A NEW ARTICLE OF DRESS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in
the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "A NEW
ARTICLE OF DRESS."-A communication from abroad by Antoine Perrin,
Henry Augustin Joseph Hovelacque, Edward Joseph Hovelacque, and
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
7th May 1864.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "A NEW ARTICLE OF DRESS," a communication to me from abroad by
Antoine Perrin, Henry Augustin Joseph Hovelacque, Edward Joseph
Hovelacque, and Emile Auguste Hovelacque, of Paris, in the Empire of
France, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a new article of dress, which may be used in
combination or not with a bag, knapsack or wallet, and is intended to be
worn as a protection against the weather, and may also be used to sleep
or sit upon when laid on the ground, or employed as a hammock when
properly suspended at the four corners.
The new article of dress consists of a rectangular or other conveniently
shaped piece of waterproof or other fabric or material provided in the centre

page_text: with an opening through which the head of the wearer is to be passed, such
opening being closed when not worn by a loose flap and a strap and buckle;
but when required to be adjusted on the person the, loose flap is turned back
so as to expose the opening, and is secured in its open position by the same
strap and another buckle or hook as preferred. To one end of the piece
of cloth or other fabric is attached in any convenient manner or mode,
so as to form a part thereof, a bag, knapsack, or wallet, provided with a
strap and buckle to pass round the waist, and confine the dress to the body
of the wearer. When being worn the one part of the piece of cloth or other
fabric covers the chest, whilst the other part with the bag attached, covers
the back and loins, the whole with the bag, knapsack, or wallet being supported
from the shoulders. When not intended to be worn, the cloth is folded up
by turning over the two sides on to the middle, and then folding the middle
portion and the two sides, and confining the whole in a compact state by
means of straps attached thereto for the purpose. The absence of sleeves
gives a perfect freedom to the arms, and admits of the dress being readily
put on and taken off.
When used in the army or navy, this dress may be made to serve as a
species of cuirass or breast plate. By unfolding the cloth and laying it dis-
tended upon the ground a dry sleeping or sitting surface is obtained, whilst the
bag attached to one end serves as a pillow. It is obvious that the bag may
be entirely dispensed with, if desired, and in some cases it is proposed to
secure a collar or loose flaps to the interior of the opening for the head,
which when worn may either be laid down as an ordinary coat collar, or
turned up so as to cover and protect the neck and ears of the wearer.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 2nd November 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I, the

page_text: .said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns,, or
such others as I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, adminis-
trators, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others from time
to time, and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of
Man, an Invention for "A NEW ARTICLE OF DRESS," a communication to me
from abroad by Antoine Perrin, Henry Augustin Joseph Hovelacque,
Edward Joseph Hovelacque, and Emile Auguste Hovelacque, of Paris, in the
Empire of France, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
John Henry Johnson, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my hand and seal, or under the hand and seal of one of them,
should particularly describe and. ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same
to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the aid Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:
The said Invention relates to a new article of dress, which may be used in
combination or not with a bag, knapsack, or wallet, and is intended to be worn
as a protection against the weather, and may also be used to sleep or sit upon
when laid on the ground, or employed as a hammock when properly sus-
pended at the four corners.
The new article of dress consists of a rectangular or other conveniently
shaped piece of waterproof or other fabric or material, provided in the centre
with an opening through which the head of the wearer is to be passed, such
opening being closed when not worn by a loose flap and a, strap and buckle,
but when required to be adjusted on the person, the loose flap is turned back
so as to expose the opening, and is secured in its open position-by the same
strap and another buckle or hook as preferred. To one end of the piece of
cloth or other fabric is attached in any convenient manner, or made so as to
form a part thereof, a bag, knapsack, or wallet provided with a strap and
buckle to pass round the waist, and confine the dress to the body of the
wearer. When being worn the one, part of the piece of cloth or other
fabric covers the chest, whilst the other part with the bag attached covers
the back and loins, the whole with the bag, knapsack, or wallet being supported

page_text: from the shoulders. When not intended to be worn, the cloth is folded up by
turning over the two sides on to the middle and then folding the middle portion
and the two sides; and confining the whole in a compact state by means of
straps attached thereto for the purpose. The absence of sleeves gives
perfect freedom to the arms and admits of the dress being readily put on and
taken off.
a
When used in the army or navy, this dress may be made to serve as a
species of cuirass or breast plate. By unfolding the cloth and laying it
distended upon the ground, a dry sleeping or sitting surface is obtained, whilst
the bag attached to one end serves as a pillow. It is obvious that the bag
may be entirely dispensed with, if desired, and in some cases it is proposed to
secure a collar or loose flaps to the interior of the opening for the head,
which when worn may either be laid down as an ordinary coat collar,
or turned up so as to cover and protect the neck and ears of the wearer:
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same; and for that purpose I
shall refer to the several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the corre-
sponding Figures.
"
Fig. 1 of the Drawings represents a view of the improved "sac
or bag
A which does not in itself differ from the ordinary bag used by officers
for the sole purpose of carrying a change of clothes or letters, papers, or books;
but it is to be observed that unless the strap B be very wide, the weight
of the bag and its contents tends to injure or cut the shoulder of the wearer,
especially on a long march. This bag is composed of two distinct parts, the
one A which does not fold up, and which forms the bag or "sac"
proper, the
other C, which on the contrary opens out as shewn in Fig. 2; so as to form a
species of carpet or floor cover, upon which the user may sit or recline at full
length employing the bag A as a pillow. When packing it for a journey the
sides C', C¹¹, are to be folded over on to the middle part C, which part is then
to be folded or rolled up and secured by straps provided for the purpose.
When required to be worn as a protection against the weather, the part C is
to be unfolded, and in the centre thereof will be found an opening D, which is
ordinarily concealed by the moveable flap d fixed by the loop or strap f to the
button e which is secured to the back of the cloth or fabric C. The loop fis
to be unfastened, and the moveable flap d turned back behind the fabric C
where it is secured by the button and loop f, thus exposing an opening D,
through which the head of the wearer is to be introduced so that the " sacor
bag A may rest upon the loins, whilst the front and hinder portions of the

page_text: part C cover the chest, back, and shoulders without impeding the free use of
the arms as shown in Fig. 3. The two extremities of the part C may obviously
be permitted to remain loose, or they may be tightened round the waist of the
wearer, if desired, by means of the strap B, or of the strap h, which in this
case are connected or fastened together in the front as shown in the Drawing
after having been passed through the ring j. It will thus be seen that the
bag A will be supported in a manner least fatiguing to the wearer, since its
weight is distributed over the entire surface of the shoulders. If desired the
bag A and the covering C may be made so as to be readily separated in place
of being in one piece with each other as shewn in the Drawing.
In Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 I have represented the covering C detached from
the bag or "sac" A. In this case the hole for the passage of the head is of
an oval shape, and is provided with a collar or flap which can be turned up as
shown in Fig. 7, or worn down as represented in Fig. 6. In the former case
it is fixed by cords which are tied under the neck, and in the latter case it is
attached to a button placed for this purpose on the chest. The garment C
thus disposed forms an independant cuirass, which will be found of great
service in the army, to sportsmen, and others, who are much exposed to the
inclemency of the weather. The mode of securing the "sac" A and the cloth
or garment C may consist of buckles, button straps, and other known means
of attachment. By suspending the part C by the four corners to a tree or other
convenient support it may be used as a hammock.
.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that what I consider to be novel
and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First, the peculiar combination of garment and bag in the manner and for
the purposes herein-before described.
Second, the peculiar construction of garment, combined or not with a "sac"
or bag, as and for the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-eighth day of October, One thou-
sand eight hundred and sixty-four.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. L.S.)