IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ENVELOPES
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Jones Aston, of the Middle Temple, London,
and of Preston, in the County of Lancaster, Barrister at Law, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ENVELOPES."
Sealed the 20th June 1854, and dated the 11th March 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Jones Aston at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 11th
March 1854.
I, JAMES JONES ASTON, of the Middle Temple, London, and of Preston, in
the County of Lancaster, Barrister at Law, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ENVELOPES
be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the obtaining of greater security in envelopes, and
to the modes of detecting any tampering therewith. The envelope is so con-
structed, that when adhesively fastened it will be difficult, if not impracticable,
to open it by steam, wet, or moisture, without great risk, and probablé tearing
of part of the envelope. This is effected by making part of the upper or
ordinary sealed flap of the envelope considerably larger than in an ordinary
envelope, so that a part of it can be turned backwards, through, and, as it were,
threading the other flap on to it as it is turned backwards into the interior of
the envelope. It is proposed that the three other flaps shall be made to
overlap each other in part, and so cut as to permit the portion passing back-

page_text: wards as above, to pass completely through each flap. Such three flaps will
be adhesively fastened together, and the cutting may be made at one cut after
the three are so fastened, or in three distinct cuts, before the envelope is folded.
The part passing backwards, as above described, is cut somewhat to a point
at its extremity, to facilitate its entrance into the cutting. At the cutting it.
will be of or about the size of the cutting; the part passing backwards could
be adhesively fastened in the inner side, and the other part of the upper flap
would be adhesively fastened, much as at present, and of course a seal or other
ornament might be put thereon. In order to facilitate the detection of tampering
with envelopes, it is proposed in sonic cases to strengthen the part turned
backwards, sometimes by extra glazing or gilding, or by making it stronger,
as by doubling it, and sometimes by coloring it, so that if moisture is applied,
some of the coloring matter may get on to any enclosure, or a piece of
blotting paper may be placed between the seal flap.
The above arrangements may be applied to either flap of the envelope; the
turning of any flap into the interior of the envelope, whether passing through
any of the other flaps or parts of then, or passed backwards, or straight down
into the envelope, forming the principle or main feature of this Invention.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed.
by the said James Jones Aston in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
30th August 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
JONES ASTON, of the Middle Temple, London, and of Preston, in the County of
Lancaster, Barrister at Law, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the seventeenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said James Jones Aston, Her especial license that I, the said James Jones
Aston, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
James Jones Aston, my executors, administrators, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN

page_text: THE CONSTRUCTION OF ENVELOPES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said James Jones Aston, by an instrument in writing under my hand and
seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Inven-
tion, 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 said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Jones Aston, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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 :-
Before I proceed to describe the particulars of my Invention, it may be
convenient to state that envelopes are manufactured of many shapes and sizes,
and that a usual mode of fastening an adhesive envelope is by the upper
or sealed flap, as shewn at Figure 1, at the part colored blue; this, when
adhesively fastened, is easily opened by the application of steam or moisture.
Now, the objects of my Invention are two; the first is to construct envelopes
so as to insure greater security in the sealing or fastening thereof, and from
any fraudulent opening, or clandestine or unlawful perusal of any letters or
inclosures therein contained, and also to secure greater security from the
opening and resealing of any envelope without great risk of and probable tearing
of some portion of the envelope, or without otherwise leaving some mark or
marks, either on some part of the envelope or its enclosure to shew that it has
been opened or tampered with; and the second is to facilitate the opening of
such envelope by persons entitled to open the same. My Invention is intended
principally to apply to envelopes fastened by gum or other adhesive matter.
I shall therefore first describe such an envelope, though it will, however, be
hereafter manifest that the same form may be used for an envelope intended
to be sealed with wax or other adhesive matter to attain the objects above
mentioned. I construct and improve an envelope, so that when adhesively
fastened by the aid of gum or other adhesive substance, the adhering parts
may be in such a position as to be rendered more difficult of access to persons
desirous of opening the envelope surreptitiously by means of steam or moisture,
and to make it more difficult so to open the envelope without greater risk of the
tearing of some part of the envelope, or without greater risk of leaving some
mark or marks either on some part of the envelope or on its enclosure to show
that a clandestine opening has been effected or attempted, the envelope being
also so constructed that when sealed there is a slit or opening by means of
which it may be more easily opened. I have in Figures 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10,

page_text: shewn how such an envelope may be constructed. In one arrangement I take
a sheet of paper or other material whereof the envelope is to be made, and cut
it out in a form such as in Figure 2, so that the two side flaps A and B,
and also the bottom flap C, shall be of sufficient size to lap over each other for
a certain distance, according to the size of the envelope and according to
the space required for the insertion of the part of the upper flap (which I call
the tongue), when cut and prepared, as herein-after described. I then cut a
hole or slit in each of the three flaps, as shewn at 1, 2, and 3*; the hole or
slit 3*, which is intended to be folded uppermost, being the smallest or.
narrowest, the one intended to be next uppermost 2ª being somewhat larger,
and the next 1* larger still.. I cut the three holes or slits, so that when folded.
and gummed, or otherwise fastened together, as herein-after mentioned, the
three holes or slits shall coincide or come together, or form, as it were, one hole
or slit. These holes or slits may either. be cut out at the same time when the
original contour or shape of the envelope is cut out, or they may be cut out
by separate punches, either separately or at once, if the punches are fixed in
a press for that purpose; or one hole or slit may be cut through the three sides
after they are folded and gummed or fastened together. The exact size of these
holes or slits is not very material; the upper one should be about the size
of the part to pass through it as hereafter mentioned, and I propose the
gradations of size above mentioned in order to allow for any little inaccuracy
in the folding, and in order that the tongue herein-after mentioned may pass
through them the more readily; the ends of the holes or slits are, I think,
better rounded, as shewn in Figure 2. The three flaps A, B, & C, are then to
be folded over and gummed, or otherwise adhesively, fastened together.
The upper or seal flap D of the envelope is furnished with a tongue marked
E, and colored blue, of such a size as to allow of its being folded backwards or
under part of the flap D, so that when closed the tongue may be introduced
through the hole or slit into the interior of the envelope, and caused to fold
backwards or under the flap D, as shewn by dotted lines in Figure 4, and of
course also under a portion of the 3 other folds.
The exact size or shape of the tongue is not very material, provided it be
made so as to be capable of being introduced into the interior of the envelope,
as just described. I prefer that it should reach when inserted a small,distance
beyond the other folds, so as to fasten at its end on to the under part of the flap
to which it is attached, as shewn by dotted lines in Figure 4. The tongue
should be of the proper width to fit the hole or slit through which it is to be
introduced into the interior of the envelope. I propose that some of the shapes
of the tongue should taper somewhat towards the end, and be somewhat rounded

page_text: at the corners, as in Figure 2, so as to facilitate its entrance into the hole or
slit. Adhesive matter is placed on the inner side of the tongue, that is, on the
part colored blue, in Figure 2, and if desired also on the ordinary seal part of
the envelope, colored pink in Figure 2, and of course a figure or device may be
stamped thereon for ornament. I propose to have the tongue folded in the
manufacture of the envelope, ready for and to facilitate its insertion, as herein-
after mentioned; Figure 3 shews the envelope before it is sealed. To close
or seal the envelope, the tongue E, after the adhesive matter has been moistened,
should be inserted through the hole or slit, and be passed or pressed, or as it
were threaded through such hole or slit upwards into the interior of the envelope,
under, part of the upper flap, and also under parts of the 3 flaps which are
gummed or fastened together, as above described. This is conveniently done
by taking the envelope into the left hand, seal upwards, and then pressing the
sides slightly together, and then insert the end of the tongue and press it home
by a slight pressure at the bend or fold of the tongue, opening the left hand at
the same time, and so press the tongue quite into the envelope, when it will
appear as in Figure 4; and it will be observed, that in so inserting or threading
the tongue, the adhesive matter will scarcely, if at all, interfere with or be re-
moved by passing through the hole or slit, as the back part or ungummed portion
of the tongue will be against the enclosure contained in the envelope, and the
tongue will in this way pass completely through the hole or slit in each of
the other flaps, and as it were, thread them on to itself as it is passed into the
interior of the envelope; when the tongue is inserted, of course the parts of the
envelope about it should be pressed together to make them adhere the more
readily. In addition to this, in order to facilitate the entrance of the tongue
into the envelope where the paper is not of more than ordinary thickness, or
is not likely to be of sufficient thickness to pass readily into the hole when the
adhesive matter is moistened, I strengthen it by cutting it, so that it may
made either wholly or partially double up to the hole, and the part doubled over
on which it doubles, and thus form a
gum or otherwise fasten on to the part
tongue of sufficient strength to be passed easily into the hole or cutting, and
if the paper is very thin I even make the tongue 3 times doubled. The tongue
will thus be strengthened by the part or parts gummed or fastened over, and
by the material so gumming or fastening it on them; and this strengthening
of the tongue may be either by making it to double over, either altogether or in
part, and might be done by the annexation of a separate piece of paper or other
material. I do not propose to strengthen the tongue, excepting in that part
which is passed into the envelope; the part forming the bend or curve, when
the tongue is in the envelope, as in Figure 4, 0, 0,, will not be strengthened or
I
be

page_text: doubled, and will be all the more liable to tear, for that reason, if any attempt
is made to pull out the tongue. Figure 5 shews an envelope cut out to be
made with a double tongue; Fig. 6 shews a similar envelope with the tongue
doubled; Figure 7 shews an envelope cut out for a treble tongue; and Figure 8
shews a tongue only partially to be doubled. I further propose sometimes to
facilitate the insertion of the tongue by extra glazing or gilding, or by a figure
or figures, or device thereon. I also further propose to have the part of the
tongue, which when the envelope is open is on the outside, but which when
closed is on the inner side and against any inclosure which may be in the
envelope, colored, either in whole or in part, with some color, so that if much
moisture is applied, the coloring matter or some part thereof may be destroyed
or disturbed, and part thereof may stain either some other part of the tongue
or the inclosure. I also propose to have a figure or device on the same part,
further to aid in the detection of any tampering with the envelope. I attain
my second object (facility of opening) by the same form of envelope, which, when
closed, as in Figure 4, can easily be opened by the insertion of the thumb nail
or a paper knife, or any other suitable instrument, into the hole or slit at the
part marked o, o, and tearing away part of the three flaps of the envelope, and
by so opening, the tongue is kept perfect, and can easily be inspected to see if
any tampering has been attempted therewith. The process above described is
susceptible of variation, by making any of the other 3 flaps the upper flap.
Figures 8, 9, and 10 shew the application of the same principle to the end flaps,
and of course the order of folding the under flaps may be varied without at all
interfering with the principle, as also the envelope may be cut and made of
various materials and in various shapes. The tongue of the envelope may be so
made as to pass downwards, as at Figure 11, into the envelope; but unless it
is done by a strengthened, or doubled, or trebled tongue, I think it would not
be useful or secure, and therefore if not so done, I do not wish to claim it as
part of my Invention. I also clain the form of envelope herein described,
when applied to a better envelope, as in Figure 12; of course in this case the
3 sides would be put together when the letter and envelope are folded. I also
claim the above forms of envelopes when prepared according to the above
directions, but without any adhesive matter, so that when the tongue is sent
home it may be easily sealed with wax, as I believe such form so applied to be
new, and of great security and utility.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict
myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion to

page_text: describe or refer to, as many variations may be made therefrom without
deviating from the principles or main features of my said Invention. But
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, the con-
struction of an envelope with such a tongue or similar part attached to one of
its flaps, and with such a hole or slit through or in the other three flaps, and 'so
formed that the tongue may be introduced or passed through such hole or
slit into the interior of the envelope and turned under parts of such three
flaps, and under a part of such tongue flap, and secured in such a manner
and form and with such variations, as I have herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Jones Aston; have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Thirtieth day of August, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-four.
JAMES J. ASTON. (L.S.)