CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR PROPELLING VESSELS BY STEAM OR OTHER POWER
Year: 1841

page_text: _ TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL-COME, -I,-STOPFORD-
THOMAS JONES, late of Tavistock Place, Russell Square, but now of Stafford
Place, Pimlico, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send-greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Fourth day of August, in the fifth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Stopford Thomas Jones, Her especial licence, that I, the said Stopford
Thomas Jones, my exors, adññiors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Stopford Thomas Jones, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plan-
tations abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
PROPELLING VESSELS BY STEAM OR OTHER POWER;" in which said Letters Patent
is contained a proviso, obliging ne, the said Stopford Thomas Jones, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to describe and
ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, and to cause the same to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the
same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, 1, the said
Stopford Thomas Jones, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention to
consist in attaching each propeller that is used to cranks of different throws,
whereby I am enabled to cause the propeller to enter and leave the water
at any angle required. And in further compliance with the said proviso, I,
the Stopford Thomas Jones, do hereby describe the manner in which my said
Invention is to be performed, by the following statement thereof, reference being
had to the Drawing annexed, 'and. to the figures and letters marked thereon.
But I will first give a general description of one paddle made on the principle of
my Invention, as follows: I fix a cranked shaft, which I term the main cranked
paddle shaft, of any given throw, with bearings on a frame of wood or iron. I
fix another cranked shaft, which I term the upper cranked paddle shaft, but of
a less throw above the -main cranked-paddle.shaft, also, upon a frame of wood
or iron, and at such distance that both cranks will revolve without contact when
connected at the necks, as hereafter described. I connect the two cranks at the
necks by an iron rod, which I call a paddle shaft. I permit the cranks to revolve
freely at the connection with the paddle shaft, by means of brasses or plummer
blocks I connect the upper crank with the head of the paddle shaft, by
making the said brasses to slide in a link, grove, or slot, and by this arrange-
ment I regulate the angle of obliquity at which I may think it best for the
paddle to enter and leave the water, as I consider a perpendicular or vertical
entrance of a paddle into the water, and exit from the water, a very imper-
fect mode of propelling. I therefore make the upper crank of a less throw
than the lower or main crank, and connect the neck of the upper crank with
the head of the paddle shaft, as already described, to allow the upper crank
to revolve freely in its rotation with the main crank. By this arrangement I
can make the paddle to enter and leave the water at any angle that I con-
sider most fit; and I attach any conveniently shaped paddle board to the end
of the paddle shaft.
So far I have described the construction and application of one perfect
paddle only; but in my application of my said Invention to boats I place
on each side of a boat one, two, three, or even more paddles in succes-
sion, upon framing of wood or iron. If I prefer to apply two paddles on
each side of the boat, I place each paddle upon a different point or angle
of the circle that it would describe when revolving; I then connect the inner
ends of the cranks near the bearings, by placing on the end of each crank a
driving crank; I place the four driving cranks upon one and the same angle;
I connect them altogether by a connecting driving-rod, which connecting
driving-rod is directly connected with the main shaft of the engine by an

page_text: Figure 2 is an end elevation of Figure 1; and Figure 3 a plan of the same.
And similar letters being used to denote similar parts in all the Figures, no
further description of these Figures will be necessary.
Now whereas I claim as of Invention the following improvements, that is to
say: The two cranks of different throws for each paddle shaft, and the links and
sliding brasses marked E and F, by which I enable the two cranks of different
throws to act in unison, and can thus give any degree of an angle that may
be preferred to the paddle boards, both on entering and leaving the water.
And such my Invention being, to the best of my knowledge and belief, entirely
new, and never before used within that part of Her said Majesty's United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her said dominion
of Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, nor in any of Her said Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, I do hereby declare this to be my Specifi-
cation of the same, and that I do verily believe this my said Specification
doth comply in all respects, fully and without reserve or disguise, with the
proviso in the said herein-before in part recited Letters Patent contained;
wherefore I do hereby claim to maintain exclusive right and privilege to my
Said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stopford Thomas Jones, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Fourth day of February, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-two.
STOPFORD THOMAS (L.S.) JONES.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fourth day of February, in
the year of our Lord 1842, the aforesaid Stopford Thomas Jones came before