IMPROVEMENTS IN BEDS OR MATTRESSES
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Ritchie, of 3, Monmouth Place, New Cross,
New Kent Road, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BEDS OR
MATTRESSES."
Sealed the 13th April 1855, and dated the 2nd February 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Ritchie at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 2nd
February 1855.
I, GEORGE RITCHIE, of 3, Monmouth Place, New Cross, New Kent Road,
o do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BEDS OR
MATTRESSES" to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object the manufacture of beds and mattresses to
be used on wet or damp ground, or other wet and damp surfaces. For this
, purpose, a bed or mattress is, by preference, composed of several narrow stuffed
compartments which run in a transverse direction, which construction adds to
the convenience of packing for carriage, but the stuffing may be otherwise tied
in or divided. The stuffing material may be ground cork, or hair, or other
suitable stuffing material. The under side of this construction of bed or
mattress is of a fabric waterproof on both sides, and is of larger dimensions

page_text: than the upper surface of the bed or mattress, so as to extend on all sides
beyond the edges of the bed or mattress, which in respect to the upper surface
is not made of waterproof fabric. By this combination or construction of a
bed or mattress, both when in use on wet surfaces and when packed for
carriage, the wet is prevented getting to the upper surface of the bed or
mattress.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Ritchie in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
2nd August 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
RITCHIE, of 3, Monmouth Place, New Cross, -New Kent Road, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day. of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Ritchie, Her special licence that I, the said George Ritchie,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George
Ritchie, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN BEDS OR MAT-
TRESSES," upon the condition (aniongst others) that I, the said George-Ritchie,
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 George Ritchie, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof (that is to say):-1
This Invention has for. its object the manufacture of beds or mattresses to be
used on the ground, and on other wet or damp surfaces, and consists in con-
structing them of light waterproof materials in such a manner as to give a soft

page_text: and impervious medium to lie on in a small portable package convenient for
transport: These improved beds or mattresses are intended especially for the
use of soldiers in the field, who are frequently compelled to sleep in the open air
on a blanket, or on the bare ground, to the great detriment of health: Now,
this bed or mattress when placed on a wet or damp surface, as, for instance, in
trenches, may be slept on with safety and comparative comfort, its repellant and
non-conducting properties effectually preventing any absorption of moisture.
Rolled up, in the manner shown by the Drawing hereunto annexed, it is water-
proof, and may therefore be carried even in rainy weather on the backs of
troops or in baggage waggons without covers or other protection. This bed or
mattress, being stuffed or filled with cork, is buoyant, and may be used as a
substitute for, or auxiliary to, pontoons in military operations, and, from its
impenetrability, in place of fascines for breastworks. It is light, varying in
weight from three to seven pounds, and when packed up forms a parcel of
about eighteen inches in length by six inches in diameter.
I will now proceed to describe the mode of manufacturing this improved
bed or mattress. I make the outer covering of this bed or mattress; or that
surface which is placed next the ground, of a waterproof material, by preference
of that known as American leather cloth, which is a textile fabric, rendered
waterproof on one or both sides by the application of coats of oil mixed with
other waterproofing substances well known; but I do not limit myself to the
use of this material, for macintosh or other waterproof cloth will answer the
same purpose: The inner portion, or that which is next the sleeper, is com-
posed of ticking, or other suitable material, woven double in the loom to receive
the stuffing, or sewn or stitched into a number of divisions or compartments
varying in width from one to four inches, and in a transverse direction to the
length, or it may be otherwise divided. These divisions or compartments
are stuffed or filled with ground cork, or hair, or fibrous materials, by pre-
ference with cork; ground of a size varying from that of mustard seed to that
of
peas.
"
Figure 1 on the Drawing represents one form of these beds or mattresses"
open for use. It will be seen that the outer waterproof surface is wider at the
upper' part of the bed than at the other portion, and it is so made in order
that it may enclose. and overlap the other parts when rolled together, and so
prevent the' ingress of water. The part marked a in the Drawing' is not
stuffed but is left open, that a pillow or a substitute for one may be inserted
therein to uphold the head. In all cases I construct these beds or mattresses
with an extended surface or margin, which, in respect of the inner part, or that

page_text: which is stuffed, is of larger dimensions on all sides, as is shewn by b, Figure 1.
The extent of this outer surface or margin must depend on the particular
purpose for which the bed is intended. I sometimes make this outer part so
large as to form a coverlet or complete wrapper for the person, as shown by
Figure 5. This arrangement will be more suitable for the use of sokliers
without tents, emigrants, tourists, or travellers, where the additional weight of
a few ounces is of little importance; but in general weight is an object of
primary consideration, as regards the accoutrements or baggage of soldiers,
and therefore it may not be desirable to add this coverlet for their general use.
Figure 2, represents two straps and buckles to fasten the bed together,
when rolled up for carrying; but, as is obvious, other modes of fastening may
be employed.
The bed or mattress should be folded up this manner: the lower part should
be brought in contact with the upper portion, and being rolled a few turns, the
wider part is tucked in, thus forming waterproof sides. The divisions or
compartments of the bed when made in the corrugated form, shown by the
Drawing, facilitate the rolling of it into a small package of a cylindrical form,
as shown by Figures 2 and 4, well adapted for transport, because occupying
little space. I sometimes construct a hood or covering for the head to be applied
to the bed, and this I do in various ways, as by stretching a piece of water-
proof cloth over a few ribs of whalebone, cane, or thin iron of a semicircular,
elliptic, or other shape, as shewn by Figure 5; or the margin at the head part
may be made wide enough so as to lap over a framework of this description.
Figures 3 and 4 represent another form of bed; in this case the margin of
waterproof material is reduced, and the mode of fastening is different to that
shewn by Figure 2.
Figure 6 represents this bed or mattress as constructed for use in hospitals,
asylums, or for children's cots; for such purposes it is unnecessary to have
more than one inch or so of margin, the outer waterproof material being cut
of the same size throughout as the ticking or inner surface. This bed or
mattress may be used on either side, and however foul it may become, may be
speedily cleansed by the application of water, and be fit for immediate use
again. The ridges or corrugations of the bed when set at a slight angle of
elevation will allow water to run off, and this is of advantage in such places as
lunatic asylums, &c. The ticking or other material used inside is, as before
stated, woven of a double form, thereby producing the divisions or compart-
ments to be stuffed or filled; and one of these surfaces may be coated or
enamelled with waterproofing substances, or the two separate cloths may be used,

page_text: or these divisions or compartments may be otherwise produced. In practice I
find it best to grind or comminute cork in a mill having horizontal grind-
stones therein. Although I have described this mattress or bed chiefly in
reference to use on the ground, it will be found convenient and well adapted
for iron and other bedsteads, especially when placed on spring laths.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and how the same
is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not restrict myself to
the particular forms and shapes herein-before described and shown by the
Drawings, and that I reserve a right to vary the details described; and that
what I claim and desire to secure by these Letters Patent is, the manufacture
of an improved bed or mattress, having a waterproof outer surface to prevent
the absorption of moisture from wet or damp surfaces, and to keep the bed dry
when not in use, light in weight, and compact in form, in the manner and for
the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Ritchie, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
S. CARPMAEL.
GEOE RITCHIE. (L.S.)