TANNING LEATHER

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 18920, 23 January 1936, Page 12

TANNING LEATHER

MODERN METHODS CHEAP FOOTWEAR. After seven months' study of modern tanning methods in the United States, Great Britain, and Australia, Mr P. E. White, of the New Zealand Scientific and Industrial Research Department, and director of the Pulp and Leather Beseareh Association, returned to Wellington by the Makura. He stated that while satisfied that. New Zealand tanners were closely in touch with the most modern developments, ho had secured data .which would enable big improvements >tO" be introduced. -. .The manufacture of leather had ieen going on for centuries, -he said. /The tanner's skill was one which had 'been handed down from generation ,to generation in a jealously-guarded family secret. But the old rule of -thumb .methods of tanning did not r always produce a uniform result. Modern -research had made known the ■'varidiis chemical processes involved, iiiU retlueed waste to a minimum, and •had-eliminated the likelihood of contaminating materials being introduced. There was still a grout deal of variety in method, as he had observed in," his visits to numerous tanneries, Besearch had probably emphasised rather than helped destroy individuality of method.

''Every manufacturer must have good raw materials if the best, quality article is to be made at a minimum cost," said Mr White. "Hides and skins, the tanners' raw materials, being a natural product, vary considerably. In addition, they are made to vary'still further by defects for which the' farmer, butcher, cufer, and shipper are to blame.

FAULTS IN N.Z. HIDES "The farmer is responsible foi burbwire scratches, horn marks, and brands, the butcher for knife-cuts and scores, the c.urer for decompositidn due lo improper and insufficient caring, and the shipper for irregularities in grading or eJnss'Uieation. AI present the demand for first-grade hides far exceeds the supply. The worst faults in New Zealand hides are barbwire scratches, (lay cuts, and bran din g,

"Leather is the finished product oi the tannery, but is the raw material of the shoe factory. The maker of low-priced shoes demands cheap leather. Consequently the tanner who caters for this trade mast tan the leather as cheaply and as quickly as possible. Not only is tilt' leather imperfectly fanned, but the lowest grade of hides must he used. The foundations are weal;, the construction is weak, and the materials are poor. Such is the quality of the large number of low-priced slioes being sold at prices ranging from. 5s a pair retail. "Efforts are being made by manufacturers to eliminate this type of footwear, but so long as the public

demands it, then the manufacturer will have to make it. Actually it is not a cheap article, although the appearance makes it look better than it really is. For summer wear, if the weather be line, this type of shoe is much better from the health aspect than rubber. On the other hand they may give a false I'eeling of security, which will lead lo disastrous results in wet weather.''