If the hose had shrunk as much as they appear to have shrunk, then they must have been knitted for 25 or 30-inch calves, to have shrunk down to fit this chap so well. Or, they were his grandfather's hose, and his grandfather was a wee little man. Like Zacchaeus. 
My guess is they were knitted the size you see in the picture. My other guess is that the knitter used a marled yarn, in which two different colors (here light and dark) are plied together, and the black rakers were knitted in as the sock was made, or else embroidered on (called "duplicate stitch") after the sock was finished.
--dbh
When given a choice, most people will choose.
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