CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN PLOUGHS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Lee, of Saint Helen's,. in the County of
Lancaster, Grocer, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
PLOUGHS."
Sealed the 12th August 1859, and dated the 26th February 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Lee at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 26th
February 1859.
I, JAMES LEE, of Saint Helen's, in the County of Lancaster, Grocer, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS
IN PLOUGHS," to be as follows:-
The nature of my Invention consists in supporting the wheel that runs
upon the unploughed land in a spring bearing, so that when this wheel runs
over a stone or other obstacle it can pass over it without affecting the depth
of cut of the ploughshare.
My Invention consists also in supporting the wheel that runs in the furrow
gate in bearings attached to a spring lever, which can be adjusted according.
to the depth of the furrow when the plough is at work or when stationary.
Another part of my Invention consists in setting the ploughshare and
coulter in a diagonal position, and in so shaping them that the furrow is cut
and turned over with less power than heretofore necessary, and the furrow is
laid in a better position for receiving the seed.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Lee in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
26th August 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
LEE, of Saint Helen's, in the County of Lancaster, Grocer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said James Lee, Her special licence that I, the said James Lee,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said James
Lee, 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, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PLOUGHS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
James Lee, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 James Lee, 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 fol-
lowing statement, that is to say :-
The first part of my Invention consists in an improved mode of suspending
and actuating the wheels of wheel ploughs. By the present method of fixing
the wheels and their axles when the plough is in action, should there be any
inequality in the surface of the land operated upon, or. should either wheel
come upon a stone or any other hard substance, instantly the cutting portions
of the plough are thrown out of their level, and considerable power and skill
are required on the part of the ploughman to retain or restore its proper
action. In order to obviate this, I mount my two wheels (the furrow wheel
and land wheel) on different axles; these axles are suspended each from an
axle or suspension rod; the bottom end of this axle rod is slotted out, and the
axle can be set at any part in this slot. The upper end of these rods have

page_text: strong spiral springs. round them, and pass into and are suspended from a
frame which is firmly fixed to the beam of plough. It will be understood
then, that upon pressure being applied to the wheel, it, along with its axle
and axle rod, will move freely in a vertical plane without acting on the beam
of the plough, and on the pressure being removed the springs will urge them
back to their normal position. By means of this action and the slot at the
bottom of the suspended rod, the plough will always cut to a uniform depth,
and will require scarcely any guiding, save to direct the horses.
In order to render this description more clearly inteligible, I have appended
the accompanying Drawings to this Specification, the object of which is,
however, chiefly to shew the general principles of my Invention, and one of
the methods of carrying this into effect; it will be seen, however, that
modifications may be made in several of the parts, according to the particular
shape and kind of plough to which it is applied, and some of the details may
be omitted and supplied by other well-known equivalents.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of the wheels and their framework, the position
of the plough beam alone being shewn, the other parts being omitted; Figure
2 is a side elevation, and Figure 3 is a plan of the same. a, a', are the wheels
on their axles b, b'; c, c', the suspended axle rods, the axles passing into and
working within the slots at the bottom; d, d', the spiral springs round the
heads of the said rods; f,f', the frame which supports the said rods c, c', and
which transmits their horizontal movement to the beam of the plough, shewn
in section at g.. It will be seen that should either of the wheels a become
suddenly elevated, it will raise with it the rod and compress the spring d, but
will not act at all upon the plough, hence will not affect it or the cutting
portions in the smallest degree, the reaction of the spring bringing the wheel
back to its normal position again, when the pressure is removed.
The next of any improvements consists in the mode of forming the sole plate
of the plough, and in this my object is to give more space between the furrows
for seed, and also to form the furrow with a better crisp; the sole plate is
formed as shewn in section at Figure 4, and in such a way as to give the land
side of the plate a twist or inclination, so that it will cut about an inch and a
half or so more into the unploughed land at the bottom thant at the surface.
I propose also, in order to diminish the friction and cause less draught to the
horses, to construct the beam of the plough straight on the land side nearly in
a line with the land shaft. Figures 5 and 6 are a plan and elevation of the
plough complete, shewing the form of the beam as last described.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and how the same is
constructed and acts, I wish it understood that I want to claim,-

page_text: First, the use of spiral or other shaped springs, or their equivalents, applied.
to the shafts on which the wheels are placed, and the general arrangement and
combination of parts for effecting the purpose before mentioned, and sub-
stantially set forth in the Specification as above, and shewn in Figures 1, 2,
and 3 of Drawings.
Second, forming the sole plate, as shewn at Figure 4 in the Drawings, for
the purpose before mentioned.
Third, forming the plough beam quite straight on the land side, and nearly
in a straight line with the land shaft, for the purpose before mentioned and
described, and generally illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 of the appended
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Lee, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of August, in the year One thousand
eight hundred and fifty-nine.
Witness to the signature of the said
James Lee,
JAMES WILSON,
JAMES LEE. (L.S.)
St. Helen's.