The process of sole leather tanning has been discussed in considerable detail on account of its simplicity and importance. It is now time to point out in what respects the tannage of the lighter leathers differs from it in principle. Taking the case of ordinary dressing leathers, such as kips and shaved hides, the first point to remember is that these goods come into the liquors not merely almost entirely deprived of lime by bating, but in a very flat and fallen condition from the action of the bacterial ferments of the bate. As a general rule in this country the colouring is done in paddles, but where a very smooth grain is required, the use of suspenders is to be recommended, and in America is largely adopted. Indeed in the States the entire tannage of much of the cheaper leather is done in suspension, and the sides are only removed from the laths to which they have been nailed, when they are required for splitting. It is obvious, from what has been said of sole leather, that as the hides are brought into liquors in a very fallen and extended condition, the grain will be likely to be wrinkled; and indeed this is sure to be the case unless, by suspension, the hide is more or less kept in tension till its fibres are fixed by tanning. The free motion in the paddle favours the formation of a “pebbled” grain, since the hide is bent now this way, now that, and minute wrinkles and creases are formed in all directions. For many purposes, and especially if a grain is afterwards to be raised by “boarding” the curried leather, this graining in the paddle is not disadvantageous, so long as it is not excessive. In some other cases it causes much trouble and labour to the currier before it is removed, and if the English tanner and currier are ever to compete with the American in smooth grain finishes, it will be necessary for them to obviate this source of wasted labour. The graining is the less considerable, and the easier to remove, the weaker and more mellow are the liquors employed in colouring and the more gradually their strength is increased.