IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FIRE WOOD
Year: 1852

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION. left, by the said. Alsop. Smith at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition.
on the 14th October 1852..
I ALSOP SMITH, of Westminster, in the County of Middlesex; do
5 hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FIRE WOOD" to be as follows:--
This Invention consists of cutting blocks or pieces of wood with
numerous saw cuts so as nearly to sever it into 'separate slabs or
pieces, thus producing numerous passages for air, by which combustion
0 is facilitated; and for the convenience of use the saw cuts at intervals

page_text: penetrate more deeply than at others, at which places the block or
length of wood may be broken into longer or shorter picces, according
to the extent of fire desired to be immediately ignited.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alsop Smith in the Great Seal Patent Office, on
the 14th April 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
ALSOP SMITH, of Westminster, in the County of Middlesex, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of October, in the year
of our Lord 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 Alsop Smith, Her special licence that I, the said
Alsop Smith, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Alsop Smith, my executors, administrators, and 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 law-
fully 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 THE MANUFACTURE OF FIRE WOOD," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Alsop Smith, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alsop Smith, 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 thereof (that is to say):

page_text: This Invention consists of cutting slabs, blocks, or pieces of wood
with numerous saw cuts so as nearly to sever it into separate slabs or-
pieces, thus producing numerous passages for air, by which combustion-
is facilitated; and for convenience of use the saw cuts at intervals
penetrate more deeply than at others, at which places the block or
length of wood may be broken into longer or shorter pieces, according
to the extent of fire desired to be immediately ignited. And in order
that my said Invention may be most fully understood, and readily
carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the means pursued by me.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1, shows an under side, and Figure 2, a plan or upper side
view of a length of wood cut suitably for carrying out my Invention.
These lengths of wood it will be seen are cut very nearly through, and
the nearly separated pieces are only held together by the uncut part
a, which runs from end to end of the piece. The saw cuts are made
about half inch apart, and the cuts are to the width of about one eighth
of an inch, but these dimensions may be varied; and it will be seen
that at the parts b, b, the saws have cut further into the wood, and that
therefore the length of wood will be more readily broken into pieces at
these places, thus offering facility to a person who is about to light a
fire in breaking off such a length or piece of wood as the extent of fire
desired to be lighted may require. The most convenient mode of
cutting wood for this purpose is to employ a series of circular saws on
an axis, such saws being fixed at a distance apart equal to the distance
it is wished to make the saw cuts from each other; and in order to
cause a deeper cut at intervals where the length of wood is to be more
readily separable saws of somewhat larger diameter are used. The
length of wood is then forced up to the several saws till they have
made their cuts to the extent desired, and then the opposite side or
edge of the wood is to be pressed up to the series of saws, when the
other side will be cut to the required extent, leaving a portion a, uncut;
and where the larger saws come, that is, at b, b, the cut will be more
deep.

page_text: Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner of performing the same, I would have it understood that what
I claim is, the manufacture of fire wood herein described.
In witness-whereof; I, the said Alsop Smith, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
Witness,
H. W. CARPMAEL.
ALSOP SMITH. (L.B.)