IMPROVEMENTS IN GASALIERS, CHANDELIERS, AND OTHER PENDENT SLIDING LAMPS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Richard Abbott, of Birmingham, in the
..County of Warwick, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN GASALIERS, CHANDELIERS, AND OTHER PENDENT SLIDING LAMPS."
Sealed the 28th October 1864, and dated the 7th May 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Richard Abbott
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
7th May 1864..
I, JOSEPH RICHARD ABBOTT, of Birmingham, in the 'County of Warwick,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN GASALIERS, CHANDELIERS, AND OTHER SLIDING PENDENT LAMPS," to be as
follows, that is to say :-
The object of these improvements is, firstly, the prevention of the escape of
gas from gasaliers in case of loss of balance by the breakage of a balance
chain and the consequent running down of the gasilier; this I effect by forming.
a conical plug upon the lower end of the ordinary slide tube, and a correspond-
ing conical socket upon the cap of the water cup, into which socket the conical
plug becomes wedged should the gasalier run down, and the escape of gas

page_text: thereby prevented, the end of the slide tube and the socket on the cap of the
water cup forming themselves into a gas cock.
Secondly, the object of my improvements is to steady the gasalier and break
the velocity of its running down, and this 1 effect by the employment of a
stuffing box fixed above the cap of the water cup and filled with packing
composed of any suitable material saturated with a peculiar grease that has
the properties of remaining of the same consistency under variations of tem-
perature; this grease I prepare by mixing intimately together about equal pro-
portions of Russian tallow and Venice or larch turpentine, the stuffing box thus
filled and applied renders any fluid unnecessary in the water cup, which may,
if preferred, be altogether dispensed with, in which case the socket in which
the cone works, alluded to in the former part of my description, would be
formed in the boss to which the balance chains are secured and the stuffing
box would be fixed on that boss. I have described my improvements in their
application to gasaliers, they may also be applied to chandliers, oil pendants,
and other similar kinds of lamps.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Joseph Richard Abbott in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 5th November 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOSEPH
RICHARD ABBOTT, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventli day of May, in the year of our 'Lord' One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Joseph Richard Abbott, Her special licence that I, the said Josepli
Richard Abbott, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such; others
as I, the said Joseph Richard Abbott, 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; shoul
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom,
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man,can;
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS INGASALIERS, CHANDELIERS, AND: OTHER SLIDING
PENDENT LAMPS, ipon the condition (amongst others) that the said

page_text: Joseph Richard Abbott, 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 Joseph Richard Abbott, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner. the same is:
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the Drawings-hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to, say) :-
The object of these improvements is, firstly, the prevention of the escape of::
gas from gasaliers in case of loss of balance by the breakage of a balance
chain and the consequent running down of the gasalier; this I effect by forming.
a conical plug upon the lower end of the ordinary slide tube and a corres-
ponding conical socket upon the cap of the water cup, into which socket the
conical plug becomes wedged should the gasalier run down, and the escape of
gas thereby prevented. The end of the slide tube and the socket on the cap
of the water cup forming themselves. into a gas cock.
Secondly, the object of my improvements is to steady the gasalier and
break the velocity of its running down, and this I effect by the employinent of
a stuffing box fixed above the cap of the water cup and filled with packing
composed of any suitable material saturated with a peculiar grease that has
the properties of remaining of the same consistency under variations of tem-
perature. This grease I prepare by mixing intimately together about equal
proportions of Russian tallow and Venice or larch turpentine, the stuffing box.
thus filled and applied renders any fluid unnecessary in the water cup, which
may, if preferred, be altogether dispensed with, in which case the socket in-
which the cone works, alluded to in the former part of my description, would.
be formed in the boss to which the balance chains are secured, and the stuffing:
box would be fixed on that boss. I have described my improvements in-their
application to gasaliers, they may also be applied to chandeliers, oil pendants,
and other similar kinds of lamps:
I will now proceed to describe my Invention more particularly-by-the aid of
the annexed Drawings, in which Figure 1 represents in elevation a portion of
the tubes of a gasalier, such parts only being shown as are affected by. my
improvements; Figure 2 represents a vertical section through the parts
shewn in Figure 1. The remaining Figures are details of several of the more
importants parts to be herein after alluded to.

page_text: (1) represents the outer casing tube of an ordinary gasalier, to which is
attached, in the form of a boss, a reservoir. (2); (3) is the slide tube from the
usual ball joint at top, this slide tube I fit with a conical plug (4) which
plug upon the falling or lowering of the tube (1) engages in a conical socket
(5) screwed into the lower part of the boss (2), these two parts, namely the
plug and its receiving socket, are accurately ground together to fit as correctly
as a gas cock. The reservoir (2) is charged with any suitable grease, by
preference I employ a grease consisting of the following ingredients in about
the following proportions:-Of Russian tallow, eight ounces; of castor oil, five
and a half ounces; of plaster of Paris, six and a balf ounces; and of rosin, half
an ounce, or of white wax one ounce and a half. These are to be reduced by
heat and intimately mixed together, when the composition is to be run in a
semifluid state into the boss or reservoir (2), but before running it in I coat the
inside of the reservoir with shell-lac varnish to prevent the grease from corroding
the metal; the reservoir (2) is formed with a collar or flange (6) round its base,
internally through this collar the slide tube (3) works between the collar (6)
and the socket (5), a washer (7) is inserted, a corresponding washer (8) being
inserted immediately under the screw cap (9) of the boss, thus the reservoir
or boss is made fluid-tight acting as a stuffing box, whilst at the same time
the slide tube (3) is free to work through it. For single light pendants
the apparatus is now complete (with two tubes only) and it may also be used
for more than one light pendants; but for pendants with more than one light,
arranged around a centre I prefer as an additional precaution using the third
tube (10); this tube is formed with a plunger (11) upon its upper end, this
plunger consists of two leather washers, (12) to prevent the escape of oil, and
as a farther precaution against the escape of gas, when employing three
tubes, I use in the reservoir a grease consisting of castor oil slightly thick-
ened. with plaster of Paris, and a small quantity of rosin or white wax, and
in the casing tube (1) I use castor oil only. With this arrangement of the
parts if a balance chain should break the outer casing tube (1) in running
down is received upon the conical plug (4), which enters and fits closely
the conical socket (5), and the greater the weight or strain put upon these
parts the more firmly they are wedged together so that escape of gas is
impossible. For chandeliers and other pendent lamps, where gas is not used,
these improvements are equally applicable in preventing accident from the
sudden running down of the body of the lamp.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I do not limit myself to these precise details, but

page_text: that which I claim is, the improvements in the sliding parts of gaseliers,
chandeliers, and other pendent lamps, substantially as herein fully described
and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Richard Abbott, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Fourth day of November, in the year o
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
of
JOSEPH RICHARD (L.8.) ABBOTT.