CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PIANOFORTE
Year: 1811

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
SOUTHWELL, of Gresse Street, Rathbone Place, in the County of Middlesex,
Pianoforte Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third did, by
His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom, bearing
date at Westminster, the Fourth day of March, in the fifty-first year of Our
reign, give and grant unto me, the said William Southwell, my exors, adñiors,
and assigns, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that
I, the said William Southwell, my exors, admors, and assigns, should and
lawfully might, during the term of years therein mentioned, make, use,
exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF A
PIANOFORTE;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso obliging
me, the said William Southwell, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, to cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be be performed, to be enrolled in His
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within two calendar months after the
date of the said recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, relation
being thereunto had, may more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Southwell, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, are described and ascertained
by the Drawings hereunto annexed, and the following description, that is to
say:

page_text: Fig. 1 is the Drawing of the instrument; and, as portability is one of its
improvements, I shall first state its size, which may be varied according
to circumstances. The height from the ground to the top, four feet six
inches; the width, five feet five inches, or thereabouts; the depth only one
foot seven inches; the depth at top being no more than about four inches
gives advantages that no other instrument is possessed of. From its oblique
shape the advantages to the performer must be evident, the front of the instru-
ment being so much away from the face, and the music desk at Letter A at all
times in a proper position to receive the book; and with a simple contrivance
hereafter described, with the pedal at the left foot B, can turn down or up at
pleasure the book-keepers by means of a plate of brass or other material,
marked C, Fig. Four; and at each end D, 8 teeth are cut to act on the two
wheels F & G, which are cut in teeth to fit the others, and by means of about
half an inch a streight motion, which is produced by pedal B, Fig. 1, by the
end of a lever or levers, as commonly used in pedal work, pressing against
letter H, consequently the book-keepers I, k, which are connected with the
wheels, will turn out of the way, and by means of a spring L will return back
when you take your foot from the pedal. This work to be fastened to the
inside, under rail of music desk A.
Fig. 2 is the side view of the movement on one key. Letters m, n, are key
and grasshopper as usual; but I shall describe all parts, new and old, the
better to be understood.
Letter O, the rail for levers, which in the action of the key raises a slender
conducting rod p, which moves the hammer Q to the string, and when it
returns back rests on a rail R.
S is another view of the rod P, Fig. 3, it having on its end T a fork of
wood, covered with leather or other soft material, which fork, on that end
of the rod, is made to fit the tail of the hammer at u for the purpose of keep-
ing it steady; the bottom end is screwed in a button as usual, as described in
Drawing Fig. 3. -
The damper, which is entirely new in its application, I shall describe with
figures, beginning first with fig. 5, which damper is made of wood, and
inoves on a centre similar to a key, as described in Drawing Fig. 2, a slender
wire screwed in the end, and on the wire a bit of wood, with soft cloth or
other fit material fastened to it, which comes against the strings, fig. 6. The
motion given to the damper when playing is by a wire, fig. 7, with a bit of
wood at the upper end of the said wire being driven into the key gives as much
motion as is necessary to the damper when playing, and without adding. any
perceivabe difference to the weight of the key. Figures 8, 9, is a piece or

page_text: pieces of wood at the front of the instrument behind the name board, for the
purpose of strength; and also figure 10 is a board, half an inch thick or there-
abouts, which is fastened in from the belly to the base end, and covers the space
from the long block down to the name board, leaving an opening only for
hammer and damper to pass through, as described, and about one quarter
of an inch from the string. By those advantages the instrument has much
more strength than other instruments, and with thinner wood, consequently
stands better in tune.
The new improvements and advantages are in Figure 1, and Letter A the
case, and at Figure 4, Letters C, D, E, F, G, H, I, k, L; at Figure 2,
letter u, and figures 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10; and at Figure 3, letter T. The last
or case string takes its direction from about W to y, and continues in same
manner as usual in other instruments, and its oblique shape make it extremely
convenient for the tuner, and putting on strings, &c. &c.
Fig. 2, , is a slip of wood, commonly called a ruler, lined with cloth or
other soft material, as usual, for the purpose of keeping the conducting rod
from flying back in playing, &c. &c. The ruler is fastened on in any way
most convenient, so as to be easily and simply taken off. It should likewise
take the same direction as the hammer rail Z, which is 3 or 4 inches, or there-
about, lower in the treble than the base.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Southwell, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and eleven