A New or Improved Combined Bridle Bit and Martingale for Holding Down the Heads of Horses and Preventing Horses from Rearing.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Apr., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 7th Jan.. 1890-Accepted. 8th Feb., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Combined Bridle Bit and Martingale for
Holding Down the Heads of Horses and Preventing Horses
from Rearing.
I HENRY REES-PHILIPPS of No. 13 Berkeley Street Piccadilly in the County of
Middlesex Manager of Inventors' Agency Limited do hereby declare the nature of
this Invention to be as follows :-
My invention consists of the new or improved combined bridle bit and martingale
hereinafter described for curing or preventing horses throwing up their heads or
rearing. My invention may be used with saddle or harness or led horses.
The bridle which I use is of the ordinary kind and the cheeks of the bit which
I use may have any desired shape. The mouthpiece of the bit which I use is a mullen
mouthpiece made capable of rotating or partially rotating that is a mouthpiece having
the shape of a segment or portion of a circle and its ends so connected to the cheeks
of the bit that the said mouthpiece is capable of readily rotating. On the said mouth-
piece two loose rings preferably of a large diameter are placed and are capable of
sliding. To these large rings in the case of a riding bridle are attached, the bridoon
or snaffle reins and in the case of a driving bridle the driving reins or bearing rein.
The large loose rings described on the rotating mullen mouthpiece are situated on
each side of the horse's mouth and through them is passed a single strap martingale.
The said martingale is fastened to the horse's girth and the strap of the martingale
rising from between the front legs of the horse is passed through the said large loose
rings and returning downwards is buckled to the martingale under the horse. The
strap of the martingale is passed so, loosely through the rings on the mouthpiece that
as long as the horse's head is carried in its normal position the bit is quite easy that
is there is no tension on the martingale connected with the bit but immediately the
horse throws his head up or attempts to rear the strap martingale draws the two loose
rings together and the jaw of the horse is gripped between them. At the same time
the closing or bringing together of the two loose rings causes them to act upon the
curved portion of the rotating mouthpiece which is in a horizontal position turning it
downwards through a small angle and causing it to bear upon the horse's tongue. By
this means the most violent horse is effectually prevented from rearing but immediately
he drops his head the tension on the martingale is relaxed and the sliding rings
separate and the parts resuming their normal positions the bridle again becomes
quite easy.
.
Although I prefer to use a mullen mouthpiece capable of rotating as described yet
a snaffle mouthpiece or a chain or jointed bar may be used but the rotating mullen
mouthpiece I have found to act very efficiently.
DL: 17th the of til 1880
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.
་
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Combined Bridle Bit and Martingale for
Holding Down the Heads of Horses and Preventing Horses
from Rearing.
I, HENRY Rees-PHILIPPS, of No. 13 Berkeley Street, Piccadilly, in the County of
Middlesex, Manager of Inventors' Agency Limited, do hereby declare the nature of
my invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement
-
My invention consists of the new or improved combined bridle bit and martingale

page_text: i
:
hereinafter described for curing or preventing horses throwing up their heads or
rearing. My invention may be used with saddle or harness or led horses.
The bridle which I use is of the ordinary kind and the cheeks of the bit which I use
may have any desired shape. The mouthpiece of the bit which I use is a mullen
mouthpiece made capable of rotating or partially rotating, that is, a mouthpiece having
the shape of a segment or portion of a circle and its ends so connected to the cheeks
of the bit that the said mouthpiece is capable of readily rotating. On the said mouth-
piece two loose rings, preferably of a large diameter, aro placed and are capable of
sliding. To these large rings in the case of a riding bridle, are attached the bridoon
or snaffle reins, and in the case of a driving bridle the driving reins or bearing rein.
The large loose rings described on the rotating mullen inouthpiece are situated on
each side of the horse's mouth and through them is passed a single strap martingale.
The said martingale is fastened to the horse's girth and the strap of the martingale
rising from between the front legs of the horse is passed through the said large loose
rings and returning downwards is buckled to the martingale below. The strap of the
martingale is passed so loosely through the rings on the mouthpiece that as long as
the horse's head is carried in its normal position the bit is quite easy; that is, there
is no tension on the martingale connected with the bit, but immediately the horse
throws his head up or attempts to rear the strap martingale draws the two loose rings
together and the jaw of the horse is gripped between them. At the same time the
closing or bringing together of the two loose rings causes them to act upon the curved
portion of the rotating mouthpiece, which is normally in a horizontal position, turning
it downwards through a small angle and causing it to bear upon the horse's tongue.
By this means the most violent horse is effectually prevented from rearing but
immediately he drops his head the tension on the martingale is relaxed and the
sliding rings separate and the parts resuming their normal positions, the bridle again
becomes quite easy.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the
manner in which my invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in side elevation my new or improved combined riding bridle,
bit and martingale applied to a horse; Figure 2 represents in end elevation and
Figure 3 in front elevation, the bit and other parts drawn to a larger scale, the parts
represented in Figures 1, 2 and 3 being in their normal positions; Figures 4 and 5
represent the same views as Figures 2 and 3, but the parts are represented in their
acting positions, that is the positions they take on the horse throwing up his head or
rearing.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of the
Drawings.
a, a is the riding bridle connected at a³, a to the cheeks b, b of the bit in the
ordinary way. The bit represented is provided with a mullen mouth-piece chaving
the shape represented and so connected at c³, c³ to the side cheeks b, b of the bit that
it is capable of partially rotating in the said cheeks: d, d are the two large loose
rings resting on and capable of sliding upon the rotating mullen mouth-piece c, the
said loose rings d, d being situated on the inner sides of the cheeks 6, 6 and on
opposite sides of the horse's mouth. The bridle represented is a double reined
Pelham bridle and is marked e, f, the bridoon reins e being connected to the loose
sliding rings d, d on the mullen mouth-piece c and the curb reins f being attached to
the lower rings 63, 63 on the cheeks b, b of the bit; g is the single strap martingale
fastened to the horse's girth h. From the said girth the strap martingale passes
under the horse's belly and rises between his front legs. It is then passed through the
two loose rings d, d (see Figures 3 and 5) and returning downwards the return or
doubled part of the strap is buckled at to the other part of the martingale as seen
in Figure 1. The strap of the martingale is passed so loosely through the two
rings d, d on the mouth-piece c that as long as the horse's head is carried in its normal
position, the bit is quite easy, that is, the two loose rings d, d and the mullen mouth
piece coccupy the respective positions represented in Figures 1, 2 and 3, and there
is no tension on the martingale g connected with the said rings d, d on the bit.

page_text: Sould however the horse throw his head up or attempt to rear, the strap martingale g
is tightened and virtually lengthened and the looped or parallel parts between the
buckle at and the loose rings d, d are made to approach each other and draw
together the said loose rings d, d and grip the jaw of the horse between them. As
the two loose rings d, d are thus brought together their sliding motion causes them
to act upon the curved portion of the rotating mullen mouth-piece c (which is
normally in the horizontal position Figures 2 and 3) and turning it downwards
through a small angle as represented in Figures 4 and 5 causes the said mouthpiece
to bear upon the horse's tongue. The horse is in this way effectually prevented from
rearing and immediately he drops his head, the parts described resume the normal
positions represented in Figures 1, 2 and 3, that is, the tension on the martingale
being relaxed the sliding rings d, d again separate and no longer acting on the
mouthpiece, the bridle again becomes easy.
Although I prefer to use a mullen mouth-piece capable of rotating as described and
represented in the Drawing yet a snaffle mouth-piece or a chain or jointed bar mouth-
piece may be used, but the rotating mullen mouthpiece I have found to act efficiently.
The action of the sliding loose rings d, d upon the snaffle mouthpiece or chain or
jointed bar mouthpiece is substantially the same as I have described with respect to a
rotating mullen mouthpiece.
Although I have described and represented my invention as applied to a riding
bridle yet my invention is equally applicable to bridles for harness and led horses.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my invention
and the manner in which the same is to be performed I declare that I claim as my
invention :-
In a combined bridle, bit and martingale for holding down the heads of horses and
preventing horses from rearing,--the use of two loose rings, preferably of large
diameter, placed on and capable of sliding upon the rotating mullen mouthpiece or
the snaffle mouthpiece or the chain or jointed bar mouthpiece or other like mouth-
piece of the bit, the said loose rings being connected with a single strap martingale
carried by the horse and also connected with the bridoon or snaffle reins or other
reins of the bridle, for the purpose and substantially as hereinbefore described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
Dated the Fourth day of January 1890.