OAMARU INDUSTRIES.

Oamaru Mail, Volume III, Issue 738, 21 August 1878, Page 2

OAMARU INDUSTRIES.

I Oam(ii'u can boast of another addition Ito her industries. Messrs. Rough ton and j Pock'.iiigfon have transferred (heir w? oh - sale boot and shoe manufacturing busiiv ss from Dunedin to Oamaru. and now occupy a portion of Mr Sumpt'-r's buildings in Tliames street, it seems to lv their intention to ooranete with the factories of Dunedin and Christchurch. which have I lately carried on a considerable trade with this district, for they have provided themselves with the most approved machine''}' with which to prosecute their business. In addition to other modern appliances, we observed the fallowing : A cutting-press a wonderful laborsaving machine, which is used for cutting everything composing the bottoms of the boors. Two men can work at the machine ;nid produce the material necessary for six do;-;eii pairs of boots in an ordinary working day. Then there is a blocking machine, which is used for moulding uppers into proper form, and by the aid of which one man can turn out 20 dozen pstirs of uppers in a day. A machine for pricking boles in the soles to receive (he nails is a handy appliance, and an ordinary workman can, by its a'd, turnout a dozen pairs of soles in five minutes. An unpretentious looking piece of mechanism splits and tapers oft' sole leather for what are called " Split-lifis," and a rolling machine, capable of putting on a pressure of 2 tons, solidifies the leather by operating in th -■ - A • f the ordinary cobbler's -■•.;■■.!;,•■' .;•.<»■ ihe boot and shoe busi-

n . (i:-,.-. been revolutionised by these labor-saving appliances. The cuttingpress obviates the necessity of paring with a knife with exceeding dexterity, at the risk, as many people kno.Wj of boot uppers : the blocking machine does more effectually in a few minutes what it once took hours to accomplish ; the pricker acts with regularity and celerity that could nev'v have been even dreamt of by fhe old school of shoemakers; tiie " Splitlift " machine saves time in paring ; and the roller, without bruising the sole leather, makes it tough and more impervious to water, whilst, alt hough the oldfashioned and musical thud of the cobbler's hammer has been sacrificed, hundreds of soles can now be prepared instead of one. The majority of the »vork done by this establishment is made on the riveted and pegged principles (although sewn work is also done when specially ordered) and for this purpose the lasts are made of iron. Of course, it is under-: stood that the tippers of the bouts are worked by sewing machines in a style that could not be attained by the hand without great loss of time. jhi faot, everything is now brought to bear upon boot and shoe manufacturing to produce superior work at prices a great reduction on those that ruled but a few years ago, and Messrs. Houghton and Pocklington have brought all these modern appliances into use. At one time workmen were compelled to sit ; now they stand, and preserve their health. As this firm can sell their goods at Christchurch prioss, with the addition of the freight, no doubt our retailers will view the advent of their factory as a boon. It will be no longer necessary to send large orders to Christchurch and Dunedin for goods, a great portion of which may remain on hand until it becomes old stock, for retailers can now order exactly what they want only when they want it.

The enterprise of Messrs. Roughton and Pocklingtcra will undoubtedly not only tend to their own benefit, but that of the district. It is a startling fact that the boot and shoe trade of the Waitaki County is sufficiently large to main 50 families, and all this business has, up to the present time, with a few important exceptions, been sent to Dunedin and Christchurch.