The custom of throwing an old shoe after a person departing from home, as a
mode of wishing him good luck and prosperity in his undertaking, is not
confined to Scotland and the northern counties, nor to weddings. It
prevails more or less, I believe, throughout the kingdom. I have seen it in
Cheshire, and frequently in towns upon the sea-coast. I once received one
upon my shoulder, at Swansea, which was intended for a young sailor leaving
his home to embark upon a trading voyage.