CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ART OF BLOCK PRINTING
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
ROBERTS, of Prestolec, in the Parish of Prestwich and County of Lancaster,
Calico Printer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-seventh day of June, in the seventh year of His
reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Roberts, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and autho-
rity, that I, the said John Roberts, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
and such others as I, the said John Roberts, my executors, administrators, and
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, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ART
OF BLOCK PRINTING;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that
I, the said John Roberts, should cause a particular description of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be enrolled in
His 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, I, the said
John Roberts, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described
and ascertained in the Drawings hereto annexed, and by the following
explanation thereof, that is to say :-
My Improvements in the Art of Block Printing consist in a peculiar and
novel construction of apparatus to be used in that particular branch of the
art known in the trade by the term "springing," and which is more particu-
larly applicable in those situations where one colour only is to be taken up by
the block. My improvement is the new arrangement of the parts connected
with and constituting the sieve cloth and its elastic bed; this cloth or sieve
(which may be used either with or without its bed) being the ordinary surface
upon which the colour is spread, in order to be transferred to the face of the
block that gives the form of the pattern or device intended to be printed.
Firstly, the framing which confines the edges of the sieve cloth is so con-
structed that it may be easily adjusted to any degree of tension, in order to
suit the quality of the various colours to be employed for printing, and also
to accommodate itself to the various consistencies of the colours, from which
a convenience will also result, namely, that the tension of the sieve cloth may
adapted to suit the style of pattern intended to be printed, that is, that a
greater or less portion of colour may be presented to the surface of the block,
according to the character of the pattern.
And, secondly, the whole apparatus is so constructed that the necessity of
children attending upon every printer, for the purpose of spreading the colour
after every dip of the block, is obviated, by the colour in this improved
"springing tub always flowing in sufficient quantity and regulating its own
supply ready for each presentation of the block to the sieve cloth.
In order that my Invention may be more perfectly understood I have
attached hereto a Drawing representing different_views_of-my-improved
"springing tub," shewn upon a scale of half the real size, the same baving
letters of reference pointing out corresponding parts in all the Figures..
Figure 1 is a plan or horizontal view of the springing tub as seen from
above, part of the sieve cloth being removed in order to shew the interior of
the apparatus. Fig. 2 is an elevation seen partly in section as cut through
Figure 1 in the dotted line A, B, and Figure 3 is an end elevation taken at the
right hand of Figure 1. a, a, is a reservoir or case, made of tin or other
suitable material, to contain the color intended to be used for printing, which
colour flows through the pipe b, b, and tap c to the channels d, d, d, in the
wooden box below, which several channels are all connected with each other.

page_text: These channels or passages d, d, are formed in a solid piece of wood, and are
for the purpose of supplying a portion of the colour to the under surface of
the sieve cloth e, e, through the bed f. f. This bed operates as a support for
the sieve cloth, and is perforated with small holes, in order that the colour
may flow freely through it to the under part of the sieve cloth. The number
and size of the holes must be determined by the operator, as upon them the
supply of colour will greatly depend, and which must be varied to suit the
different styles of pattern to be printed. It will be seen that three sides or
edges of the sieve cloth are confined by the framing or woodwork g, g, 9, and
the fourth side or edge is attached to the rail h, which has a strengthening
bar of iron fixed to it for the purpose of carrying the nut of the screw i, i.
This rail h has two small projecting ends which run in slots or grooves formed
in each side of the iron framing i, j, and by turning the small screw i the rail
will be adjusted in the framing j, and with it the required tension of the sieve
cloth will be obtained and regulated, the exact or most suitable tightness of
which can only be determined by the experience of the practical printer. It
will be understood that the sieve cloth e, in the horizontal view, Figure 1,
represented as broken, must be entire, and its outer end securely fastened to
the moveable rail h, h. A portion only of the diaphrazin or perforated bed f
is likewise shewn; but it will be understood that this is fastened to the
framing of the apparatus all round, and extends under the whole of the
operating surface of the siove cloth. In order that the supply of colour to
the sieve cloth may be admitted evenly after every dip of the printing block,
I prefer that the bed f, f, should be made of common oil cloth casing, or
other such waterproof material, so that the colour shall only pass through the
perforations or holes; and it is also necessary to state, that the sievo cloth itself
may be varied to suit the different patterns to be printed, as I have found it
very advantageous in many cases to use two or more thicknesses of the cloth.
in immediate connection with each other, and I have also found a great con-
venience in varying the quality of the materials of which the fabric is com-
posed, 'such as cotton and wool, linen and cotton, or otherwise. It will be
perceived that the supply of colour to the apparatus is afforded and regulated
by opening the cock c in the pipe b either partially or to its full extent, and.
also by varying the height of the reservoir of colour, which will vary its
pressure. This latter regulation may be done at the pleasure of the operator,
by turning the adjusting screw K, K, which is set at the back of the framing
for supporting the reservoir. It only remains to add that the reservoir is to
be charged with colour through the small flannel on the top (which must be
closed by a plug while the apparatus is in use), and any waste colour is to

page_text: be discharged by the opening m behind, communicating with the channels
d, d. This, of course, is also to be stopped while the apparatus is in use.
In conclusion, I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself to
the dimensions or materials of any of the parts of the improved springing tub
described above, but I claim as my Invention the construction of apparatus
shewn in the Drawings, and its employment for the purposes above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Roberts, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, the Twenty-fourth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and thirty-six.