The author gives a history of patent leather, beginning in France, where it was alum tawed and had a thin coat of colored varnish. The first heavy, vegetable tanned, glazed and baked leather was made in 1819 by Seth Boyden of Newark New Jersey. To D. B Crockett goes the honor of first enameling or graining the surface, and fitting it for carriage tops. The crinkled surface of enameled leather was produced by boarding after baking. The grain surface must be buffed before coating and hand buffed leather is more durable than machine buffed since less is removed in the former. Machine stretched leather will shrink during use. Nearly all patent is made from split hides, enamelled being made of the outside. Grain winker is made from the outside, the grain split, but the composition is put on its flesh side.