IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS, AND IN CARRIAGES TO BE EMPLOYED ON RAILWAYS
Year: 1847

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
Fox, late of Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross, but now of New Street, Spring
Gardens, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-third day of March, in the
tenth year of Her reign, did give and grant unto me, the said Charles Fox,
my exors, admors, and assigns, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilego
and authority, that I, the said Charles Fox, my exors, adññors, and assigns,
and such others as I, the said Charles Fox, my exors, adññors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times thereafter during the term of years therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within that part of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her Dominion of
Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also in the Islands of Jersey,
Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and in all Her Colonies and Plantations
abroad, the Invention communicated to me by a certain Foreigner residing
abroad, of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF RAILWAYS, AND IN
CARRIAGES TO BE EMPLOYED ON RAILWAYS;" in which said Letters Patent there
is contained a proviso, requiring that I, the said Charles Fox, shall particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, and cause the same to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's High

page_text: Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as, reference being thereunto
had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Charles Fox, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described and
ascertained in and by this present Specification or instrument in writing,
reference being had to the several Drawings hereunto annexed, and in which
said several Drawings similar parts are marked, and referred to by similar
letters, figures, or characters (that is to say) :-
:-
The said Invention consists, firstly, in improvements in the permanent way
of railways; and, secondly, in improvements in carriages to be used on
railways.
The said improvements in the permanent way of railways consist in con-
structing such permanent way with double rails instead of single rails at each
side of the way, so that the flanges of the carriage wheels (constructed as
herein-after described) which run on the way may pass between the double
rails on each side of the carriage, and in constructing the switches for such
double-railed ways in manner herein-after described, as well as in the mode
of securing railway chairs in their proper places upon their sleepers in manner
also herein-after described.
The said improvements in such permanent way as aforesaid aro shewn in
several of the Figures or Drawings annexed thereto.
Figure I. is an end view of two of my rails and of the chair in which they
are placed at one side of a line of railway, some of the parts being shewn in
section. In this Figure 1 and 2 represent the two rails, placed parallel to
each other and a short distance apart, so as to permit the flanges of my wheels
to pass freely between them, and having their upper or bearing surfaces
placed level or nearly so. These rails are shaped in a peculiar manner, and
rest upon inclined planes X, X, and X, X, within the chair, not only for the
purpose of obtaining a better bearing surface for the wheels by the action of
the rollers of the rolling mill when the rail is manufactured, but also for the
purpose of presenting a greater resistance to the side motion of the engines and
carriages. The chair 3, 3, differs from the ordinary chairs, being not only
constructed for holding two rails instead of one, but also formed differently in
several respects, as will be seen in the Figure. The inner jaws 4 and 4 are
intended to support the inner sides of the rails, and keep them apart the
required distance. The chair is provided with rather a large bottom plate
5, 5, for the purpose of making it stand more firmly upon the sleeper. A

page_text: circular rim 6, 6, is cast upon the underside of the bottom plate, as seen
in Figure I., and in dotted lines in Figure II., and is intended to be
inserted in an annular chase or groove cut to the requisite depth in
the sleeper to receive it, the object of this being to maintain the chair in
its proper position upon the sleeper and prevent it from shifting. The
chair is cast with a perpendicular hole through it of about one inch and
three quarters diameter, the lower end of which hole coincides with the
centre of the rim 6, 6, and a corresponding perpendicular hole (the centre
of which coincides with the centre of the chase cut for the rim, as before
mentioned) is bored through the sleeper, so as to permit a trenail to be
driven up through it into the hole cast in the chair. The trenail (shewn
upon an enlarged scale in Figure II.*, is made with a conical head, so as to
prevent its being drawn up through the hole in the sleeper, and the other end
of the trenail is slit up a short distance with a saw for the purpose of
receiving an iron wedge 7, which is to be driven into it after it has been
passed up through the chair, as shewn by dotted lines in Figure 1. The hole
cast in the chair, as before mentioned, is made conical, the larger end of it
being upwards, and by driving the wedge 7 into the slit of the trenail after
it has been passed up through the chair, that end of the trenail will be
opened out, so as to fill up the conical end of the hole, and hold the chair
firmly down to the sleeper upon which it is placed. The wedge 7 is shewn
upon an enlarged scale in Figure 13, and the back of it is turned down for
the purpose of enabling the workman more easily to draw it out of the
trenail when it is desired to remove the chair from the sleeper. The wooden
keys 8 and 8 are to be driven (from either side) between the rails and the
flanges 10 and 10, so as to hold the rails firmly against the jaws 4 and 4.
The jaws 10 and 4 are placed at such a distance apart that the rails may be
inserted from above and removed in a similar manner.
Either ordinary carriage wheels or my wheel herein-after described (see
Figure XII.) may be used upon a railway made with double rails, as just
described, and the ordinary wheels may be used upon such a railway with
crossings and switches such as herein-after described, in case wheels be
made to run upon the outside rails, as shewn in Figure XVIII., or in case.
such wheels, if they run upon the inner rail, be turned so that the flanges of
such wheels instead of being placed on the inside, as usual, shall be placed on
the outside, as shewn in Figure XVII.
In Figure III., as shewn, the mode in which this part of the Invention
may be adopted for the purposes of a railway previously constructed with
single rails, the old line of rails on each side being made use of as part of the

page_text: double rails, so that the interruption of the traffic may be as small as possible.
The old chairs are to be rejected, and in lieu thereof chairs laid down, such
as shewn in the. Figure, for the purpose of holding the old and new rails
a proper distance apart and otherwise in proper position.
Figure IV. is a plan or bird's-eye view of the chair shewn in Figure III.
This chair is constructed in a similar manner to that shewn in Figure I.,
except that one side of it is constructed so as to receive one of the old rails, as
shewn at I., Figure III., such rail being placed in nearly a vertical position.'
The second rail to be added at each side of a railway may either be placed
inside or outside the old rails, as may be deemed best; but in case of the
adoption of this part of the Invention upon a narrow gauge railway, it will
most probably be deemed best to place the rails on the outside. In
Figure III. I have shewn the jaw 9 as made considerably lower than the
jaw 10, so that if the rail 1 be the inner rail, the top of the flange 9 may be
kept below the flanges of the old railway wheels which may run along the
line. The wooden key 8* is necessarily made in a shape somewhat different
from that of the other key 8, so as to fit the space between the old rail and
the jaw 9 of the chair, but the key is to be used in the same way as the
other. The rails in Figure III. are placed the same distance apart as those
in Figure I., so as to allow the flanges of wheels of engines and carriages
constructed as herein-after described to pass along between them, and the
bearing surfaces of the rails are both on the same plane. The addition of
the extra rail 2 (Figure III.) it will be seen will not affect the use of the old
rail 1 for the purposes of the existing engines and carriages, whilst additional
rails placed along each side of the way in manner before described will fit the
railway to receive wheels constructed as herein-after described, and so permit
the gradual change of the stock of engines and carriages from the old to the
new construction as the old engines and carriages or their wheels may be
worn out. But if the additional rails added to an ordinary railway be placed
outside the old rails, the switches and crossings upon such a railway must be
constructed so as to be suitable both for the old engines and carriages and also
the new engines and carriages herein-after described. But if the wheels of
the ordinary engines and carriages in such a case be turned so that the
flanges thereof shall, instead of being placed inside, be placed outside, as
shewn in Figure XVII., the railway switches and crossings herein described
will be sufficiently adapted both for the old and new wheels. By thus con-
structing each side of a line of railway with double or two rails, I increase the
bearing surface of the rails, and the flanges of the wheels being placed and
running between the double rails, the accidental lifting of one of a pair of

page_text: wheels off the railway will not be so liable to throw a carriage off the way as
at present. And if a carriage be made with six wheels, the accidentally lifting
of a pair of the wheels off the railway will not be so likely to throw the
carriage off the line as it would upon a railway of the ordinary construction.
In preparing a sleeper for the reception of the chairs, I cut the annular
chases or grooves for each of the rims 6, 6, before mentioned, and bore a
countersunk hole for each of the trenails before mentioned by suitable tools
at the same time, and I prefer to have two sets of such tools placed so as to
work at the proper distance apart (according to the gauge of the railway),
and cut and bore the requisite chase and hole at each end of a sleeper at the
same time. By preparing sleepers in this way great accuracy of guage may
be ensured, and the rims of the chairs when inserted in their chases before.
mentioned will have the effect of keeping the rails in the guage at which
they are placed. The chases in the sleepers for receiving the rims of the
chairs are made round, for the purpose of enabling the workman to turn or
accommodate the chairs to and place them in the precise positions required
by the direction of the rails they are intended to receive and support. The
mode of securing railway chairs upon sleepers herein-before described is not
only applicable to the securing of chairs constructed for the purposes of this
Invention, but may also be applied to the securing of chairs made for ordinary
railways.
Figure V. is a plan of a portion of railway, constructed according to this part
of the Invention, with a diagonal crossing. The chairs shewn in this Figuro
(except where the crossing rails form a junction with the others) are of the
description shewn in Figure I., but they might of course be made like those
shewn in Figure III. and before described, if this part of the Invention be
applied to a railway of the ordinary construction, as herein-before mentioned.
A chair for supporting the double rails at each place where the crossing line
of rails forms a junction with the main or direct line of rails is made (accord-
ing to the Invention) differently from those before described, being constructed
so as to hold and support the end of each of the several rails forming the
junction. Four of those chairs are shewn in Figure V., only one of which is
marked with the figures of reference, but they are all constructed in the samo
manner.
The chair a, a, a, a, is made of cast iron, and with a hole in the centre, and
a rim underneath, so as to be secured to the sleeper (which will be better if
made larger than the ordinary sleepers) in the same way as the chairs before
described. Upon the top of the chair is cast several projections to receive
and support the ends and sides of the various rails. The projection 12

page_text: receives one end of the rail 1 of the main line, which lies between the rails of
the crossing line, and also one end of the rail 1 of the crossing line which lies
between the rails of the main line, and this projection is made of the proper
height to form a portion or continuation of those two rails which thus abut
against it. The end of each of these two rails is supported on one side by a
jaw 4 (shewn in dotted lines) cast upon the plate or bottom of the chair,
similar to one of the jaws 4 and 4 shewn in Figure I. or in Figure III. A
bracket or projection 13 is also cast upon the bottom or plate of the chair, and
the loose wedges 14 and 15 placed within it are made to fit the rails against
which they are placed. A wooden key or wedge 16 is to be driven or forced
between the wedges, so as to press the rails 1 and 1 just mentioned firmly
against their respective jaws 4 and 4. The opposite end of the chair is con-
structed in the same manner as that just described, and the outside rails 2 and
2 are supported and held in the same manner on that end of the chair. The
outer rail 2* of the main line and the inner rail 1* of the crossing line abut
against each other at 17. Two brackets 18 and 18 are cast upon the plate or
bottom of the chair, and the wooden keys 8 and 8* are to be driven between
the brackets and the rails, so that those rails may be pressed against their
respective jaws 4 and 4, so as to be held in their proper positions. A hole or
space is left at 19 between the brackets 18 and 18, so as to allow a crowbar
or lever to be introduced for loosening or drawing out the keys 8 and 8*.
The opposite side of the chair is constructed in the same manner as that just
described, and the inside rail 1 of the main line and the outside rail 2 of the
crossing line are supported and held on that side of the chair in the same
manner as before described.
Figure VI. is a side elevation of the outside rail of one side of the main
line of railway shewn in Figure V., with some of the parts of the crossing line
shewn in section by dotted lines.
Figure VII. is a plan or bird's-eye view of a portion of the said improved
railway, shewing the construction of a switch or turn-out, which I use for the
purpose of enabling a carriage or train to pass from one line of the said
improved railway to another line of such railway. This switch is furnished
with a tougue rail 20, at each side of the railway moving upon a pin 22,
which is fixed in a projection 21 of the chair placed at the point where two
of the lines of rails form a junction.
Figure VIII. is a side elevation upon an enlarged scale of a part of the
tongue rail 20, the point of it being shewn as removed. In Figure VIII.
are also shewn the projection 21 from the chair, and the way in which
the pin 22 is inserted and held down by a forelock. The construction of

page_text: the chair placed at each junction, as just mentioned, is shewn in plan at
Figure IX. and in elevation at Figure X. This chair is constructed so
that it will at each end of it receive and hold a rail in manner already
described, and the middle part of it is constructed (as seen in elevation in
Figure X.) so as to receive and hold the bevilled or tapered ends of the
rails, which are placed in contact with each other, as seen in Figure VII.
The tapered ends of these rails are made to fit the rounded end of the tongue
rail, which is mounted on the projection 21, as also seen in Figure VII.
This chair is furnished with a rim beneath, such as before described, and as
shewn in Figures VIII. and X. and in dotted lines in Figures VII., IX.,
and XI. This rim is not, however, placed in the centre of the chair, but
nearer to one end, as shewn in Figures VII., IX., and X. The chair is also
held down upon the sleeper by a trenail, shewn in dotted lines in Figure XI.,
in the same way as other chairs, and as before described. On the sleeper x, x,
Figure VII., are shewn two double chairs, one at each side of the railway.
Each of these chairs is constructed in the same way as if two chairs, such as
shewn in Figures I. and II., with one of their ends or points cut off or
shortened were joined together; but the underside of this double chair is
only furnished with one rim, as shewn in dotted lines in Figure VII., and is
held down upon the sleeper by one trenail only. When two chairs for sup
porting different lines near a switch or junction of rails require to be placed
near to each other, and cannot be placed upon an ordinary sized sleeper, it
will frequently be found more advantageous to place them upon a larger
sleeper, as shewn at b, b, Figure VII., than to place them upon separate
sleepers. On the sleeper y, y, Figure VII., are seen two chairs, which are
constructed in a similar manner to the chair shewn in Figures I. and II., but
with the distance between the jaws 4 and 4 enlarged, and a space made
between those two jaws so as to allow the tongue rail 20 to traverse or be
moved from side to side. The chairs shewn in the sleeper z, z, are con-
structed in a similar manner, but the space made between the two jaws 4 and
4 of each of those chairs for allowing the tongue rail to be moved from side
to side is somewhat smaller. The chairs shewn upon the sleepers v, v, x, x,
y, y, and z, z, must be constructed according to the angle which the two lines.
of rails on each side form in making a junction at a switch, and therefore
when the angle thus formed varies from the angle shewn in the Figure, the,
construction of the several chairs before mentioned must be varied accordingly..
The moveable tongue rails 20 and 20, (shewn in Figure VII.) are to be con-
nected together and moved in the usual manner.
In Figure XI. is shewn a side view or elevation of one side of the switch.

page_text: just described, and shewing several of the parts before mentioned in dotted
lines. Although I have described a switch with a moveable tongue rail on
each side of the railway, a switch for the purposes of my railway may be
constructed with one moveable tongue rail only, placed at one side of the
railway, the tongue on the other side being fixed and constructed so as to
allow the flanges of the wheels to pass on either side. The crossing and
switch just described are constructed so as to be applicable to railways upon
which the improved engine and carriage wheels herein-after described are
used, and they will also be applicable to all cases in which additional rails are
added to ordinary railways, and placed within the ordinary rails, so that the
engines and carriages with wheels constructed in the ordinary manner may
still continue to run upon the outside rails 2 and 2 as heretofore, and may use
crossings and switches constructed as herein-before described. But if the
additional rails added to an ordinary railway should be placed outside the
ordinary rails, and it is intended that engines and carriages with wheels of the
ordinary construction shall continue to run on the old or inside rails, the
construction of the crossing and switch before described must be varied so as
to be suitable both for wheels of the old construction, and such as those
which are herein-after described. The necessity for this variation in the con-
struction of the crossing and switch may however be obviated by turning the
wheels, of the ordinary description, so that their flanges shall, instead of being
placed on the inside, be placed on the outside as before mentioned and as
shewn in Figure XVII. In laying down rails according to this part of the
Invention care should be taken to arrange the joints of the rails so that two
joints should not be placed opposite to each other or upon the same chair, and
by adopting this precaution the jerking of a wheel at an open joint will be
prevented.
In those parts of a railway made according to this part of the Invention
where it is desired to be able to move a carriage from one line of way to
another by means of a traveller, one of the rails on each side of the permanent
way may be made moveable, so as to be capable of being drawn out and
placed across the part in or over which the traveller traverses, so as to prevent
accidents.
The second part of the Invention, or improvements in carriages to be used
on railways (whether such carriages are used for carrying engines or bodies
for passengers or goods,) consist of peculiar modes of placing the flanges upon
the tires of the wheels of such carriages, of constructing or preparing the
axle boxes for the axles of such wheels, and of inlaying the treads or bearing
surfaces of such wheels.

page_text: In constructing a carriage wheel for the said improved railway, I place
the flange round the middle or nearly the middle of its tire, instead of its
being placed at one side or edge of the tire as at present, by which I am
enabled to obtain a tread or bearing surface on each side of the flange, for
the purpose of bearing upon each of the rails. of a railway constructed in
manner herein-before described.
In Figure XII., is shewn a vertical cross section of the improved permanent
way herein-before described, taken at a place near to one of the sleepers, by
which it is supported, and also a vertical section of a pair of the wheels,
taken through the axle of the wheels, and shewing the mode in which my
wheels are placed upon rails constructed according to the first part of the
Invention. The axle is made of iron forged round and cylindrical, with
collars of the usual description to prevent the wheels from sliding inwards.
The journals 24 and 24 at each end of the axle are made of very little less
diameter than the shaft or middle portion 23, 23, so as to make the bearing
surfaces of the journals as large as conveniently may be; the nave of each
of the wheels is made long, so as to embrace a considerable length of the
shaft of the axle, and be held firmly upon it; and the hole in the nave is to
be bored true so as to fit tightly upon the axle as usual, and the nave is to
be forced on to the axle by a hydraulic press in the usual way. The front
or face e of the nave is to be made in the shape shewn in the Drawing (Figure
XII.), so as to present a large surface to the flange of the bearing or axle
box 25, 25. Each of the axle boxes 25, 25, and 25, 25, is to be made of
brass or such other proper metal as will produce the least friction when in
contact with the revolving journal, and, when bored, the internal diameter
is to be made slightly less than required, and so that when the interior surface
of it has been compressed or hardened in manner herein-after mentioned,
it may fit the journal accurately. I make my journals of considerable length,
and as they must have no play within their axle boxes, those boxes must
be made to fit the journals accurately. For the purpose of allowing the axle
guard to move up and down at each side of the axle box, I adopt a peculiar
arrangement, shewn in Figures XIV., XV., and XVI., and in dotted lines in
Figure XII.; this consists of flat circular pivot boxes 26 and 27, which are
cast or fixed upon the sides of the axle box, as shewn in the Figures; these
boxes are furnished with pieces of wood 28 and 29, Figures XIV. and XVI.,
fitted accurately to the insides of the boxes, but leaving spaces between the
pieces for the axle guards to pass between them and move freely up and
down. These boxes have openings made in their sides and edges, so as to
admit the axle guard to pass through the boxes and between the pieces of

page_text: wood, and the openings are made sufficiently large to allow the pieces of wood
to be partially turned within the box, and in this way the axle guard is
enabled to accommodate itself to the varying position of the body of the carriago
which is produced when it is in motion. The spring above the axle box is
embraced by a hoop as usual (see Figure XII.), and the projection on the
hoop underneath fits loosely into the box 31, placed at the top of the journal,
as shewn in Figures XII., XIV., XV., and XVI.; inside this box is to be
placed a flat piece of wood or pieces of wood and india-rubber for the pro-
jection of the hoop to rest upon within the box. By the use of pieces of wood
in the way I have described the direct contact of some of the pieces of metal
connected with the body of the carriage is prevented, and believe it will be
found that in this way the transmission of sound and vibration to a carriage
body when in motion will be considerably diminished. An upright cylindrical
box 32 (Figures XII., XIV., XV., and. XVI.) is cast or fixed to the end of
the axle box for the purpose of containing the oil intended to be used for
lubricating the journal and interior of the axle box; this box communicates
with the axle box by means of a small opening 33, through which the oil
passes into the axle box; within the cylindrical box 32 I place a coil of
flannel, piece of sponge, or any other similar porous body thoroughly soaked
with oil, and the oil will gradually sink down through the opening 33 into
the axle box; the oil which thus finds its way into the axle box must pass
along the whole length of that box before it can escape, and it will only
escape after it has done its duty; the cylindrical boxes must of course be
furnished with a fresh supply of oil from time to time as it may become
necessary. I think it advantageous to connect together the axle guards on
each side of the carriage, which I do by means of light rods, one of which,
marked 34, is shewn in Figure XII.
The tool or machine, by means of which I compress and harden the interior
surfaces of my axle boxes is shewn in Figures XIX. and XX. Figure XIX.
is a longitudinal section of the material parts of the tool or machine, and
Figure XX. is an end view of it. This tool consists of a cylindrical bar of iron
41, 41, slightly reduced in diameter from the part marked X to the shoulder
42, and made somewhat longer than the axle box. The six-sided end 43 of
this bar fits the tool holder 44, 44, within which it is secured by means of a
set screw, and the tool holder is in the ordinary way attached to the slide of a
lathe, so that the tool may act in a similar manner to a boring tool. The axle
box is of course to be mounted in the lathe in the ordinary manner, so as to
be set in motion when it is operated upon by the tool. A steel hoop or guage,
provided with six set screws to fix it in its proper position, is placed over the

page_text: three rollers 46, 46, and 46, and these rollers mounted in their bearings are
simultaneously moved into or withdrawn from the interior of the axle box
operated upon; the bar 41, 41, is made hollow, and has fitted within it a
screw rod or bar 49, 49, at one end of which are three projecting inclined-
planes for pressing outwards the bearings of the rollers 46, 46, and 46, and at
the other end of which rod is a nut 50 for drawing along the rod 49, 49, so as
to cause the inclined planes to operate upon the bearings of the rollers and'
pass them outwards.
In order to ensure greater accuracy, a steel hoop or guage may be used for
determining the extent to which, the rollers are to be pressed out by the
inclined planes; and this guage being placed outside the rollers, the screw nut
50 must be turned round, so as, by means of the inclined planes, to press the
rollers outwards to the extent required to make them fit exactly within the
guage. The rollers being set to a proper guage in this or any other con-
venient manner, the operation of compressing the interior of an axle box is
performed by causing the tool before described, and mounted on the slide of
the lathe, to be slowly advanced into the interior of the axle as it revolves in
the lathe; the rollers gradually operating upon the interior surface of the box,
and thus compressing and hardening it, so as to render it more durable. The
inner surface of the box must, during this operation, be smeared with oil or
moistened with water. Instead of producing the whole of the intended effect
upon the inner surface of the axle box at once, the operation may be repeated
until the inner surface has been compressed to the required extent; the com-
pressing tool will probably leave some slight marks upon the inner surface of
the box, which may be removed by means of a polishing tool applied by hand
whilst the axle box is revolving in the lathe. The rollers of the compressing
tool will not be able to operate upon the inner surface of the axle box nearer
than about three quarters of an inch to the closed end of it. The journal
intended to be mounted in this axle box must therefore be reduced in
diameter to the same extent from its extremity, so as to fit that portion of the
axle box. As it is of great importance that the weight, which, through the
medium of the spring (shewn above the box 31 in Figure XII.), presses upon
the axle box, should be equally distributed over its interior surface, which bears
upon the. journal, the spring should be placed above the middle of that part of
the interior surface of the axle box which has been subjected to the operation
of the compressing tool, as before mentioned.
. In frosty and rainy weather the driving wheels of engine carriages:
frequently have too little hold or bite upon the rails to enable them to ascend

page_text: an incline, or start a heavy train with facility. In order to avoid this incon-
venience, I introduce pieces of hard steel or other metal into the face or
tread of each of the driving wheels, as shewn in Figure XXII., so as to
increase the hold or bite of the wheels upon the rails.
Figure XXI. is a side view of a segment of the tire of one of my wheels,
shewing the manner in which the pieces of metal are to be dovetailed, inlayed,
or let into the tire or tread of the wheel at each side of the flange..
Figure XXII. is a front view of the face or tread of a similar segment of
the tire, shewing the diagonal direction in which the pieces of metal are placed
across the face or tread on each side of the flange; and Figure XXIII. is a
transverse section of a portion of the same tire. In order to introduce these
pieces of steel, I first bore or drill a series of holes (marked 35 in Figure
XXII.) to the required depth along each side of the wheel flange all round
the face or tread of the wheel, for the purpose of better enabling the workman
to cut the grooves. I then cut dovetailed grooves of about five-eighths of an
inch deep across the face of the tire on each side of the flange from the edge
of the tire in a diagonal direction, into each of the before-mentioned holes;
into these grooves I drive pieces of hard steel or other metal, which, if thought
desirable, may be made to project slightly from the face or tread of the tire, so
as to possess more hold or bite upon the rails. These pieces of steel may be
prevented from slipping out by caulking or any other convenient means.
These pieces of steel or other metal being harder than the wrought-iron tire
of the wheel, they will, whether they project or not, increase the hold or bite
of the tread of the wheel upon the rails. This mode of inlaying the faces or
treads of driving wheels with pieces of hard metal is applicable not only to
driving wheels constructed according to this part of the Invention, but also to
driving wheels of the ordinary construction; the difference being that such
wheels only require one set of grooves round them instead of two.
Having now described the said Invention, and the manner in which it is to
to be performed, I hereby declare that I claim as of the Invention commu-
nicated to me as aforesaid,-
Firstly, the mode of making the permanent way of a railway with double
rails instead of single rails, in manner herein-before described.
Secondly, the mode of constructing switches for the permanent way of such
railways, in manner herein-before described.
Thirdly, the mode of securing chairs in their proper positions upou their
sleepers, by means of rims (cast on the under sides of such chairs), trenails, and
wedges, in manner herein-before described.

page_text: Fourthly, the mode of constructing railway carriage wheels, with their
flanges projecting from the middles or nearly so of their tires, in manner
herein-before described.
Fifthly, the mode of constructing the axle boxes of railway carriages, and
their pivot boxes, in mauner herein-before described.
Sixthly, the mode of inlaying or introducing hard pieces of metal into the
threads or bearing surfaces of the tires of railway carriage wheels, in manner
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Fox, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-third day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-seven.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-third day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1847, the aforesaid Charles Fox came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written, and also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Twenty-third day of September, in the year of our Lord