YE ART & SKILL OF MAKEING SAILES OR VANES TO GO THE HORIZONTALL WAY, SERVEING FOR WINDMILLS, HORSMILLS, & WATERMILLS, & FOR SEVERALL SORTS OF ENGINES FOR DRAINEING OF LANDS, PITTS, MINES, AND MANY OTHER USES, ATT CHEAPER RATES THEN EUER, WHICH SORT OF VANES OR SAILES ARE SUCH AS WERE NEUER HERETOFORE USED IN ANY OF OUR DOMINIONS
Year: 1684

page_text: greeting.
WHEREAS our trusty & welbeloved NATHAN HECKFORD, of Halsted, in
our County of Essex, Draper, hath, by his humble petition, informed us that
whereas y vsuall way of windmills going with verticall sailes is chargeable
and very incommodious, and that with much study & paines he hath atteyned to
"YE ART & SKILL OF MAKEING SAILES OR VANES TO GO THE HORIZONTALL WAY,
SERVEING FOR WINDMILLS, HORSMILLS, & WATERMILLS, & FOR SEVERALL SORTS OF
ENGINES FOR DRAINEING OF LANDS, PITTS, MINES, AND MANY OTHER USES, ATT
CHEAPER RATES THEN EUER, WHICH SORT OF VANES OR SAILES ARE SUCH AS WERE
NEUER HERETOFORE USED IN ANY OF OUR DOMINIONS;" and whereas the said
Nathan Heckford have humbly besought vs to grant him the sole making and
using of such mills & engines, with horizontall vanes or sailes, for the terme
of foureteene yeares, wee are gratiously pleased to condescend to that his
request.
KNOW YEE THEREFORE, that wee, being willing that the said Nathan
Hecford may reap some reasonable recompence & compensacon for his great
paines and expences in & about ye pmisses, and to incourage the inventors of
such arts as may be of publick use & benefitt, of our especiall grace, certaine
knowledge, & meere motion, have given & granted, & by these psents, for us,
our heires and successo, do give & grant unto the said Nathan Hickford, his
executors, admirators, & assignes, speciall licence, full power, sole priviledge &
authority, that he, the said Nathan Heckford, his executors, administor, and
assignes, & euery of them, by themselves or their deputy & deputys, servants,
or agents, or such others as the said Nathan Heckford, his executo",

page_text: admirato, or assignes, shall att any tyme agree with, & no other, from tyme
to tyme, & att all tymes during the terme of yeares herein expressed, shall &
lawfully may use, exercise, & enjoy yo said Invention within any part or
parts, place or places whatsoever, of, in, or belonging to our kingdome of
England, dominion of Wales, and all, every, or any of our kingdomes and
dominions whatsoever, in such mañer & according to such reasonable &
lawfull rates & limitačons as to him, y said Nathan Heckford, bis executo",
adrato", & assignes, or any of them, shall in their discretions seeme meet;
and that he, the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adñirato, & assignes,
shall & may have and enjoy the sole benefitt, profitt, commodity, & advantage
from tyme to tyme comeing, growing, & ariseing by reason of the said
Invention, for and during the full terme of yeares herein mentioned; to
have, hold, exercise, & enjoy yo said licence, powers, priviledges & advan-
tages herein-before granted or mentioned to be granted unto the said
Nathan Heckford, his executo", adñirato", and assignes, for and during &
unto yo full end & terme of fourteene yeares from y day of the date of
these presents next and immediateing ensueing, & fully to be complete &
ended, according to the statute in this case made & provided; and to yo end
that the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adirato, & assignes, & cuery
of them, may enjoy the full benefitt & sole vse & exercise of yo said Inven-
tion, according to our gratious intentions herein-before declared. Wee do, by
these psents, for us, our heires & successo, require and strictly comand all
and every person & persons, bodys politick & corporate, and all other our
subjects whatsoever, of what estate, quallity, or degree, name, or condicon
soever they be, within all and euery our kingdomes & dominions, that neither
they nor any of them, at any tyme durcing the contynuance of the said terme
of fourteene yeares hereby granted, either directly or indirectly do vse or putt
in practice the said Invention, or any part of ye same so atteyned unto by yo
said Nathan Heckford as aforesaid, nor shall in anywise counterfeite or
resemble y same, nor shall make or cause to be made any addition thereto or
substracion from ye same, whereby to pretend themselves ye inventers
or devisers thereof, without the licence, consent, or agreem' of the said
Nathan Heckford, bis executo, adñirato, and assignes, in writing, under his,
theire, or some of their hands & seales, first had & obteyned in yt behalfe,
upon such paines & penaltyes as can or may justly inflicted on such offender
for their contempt of this our royall comand, & further to be answerable to
the said Nathan Heckford, his executo, admirato", and assignes, according to
law, for his & their damages thereby occasioned; and wee do, of our further
special grace, certaine knowledge, & meere motion, for us, our heires &
successors, grant unto the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adiñirato", &

page_text: assignes, by these psents, that he, they, & euery of them, & his, their, & euery
of theire deputyes, agents, and servants, haveing first obteyned a lawfull
warrant from ye Lord Chiefe Justice of our Court of King's Bench at Westñi',
from y tyme being, & with the assistance of a constable or any other lawfull
officer, att convenient tymes in ye day during yo terme hereby granted, and in
lawful mañer, may enter into & make search in any place or places whatsoeu
within any of our kingdomes or doñinions (where there shalbe just cause of
suspicon), for ye discovery and finding out of all & euery person & persons
as shall imitate or cause to be imitated, or shall vsc or put in practice the said
Invenčon, or shall make or counterfeit any instruments or materialls to the
same belonging, that soe such offendors may be proceeded against & punished
according to law. And further, wee do, by these psents, for us, our heires &
successo", will, authorise, & comand all and singular justices of yo peace,
majors, sheriff's, bayliff's. constables, headboroughs, and all other officers and
ministers whatsoeů, of us, our heires & successors, for the tyme being, aswell
within our kingdome of England & dominion of Wales as within all & euery
other our kingdomes & dominions, that they & euery of them respectively be
from tyme to tyme during ye terme hereby granted in theire respective offices,
favouring, aiding, helping, and assisting unto the said Nathan Heckford, his
executo", admirato", and assignes, & to his & theire deputy & deputyes, ser-
wants & agents, in & by all things in and about yo accomplishm* of our royall
will and pleasure herein-before declared, and in y° exercise & execucon of yo
powers & priviledges hereby granted as aforesaid; and moreover wee do, by
these Psents, for us, our heires & successo", will & comand that our said
respective officers & ministers before menconed, or any of them, do not or shall
at any tyme hereafter during the said terme hereby granted in anywise molest,
trouble, or hinder the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adññirato", assignes,
or any his or their deputys, servants, or agents, in or about the due and lawfull
vse or exercise of the aforesaid Invention, or anything thereunto relateing.
Provided alwayes, and these our Letters Patents are and shalbe upon this
condition, that if att any tyme dureing yo said terme hereby granted it shalbe
made appeare to vs, our heires or successo", or any six or more of o' or theire
Privy Councell, that this our psent grant is contrary to law, or piudiciall or
inconvenient to or subjects in generall, or that the said Invention is not a new
invention as to yo publick vse and exercise thereof within this our kingdome,
& not invented & found out by ye said Nathan Heckford as aforesaid; then
upon significacon & declaraĉon thereof, to be made by us, our heires or
successors, under our or their signet or priuy seale, or by ye lords & others of
our or their Privy Councell, or any six or more of them, under their hands,

page_text: these our Letters Patents shall forthwith cease, deternic, & be utterly void, to
all intents & purposes, anything before herein conteyned to the contrary in any
wise notwithstanding.. 'Provided alsoe that these our Letters Patents, or any-
thing therein conteyned, shall not extend or to be construed to extend to give
priviledge unto the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adiñirato", or assignes,
or any of them, to use or imitate any invenčon or worke whatsoever which
hath been heretofore found out or invented by any other of our subjects what-
soever, and publickly used or exercised within our said realme & dominions,
or any of them, unto whom wee have already granted our like Letters Patents
of Priviledge for the sole use, exercise, & benefitt thereof. It being our will
& pleasure that yo said Nathan Heckford, his executor, admñrato", and
assignes, and all & singular other person and persons to whom wee have
already granted our like Letters Patents or priviledges as aforesaid, shall
distinctly use. & practice their scuall invenčons by them invented and found
out, according to yo true intent and meaneing of the same respective Letters
Patents and of these psents. And lastly, wee do by these Psents, for us, our
heires & successo", grant unto yo said Nathan Heckford, his executo",
adñirato, & assignes, that these our Letters Pattents, or the inrollment
thereof, shalbe in & by all things good, firme, valid, sufficient, & effectuall
in yo law, according to y° true intent and meaning thereof, & shalbe taken,
construed, & adjudged in the most favourable & beneficiall sense for the best
advantage of the said Nathan Heckford, his executo", adñirato", & assignes,
aswell in all courts of record as elsewhere, & by all & singular y officers &
ministers whatsoever, of us, or heires & successo, in all & singular or realmes
& dominions whatsoeil, & amongst all & every ye subjects of us, our heires &
successors, whatsoeů & wheresoed, notwithstanding y° not full & certaine
describing the nature & quality of yo said Invencon, or of yo materialls thereto
conduceing and belonging, or any other defects or incertaintys in these
presents conteyned, or any act, statute, ordinance, provision, pelamacon, or
restriction or other matter, cause, or thing whatsoeuer to the contrary in any
wise notwithstanding.
In witnesse, &c. Witnesse our self at Westm', the Twelfth of
November in wo thirty sixth years of our reigne