon its centre brings the nails successively over the opening or mouth of the tube; and therefore each nail in its turn drops by its weight through the hole in the wheel into the tube, which is made so small that the nail must descend with its point downwards, and fall into a small cell, so situated that the nail will stand exactly beneath the point of the piercer when the same is at its highest position. But, when the piercer is depressed by the action of the treadle, its point will act upon the head of the nail, and force it down through the cell into the leather placed upon the table of the machine; the hole in the leather having been previously pierced by the punching machine. The cell which receives the nail is very ingeniously contrived to hold it in a perpendicular direction beneath the end of the piercer. It is situated immediately above the leather, and is conical within, so that the nail drops down into it until it becomes fixed fast; but when the nail is to be forced down by the piercer, the cell opens in two halves, being formed by notches in two pieces of steel, which are only held together by being screwed together at one end, and are made so thin as to spring together, and form a cell for the reception of the nail, although they will readily separate when the piercer forces down the nail. It is during the ascent of the piercer that another nail is dropped down from the wheel through the tube, and received into the cell, whilst its two halves are still kept open by the piercer; or rather, as the piercer at this moment occupies the interior of the cell, the nail is received in the space or open joint at which the two halves of the cell separate, so that the nail lies close by the side of the piercer. But, when the piercer has risen up completely out of the cell, its two halves spring together, and the joint in which the nail is placed being formed with faces inclining inwards, they throw the nail into the cell itself, in which it drops down till it sticks fast; because, as before stated, the cell is smaller at the bottom; and in this situation the nail is certain to be held perpendicular, with its head under the point of the piercer. To turn the wheel round, so as to supply a fresh nail every time that one has been put into the leather, the edge of the wheel is cut into serrated or sloping teeth; the number of teeth being equal to the number of holes made in each of the four circles to contain the nails. A small detent or click takes into these teeth by a hook, so that it will turn the wheel when moved in one direction, but slide over the teeth when moved in the other direction. The click is jointed to a short lever, fixed upon the upper end of an upright axis, which passes down through the two projecting arms of the main column, so as to be very near the perpendicular slider; and a short lever, fixed to this axis, bears, by the action of a spring, against a wedge fixed to the slider. The action of this mechanism is to turn the wheel round one tooth at a time; thus, when the slider descends, its wedge forces the end of the short lever farther away from it; this movement is communicated by the upright axis and upper lever to the click, which slides over the sloping sides of the teeth of the wheel; but, on the re-ascent of the slider, the wedge allows the lever and click to return by the action of a spring, and the hook of the click, having caught a tooth of the wheel, will turn the wheel round the space of one tooth. In this manner, at every descent of the slider, the click engages a fresh tooth of the wheel; and at every ascent the wheel is turned round upon its centre pin; the weight of the wheel, resting upon the flat circular table, being sufficient to retain it as it is placed. The nailing machine acts with the same rapidity as the other machines, to put a nail into every one of the holes previously made; and for this purpose the leather is kept upon the same pattern by which those holes were pierced, not only for the purpose of placing the leather so that the nails shall be inserted into those holes, but that the thickness of the pattern may allow the nails to penetrate and project through the leather on the under side. When the nails are all put in, they are beat down with a hammer to drive all the heads to a level with the surface. The leather is then separated from the pattern and put into a frame called the welting stand. A small square table of cast-iron, fixed on the top of a pedestal, in which it is capable of turning round, forms the welting stand. For the convenience of the workman, and to enable him to work at the different sides, he remains seated before the table. An iron frame is connected with the table by hinges at one side, so that it can be lifted up or turned down, to lie flat upon the surface of the table; and in this situation it can be fastened down by means of a simple clamp. This frame is intended to hold fast the leather which is placed beneath the frame; the interior opening of the iron frame is nearly of the same size and shape as the sole of the shoe. The sole is placed flat upon the table, in the proper position, which is determined by two gauge pins fixed into the table, and entering the holes made in the sole; then the iron frame, being turned down upon the leather, will enclose the sole as it were with an iron hoop, or raised border all round the edge; and, the frame being clamped fast down, the sole is confined, as if lying in the bottom of a cell of iron, of the same figure as itself, and with the nail points projecting upwards from the sole. In this frame the welt is applied by laying the strip of leather upon the edge of the sole in contact with the inside of the iron frame, and bending it to follow the curves of the outline of the sole. As fast as any part of the length of the strip is settled to its position, it is attached to the sole by striking it down with a mallet upon the points of the nails. The thin or feathered edge of the strip of leather is put inside, so that the edge of the sole, for about the breadth of half an inch, is of a double thickness; but, within this, the extra thickness diminishes away to nothing, leaving only the thickness of the sole. The ends of the strip of leather which compose the welt, where they join and complete the circuit of the sole, are cut sloping so as to lap over each other, and make a joint, without any increase of thickness or apparent division. When the 'sole is taken out of this frame, the welt and sole are beat well down together to make a good joint; it is then carried to the cutting-press, in which the edge or outline of the sole and welt are cut smooth, and to the same size; because, as the frame of the welting machine must be rather less than the sole, in order that the frame may bear upon the edges of the sole all round, and thus hold it fast, the welt, which is moulded or bent round within the frame, will be a small quantity less all round than the sole. To guide the knife in cutting round the edge of the sole, it is confined between two iron patterns, which are made exactly to the size to which the edge is to be pared. They are attached to the sole by two gauge pins fixed into one of the plates, and, passing through the holes in the sole, project far enough on the opposite side for the other plate to be fastened on in its required position, by two holes which receive the ends of the pins. The cutting-press resembles a common lathe. A horizontal spindle is supported in a frame consisting of two standards, erected from a horizontal plate, to sustain the spindle, which passes through a collar in one of these standards, and projects some inches beyond it, having at the extremity a piece of wood flat on the surface, and of the same shape as the sole. Against this flat surface the two iron plates with the sole between are placed, and they are forcibly pressed together by the action of a screw, fitted into a third iron standard, erected from the same horizontal plate, and pressing by means of a lever upon the iron plates exactly opposite the end of the spindle. This pressure causes the spindle to retreat a small quantity in the direction of its length, and then a flat circular plate fixed upon the spindle (in the same situation as the pulley of a common lathe), is made to press against a similar flat plate, which is fastened to the frame, and therefore cannot turn round. By the friction between these two surfaces, the spindle becomes immoveable, and the press holds the sole firm, whilst the workman, who is seated before the machine, cuts all round the edge with a drawing-knife, which is made sharp in the middle, and is worked with both hands by having a handle at each end. When he has with this tooi pared down that part of the edge which is uppermost, he releases the screw of the press, and a spring then causes the spindle to advance so far as to relieve the flat circular plate, which is fixed upon the spindle, from its contact with the fixed plate. This leaves the spindle at liberty to be turned round, and the sole turns with it, so as to bring up a new part of the edge of the leather to a convenient situation to be pared or cut; and the screw is then turned to fasten the spindle as before described, and at the same time to press the sole between the two patterns. When the edge of the sole is thus cut, it is carried to a grindstone, and ground smooth; the stone is turned with a quick motion, by means of a band and large wheel; the leather is afterwards polished by applying it to the edge of a wooden wheel, on which a little bees'-wax is spread. The sole, thus re-inforced by the welt, is returned to the punching machine, and, being attached to another pattern, a range of holes is pierced all round the outer edge, through both, just within the former row of tacking nails; after which, by the nailing machine, these holes are filled with nails which project through the upper side of the welt, being longer than any of the former, and being also intended to penetrate through the upper-leather and inner soles, and thus fasten the shoe together. In this state the sole is ready to be put to the upper-leathers. The upper-leathers are prepared for applying to the sole in the same manner as the ordinary shoe, viz. by sewing the vamp, or piece which covers the upper part of the foot, to the two quarters which go round the heel, and also sewing these two quarters together behind the heel. The workmen do not hold the work upon their knees to sew it, but four men work at a square table, the corners of which are cut off, and a small piece of wood projects from each angle: the two pieces of leather which are to be sewed together are laid upon one of these pieces of wood in the proper position to be sewed, and are held fast by an endless strap, which is laid over them, and the workman binds it fast down, by pressing his foot in the strap, like a stirrup. This method of sewing, which is far superior to the common mode, might, from its simplicity, be used by all shoe-makers, and would render their business less unhealthy. The upper-leathers are put upon a last, and held tight thereupon whilst the sole is applied. This is done by the clamping machine, which is a small oval table, supported on a column, but capable of turning round upon the column, to enable the workman to work at any side. In the centre of the table a last is fixed with the sole upwards; it is supported at a height of about six inches from the table. The sole is made of cast-iron in a solid piece with the stem or part by which the last is supported; but the under part, upon which the upper-leathers are to be moulded, is made of wood, for the convenience of altering the figure when necessary. The last is fixed upon the table by means of two steady pins; and a strong pin, which projects from the lower part of the last, and passes through the table, is bound fast by a wedge, which confines the last firmly upon the table in the same manner as if it was made in a piece therewith. The table has a number of pieces of brass attached to it by hinges, and arranged all round the last in such a manner that they can be turned up against the lower part of the last, and then form clamps, which are exactly adapted to the figure of the lower part of the last, and will therefore clamp or bind the leather firm upon the last at the toe, heel, and every part thereof, except at the flat part of the sole. The brass clamps are of such dimensions that they will touch each other when turned up, and thus form a complete sell or box, in which the lower part of the last will be contained, and the leather confined upon it; but, the cell being made in several pieces or clamps, they can be removed one by one, as found necessary. The clamps are forced up to their situation by means of an independent screw for each, which is tapped in an oblique direction through the edge of the table, and the point forces up the end of a small rod, which is jointed to the clamp near the part where it acts upon the leather; by this means the force of the screw acts to turn the clamp up upon its hinge, and at the same time press it against the leather. When the pressure is released by displacing the end of the small rod from the point of the screw, the clamp will be suffered to fall back upon the table: and, this being done to all the clamps, the last stands insulated in the middle of the table, from which it can be detached by withdrawing the wedge which confines it. The inner sole of the shoe is first put upon the sole of the last, being slightly fastened thereto by two short pins, one of which is driven through the gauge hole in the toe of the sole, and enters a hole made in the last; and the other pin is fixed in the heel part of the last, and enters the hole in the sole. The upper-leathers are now put upon the last in the true position. In this state the last is taken to the clamping machine, and fastened into its place in the centre of the table; the clamps are then turned up one by one, beginning at the heel, and the upper-leathers being pulled up all round by a pair of pincers, so as to make them fit tight upon the last, the clamps are screwed tight. In this state the upper-leathers are made to take the form of the last, being firmly attached thereto, except at the sule part; at this part the leather stands up all round about three-quarters of an inch, which quantity is turned down flat upon the edge of the inner sole (previously fastened upon the sole of the last), and a small quantity of paste is put in to make it stick fast; four or five notches are cut out in the leather at the toe and at the heel, to make the part which is turned down lie flat upon the sole, without folds or overlapping, and then, to make a close contact, the leather is beaten down. Parings of leather are likewise pasted, and stuck flat upon the inner sole for levelling, to make up the sole to the same thickness in the centre as it acquires towards the edges all round by the turning-in of the upperleathers. In this state the nail which fastened the inner sole to the last is withdrawn, being now unnecessary, and the real sole is applied, an iron frame or saddle being employed to determine its proper position upon the last. This frame is made of thin iron, and its figure within is similar, and of the same size as the row of nails which project through the sole, and by which the sole is to be rivetted into its place; it is made in two halves, which are united by a joint or hinge at the heel part; and at the toe part are two holes, through which a pin can be put to hold the frame together. This pin, as well as the joint pin of the hinge at the heel, projects downwards sufficiently to enter into a hole made in each of the two clamps at the toe and heel, in such a position as to guide the frame, so that it will apply the sole exactly in the proper position. The sole, when prepared, by inserting all the long nails in the holes, so that their points project through the leather, is put into an iron box or mould, and, a plate being laid upon it, is put into the fly-press, and by a single blow the sele is rendered concave withinside, so as to adapt itself to the last. When it is taken out of the mould, the iron frame before mentioned is put together round the row of nails, the size of the inside of the frame being made exactly of the proper size to receive the projecting points of the nails, and retain them perpendicular to the leather, and prevent them from spreading out. The sole is then applied in its place by the two guide pins of the frame, and by striking upon the heads of the nails, their points penetrate through the turning-in of the upper leather, and also through the inner sole. When they are well entered the iron frame is taken away, by withdrawing its pins, and opening its two halves on their joint, and the nails are driven down into their places. This causes them to project through the inner sole into the shoe, and the points meeting the iron last are turned back, and thus clenched into their places. To render this more certain, the sole of the last is made with a slight groove all round, where the points of the nails will fall, and, the groove being of a semicircular figure, the points are more readily turned thereby, and are all turned the same way, so that they will not interfere. The shoe is now put together, and, the clamps being relieved and turned down, the shoe is taken off the last; for which purpose the hecl of the last is made in a separate piece, and jointed to the other by inclined fittings, and with a tongue or rebate, so that it can be held fast in its place by a single hook or spring catch; but, this being relieved, the shoe draws off the last with the greatest ease, the heel part remaining within the shoe, and is taken out afterwards. The shoe is now carried to the rivetting last, where it is put upon a last exactly similar to that of the clamping machine, but fastened down upon a bench, and the sole is smooth without the groove which caused the points of the nails to turn up. Upon this last the nails are beater down, to rivet all fast, and make the sole smooth withinside: the heel is then put on by laying it in its place, and driving down the long nails which have been put through it by the nailing machine, in the same manner as for the sole. The sole of the shoe is now rasped with a coarse file, to level all the nail-heals, and render the |