Because of the shortage of linen thread it was decided to use nails for attaching half soles, particularly in the repair shops in France. More than 2,500 nailing machines were bought and shipped to the American Expeditionary Forces. The American Expeditionary Forces adopted the English system of company cobblers and regimental repair shops. Upward of 11,000 cobblers' kits were shipped to France. In July, 1918, the American Expeditionary Forces requested machinery for a base shoe-repair plant in France. This machinery was shipped considerably before hostilities ceased.
The service maintained a corps of civilian instructors, who traveled from camp to camp and improved the efficiency of the Army cobbling. The accumulation of worn shoes at the embarkation camps was sent to various contractors for repairs. By November, 1918, the shoe-repair facilities of the Army had reached full operation, 500,000 pairs of shoes being repaired that month, a figure representing all the repairing required by 1,500,000 men. All shoe-repairing activities were under the direction of Philip H. Fraher, who was assisted by Joseph Caunt, of Pasadena, Calif., a retired shoe manufacturer with a wide experience both in this country and in England.
In its clothing-repair activities the salvage service dry-cleaned uniforms and woolen equipment, repaired and renovated hats, and reclaimed outer clothing and underclothing.
For the first time in dry-cleaning history, a method was worked out to destroy all living organisms and a considerable amount of bacteria, a process which is likely to have a lasting effect in the dry-cleaning industry. The specifications of this process were the result of cooperative laboratory research by the Bureau of Standards, the Public Health Service, and the salvage division. In addition to destroying germs and bacteria the process also thoroughly cleansed the garments. Experts from the salvage division were on hand to see to it that the various contractors lived up to the standard specifications. The authorized Government-owned dry-cleaning plants, which were to be the last word in what such establishments should be, were not completed, due to the signing of the armistice. Dr. Harry E. Mechling, a graduate physician and president of the Swiss Cleaners & Dyers, of Louisville, Ky., was in charge of the Army's dry-cleaning activities.
In the repair of clothing the service received much assistance from the Red Cross. Local Red Cross units in the vicinity of camps worked in conjunction with the officers of the salvage service in the reclamation of such garments as woolen shirts, underclothing, sweaters, helmets, socks, and gloves.
The base salvage plants at Atlanta and Fort Sam Houston reached a high state of efficiency in the repair of clothing. Shipment after shipment was made from such congested centers as Newport News and Hoboken to these plants, and within a comparatively short time the property was ready for reshipment and reissue. Capt. Harvey A. Rosenthal, a graduate of the first officers' training school, and in civil life in the clothing business, was in charge of clothing repairs.
All of the camps had shops for renovating and repairing hats. The average cost for repairing a hat was 35 cents, whereas the lowest contract price was 65 cents, and the quality of work at the Government shops was far better than that obtained from private contractors.
The following table gives an idea of the approximate saving to the Government in hat-repair operations:
| Place. | Quantity. | Cost of repair of each. | Estimated total cost. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government shop | 181,764 | $0.35 | $63,617.00 |
| Contract | 539,495 | .65 | 350,671.00 |
| 721,259 | 414,288.00 | ||
| Estimated value of hats made serviceable | $1,000,746 | ||
| Estimated net saving | 586,468 | ||
| Cost of 721,259 new hats | 1,334,329 | ||
Mr. E. Leroy Cummings, of the John B. Stetson Co., of Philadelphia, was in charge of hat-repair activities.