His father, who was a shoemaker, was sent a piece of red silk by a rich lady to make a pair of dancing slippers for her daughter. Using some red leather along with the silk, he carefully created a pair of shoes only for the rich customer to tell him they were awful. She said he had done nothing but spoil her silk. To which his father replied, "In that case, I may as well spoil my leather too," and he cut up the shoes in front of her. Halstead Rural District  Halstead was a rural district in Essex, England from 1894 to 1974. It was created by the Local Government Act 1894 as a successor to the Halstead rural sanitary district. In 1934 it was greatly enlarged by adding the areas of the disbanded Belchamp Rural District and Bumpstead Rural District. It was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 and now forms part of the district of Braintree. Jack Barry (baseball)  John Joseph "Jack" Barry (April 26, 1887 – April 23, 1961) was an American shortstop, second baseman, and manager in Major League Baseball, and later a college baseball coach. From through , Barry played for the Philadelphia Athletics (1908–15) and Boston Red Sox (1915–19). Born in Meriden, Connecticut, Barry spent his nearly entire tenure in the big leagues on winning teams, first the Philadelphia Athletics and later the Boston Red Sox. Athletics manager Connie Mack signed Barry off the campus of the College of the Holy Cross to play shortstop on what would become his famous $100,000 infield. The unit, one of the most famous groups of teammates in baseball history, consisted of first baseman Stuffy McInnis, second baseman Eddie Collins, and third baseman Frank Baker. The group was critical to the Athletics winning the American League pennant in 1910, 1911, 1913 and 1914, and World Championships in 1910, 1911, and 1913. In 1915, the year after the Boston Braves swept the Athletics in the World Series, Red Sox owner Joe Lannin paid $8,000 for Barry's services, as Mack was dismantling the team. Upon joining the Red Sox, he hit just .262 but played reliable defense at shortstop, proving to be the last piece of the puzzle in what was to be another pennant-winning team. He played in the World Series in 1915 and 1916 for the Red Sox. Acknowledged as the team's on-field leader, he became a player-manager in 1917, leading the team to a 90-win season and a second-place finish to the Chicago White Sox.