Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
JOSEPH WILLIAM SCHLESINGER, of Brixton, in the County of Surrey,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria,
by Her Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster,
the Twentieth day of July, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-
two, in the sixteenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs
and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Joseph William
Schlesinger, my exors, admors, and assigns, Her especial licence, full
power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Joseph William
Schlesinger, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Joseph William Schlesinger, my exors, admors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in the Islands

page_text: of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and also in all Her
said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-ARMS, IN CARTRIDGES, AND IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF POWDER," partly a communication; in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Joseph William
Schlesinger, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to be enrolled
in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being there-
unto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I,
the said Joseph William Schlesinger, do hereby declare that the
nature of my said Invention, and the manner in which the same is
to be performed, are fully described and ascertained in and by the
present Specification thereof, that is to say:
My improvements in fire-arms refer to that class of fire-arms
known as "needle guns," that is to say, in which the charge is fired
by a needle penetrating a cap placed upon the end of the cartridge.
The nature of my improvements in this class of fire-arms consists,
first, in projecting and withdrawing the needle by means of levers
and springs in combination with one or more curved or inclined
planes; and, second, in preventing, as far as may be, windage in
such arms, by means of a screwed tube fitting over a continuation
of the barrel, and tightly held between the breech and an inclining
stop. And the manner in which these parts of my Invention may
be performed is as follows:-Figures 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6,
of the Drawings hereunto annexed, represent different views
and details of a fire-arm constructed according to my said
Invention. Figure 1, is an elevation with part of the stock
in section; and Figure 2, a section of so much of a fire-arm as
is necessary to show my improvements. A, A, is the stock;
and B, the barrel. C, C, is a tube-shaped prolongation, (shewn
detached in Figure 1, a plan of the upper side, and Figure. 2*,

page_text: a plan of the under side,) which is screwed into the barrel B,
at the breech, and also secured to the stock A and under plate
by screws a, a, a, a. D, D¹, are two tubes screwed into each
other, to enable the tube D' to be firmly fixed, as herein-after
explained, between a stop O, and the breech, to prevent windage.
These tubes are free to slide to and fro in the tube C, when acted
upon by the handle E. F, F¹, are two short metal rods, which are
jointed together at b. The rod F is hinged at c to the long arm
G of a bell cranked lever, which is centred and turns upon a pin
d, passed through lugs e, e, formed in a piece with the tube D.
The short arm H of the bell crank carries at its outer end two
small friction rollers f, f. The under side of the short arm H is
formed with a catch g, which takes into a corresponding catch in
the lever I, centred upon the pin in the lugs e, e. K is a spring
which bears upon the end of the lever I, and keeps the catches in
contact until liberated by the pull of the trigger, as herein-after
described. L, is the needle which is fixed in the end of the short
rod F¹. The point of the needle projects through a hole in the
centre of a button i, in the tube D'. The button i may have se-
cured upon the face of it a copper washer, with a corresponding hole
in the centre for the passage of the needle. M is a forked spring
secured by the screw k to the trigger plate N.
Figure 4, is a plan of this forked spring, the two ends of which
bear upon the friction rollers f, f, as shewn. The end of the lever
I is formed with a hook, as represented in the detached views in
Figures 5 and 6, into which, when the arm is ready for firing, the
end of the trigger o takes, so that when the trigger is pulled the
long arm of the lever I is depressed; the catch on the tail of the
bell crank lever becomes liberated; the forked spring then comes
into play, forces up the rollers f, f, and with them the short leg of
the bell crank lever, causing the long arm, and with it the rods and
needle, to be thrust forward; the needle enters the cartridge,
passing through the percussion cap (as shewn in Figure 2;) and
thus the charge is fired. When the arm has been discharged the
tubes D, D¹, are drawn back by the handle E; the rollers f, f,

page_text: coming in contact with the inclined planes n, n, on the under side
of the tube C, are depressed, when the catch y takes into the catch
on the lever I. The short arm of the bell crank lever, and the
rollers ff, travelling down the inclined or curved plane on the
under side of the tube C, necessarily cause the long arm to be drawn
back, and with it the rods F, F¹, and needle L, as represented in
Figure 3. The withdrawal of the tubes D, D¹, at the same time
that it sets the needle L, leaves space at R, to allow of a cartridge
being placed in the breech in the position shewn in Figure 2. The
tubes D, D¹, are then pushed forward until the end of D¹ comes
over the end of the barrel p, which forms a collar and abuts against
the breech. The hook on the lever I is caught by the end of the
lever O. The handle E is next turned down in the horizontal
position indicated in the detail view in Figure 5, for the purpose of
tightening the tube D' against the breech, and in order to leave the
sight clear, and prevent the needle carriers being forced back by the
recoil consequent on the discharge of the arm. Windage is
prevented or materially lessened by the tube D¹ fitting over the
collar p, and being firmly held in that position until after the
discharge of the arm. The shank of the handle abuts against the
stop o, which is made to incline slightly forwards from the top.
The end of the tube D¹ is screwed into the tube D, so that when
the handle is turned down the end of the tube D¹ shall fit tight
against the breech. The end p of the barrel B is turned thin, so
as to allow of expansion when the discharge takes place. After the
gun has been fired, the handle is raised and drawn back in the slot
on the top of the tube C, taking with it the needle carriers and
needle as before explained.
My improvements in cartridges consist in forming them of an
explosive compound and ball or shot, in combination with a conical
shaped percussion cap suitable for needle guns.
Figure 7, is a section of one of my improved ball cartridges.
A, A, is a frame or case of paper with an orifice at b, for the
reception of the conical cap (colored red) filled with percussive
powder. Gunpowder is placed in the frame, then the ball or shots,

page_text: and the loose ends of the frame shewn in dotted lines, are brought
over the ball or shots, and secured by glue or gum. The percussive
powder being concentrated at the apex of the cone, instead of being
distributed over a large surface as in ordinary percussion caps,
renders a smaller quantity necessary, while ignition is at the same
time more certain.
-
My improvements in the manufacture of powder consist in com-
pounding it of the following ingredients: Three parts of chlorate
of potash, three parts of sulphuret of antimony, and one part of
flower of brimstone.
And having now described the nature of the said Inventions, and
the manner in which the same are to be performed, I declare that
I claim,
"
First, the improvements in needle guns" represented in
Figures 1, 1, 2, 2ª, 3, 4, 5, and 6, of the Drawings hereunto
annexed and herein-before described, in so far as regards the
particular parts, arrangements, and contrivances for projecting and
withdrawing the needle.
Second, I claim the several parts and arrangements for preventing
windage as herein-before described.
Third, the improvements in cartridges herein-before described.
And fourth, the improvements in the manufacture of powder,
as also herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph William Schlesinger,
have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of
January, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and fifty-three.

page_text: also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor
: of the Statute made for that purpose.