CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON SHIPS' PUMPS
Year: 1818

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
CLYMER, late of Philadelphia, but now of Cornhill, in the City of London,.
Mechanic, send greeting..
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third did, by
His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-first day of
November, in the fifty-ninth year of His reign, give and grant unto the
said George Clymer, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, His especial licence, full
power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said George Clymer, my exors,
admors, and assigns, during the term of years therein mentioned, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and
the Town of Berwick-upon- and also all His Majesty's Colonies and Planta-
tions abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON SHIPS' PUMPS;"
in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso, that if I, the said
George Clymer, shall not particularly describe and ascertain the nature of my
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an
instrument under my hand and seal, and cause the same to be inrolled
in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent, that then the said
Letters Patent, and all liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby granted,
shall utterly cease, determine, and become void, as in and by the same (relation
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
George Clymer, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and manner of performing the same, is particularly described and ascertained
by the annexed Drawing, and following description of the Columbian ship's
pump or extinguishing engine, which from the peculiar arrangement of its
cylinders, pistons, and valves, acquires the properties of not being obstructed,
choked, or impeded in its operations by any substance or materials which are
not too large to pass through the valves and the tube through which the water
ascends, which forms the lower part of it as a pump.
Figure I., A, A, the cylinders; B, B, the outer case in which the valves C, C,
are placed; C, C, the valves, one open and the other shut, communicating with
the raising tube D, through which the water ascends; D, the tube through
which the water ascends; E, E, the valves through which the water is dis-
charged out of the cases B, B, by the descent of the pistons F, F, which are
alternately filled and discharged by the ascent and descent of the pistons F, F,
alternately opening and closing, the valves C, C, and E, E, and discharging
the water into the case G, G, which case is seperated from the cases B, B, by
the valves E, E, and the valve seats H, H; I, I, I, I, the leather of the valves,
by which the valves are attached to their respective seats by the four plates
K, K, K, K, and the screws L, L, and by which the-leathers of the valves
C, C, and E, E, are fastened to their respective places by the screws 'L, L,
and M. The valves C, C, are attached to their respective places by one
screw M, and the valves E, E, are connected by the two screws L, L K, K,
the circular aperture through which the water is discharged from case G, G,
after having passed the valves E, E; by the descent of the pistons F, F;
N, N, N, N, the four connecting links by which the pistons F, F, are connected
to the lever 0, 0, by which they are alternately elevated and depressed, and to
which they are attached by the bolts P, P; P, P; Q, the upright piece which
forms part of the lever O; O, and is braced by the pieces R, R; the use of
which is to attach ropes U, U, of any convenient length through the holes
S, S, in order to enable any number of men which may be desirable and
requisite to co-operate with those working at the staves passed through the
lever at the four holes T, T; T, T.
2
...
X, X, is a part which connects the two cylinders together, in which
the two steps Y, Y, between which the trunnion of the lever works, which
is secured in its place by the two keys Z. The intention of the circular]
aperture, which intersects the aperture K, K, and G, G, is, when it is used as a
ship's pump, to apply a tube or hose' thereto; and supply the vessel with water

page_text: from alongside, if necessary, aby throwing the "hose overboard instead of
receiving the water from the hold.
Figure II.,.side view of the Columbian ship's pump or extinguishing engine.
A shews the cylinder, connected with B, B, the outer case in which the
valves C, C, are placed. D is the tube through which the water ascends and
communicates with the aperture C, C, which one of the valves C alternately
closes and opens by the elevation and descent of the piston FE, E, is the
aperture through which the water is discharged by the descent of the piston F
out of the case B, B, into the case G, G, which is alternately opened and closed
by one of the valves E, and, is finally discharged through the aperture K.
Lis the bolt. by which the valve E is attached; and M is a bolt by which
the two valves. C, C, are attached to their respective places; N, N, N, N, are
the four links by which the piston F is connected to the lever O by the four
bolts P, P, P; P.; Q is the upright piece which forms part of the lever O,.by:
which the pump is worked at the upper end of it; where there are two holes:
S, S, extending in opposite directions, through which ropes may be passed, by
which a great number of men may co-operate in working. the pump or
engine.
.
Figure III., top view of the Columbian ship's pump or extinguishing engine.
A; A, shew the two cylinders in which the pistons F, F, alternately work by
the action of the lever 0; B, B, is the outer case in which the valves C, C,
are placed; C, C, shews one of the valves open; E, E, shews one of the two
valves E, E, open; G, G, G, shews the case into which the water is discharged,
which case is seperated from the cases B, B, by the valves E, E, and the
valves seats H, H, (as described in Figure I.), through which the water is
discharged at the aperture K (as described in Fig. II). I, I, I, I, is the
leather of the valves. K, K, K, K, shews the four plates through which
the bolts L and M pass which secure the valves to their respective places;
L, L, are the two screw bolts which secure the two valves E, E, to their
respective places; M is the screw bolt which secures the two valves C, C,
also to their respective places; "a is the aperture which is left open for the
purpose of putting the valves E, E, into their proper places, which is closed
by a plate of metal with a flange projecting on the lower side from itself,
in order to embrace leather between it and the lower surface of the upper
part of the case G, G, G, to make it perfectly tight, and is secured by key
bolts to the case G, G, G, and has a projection with a screw to attach an air
vessel to it when used as an extinguishing engine, by attaching which, and
closing up the aperture K with a plate of metal by a screw with another

page_text: screw to screw a branch or hose to, it is changed from a ship's pump to
a most powerful extinguishing engine.
. Many of the parts of this engine I do not claim as my Invention, but the
new and peculiar arrangement of the cylinders, pistons, and valves I do
claim as my Invention.
-
In witness whereof, I, the said George Clymer, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and nineteen.