An Improved Construction of "Butterfly" for Hansom Cabs, "with Means of Affixing a Lamp or an Indicator thereto.
Year: 1885

page_text: An Improved Construction of "Butterfly" for Hansom Cabs,
"with Means of Affixing a Lamp or an Indicator thereto.
We MICHAEL JOHN ROWLEY and CHARLES ALEXANDER WHEELER both of
14 Blandford Street, Portman Square, Middlesex, Engineers, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of our invention, is to make by casting or otherwise, a Butterfly for a
Hansom Cab, that it can have affixed at some part, a head lamp, or an indicator,
or both.
For the purpose of our invention, we form a skeleton frame of a bottom and a
flat plate, to the top bar of which, we form spikes having balls thereon somewhat
like a coronet, with spaces between the spikes for the reins to be lodged in. To
the flat plate, we arrange appliances for the reception of a head lamp and also
for an indicator, such as that patented by us, on the 25th day of August 1884
N° 11607.
The flat plate can be dispensed with and the lamp or the indicator can be affixed
to the uprights by which the coronet is carried, or appliances, can be affixed or
arranged on the head lamp, or on the indicator, or on both, by which one, or both
of those articles can be affixed to the "Butterfly."

page_text: An Improved Construction of "Butterfly" for Hansom Cabs,
with Means of Affixing a Lamp or an Indicator thereto.
We MICHAEL JOHN ROWLEY and CHARLES ALEXANDER WHEELER both of
14 Blandford Street, Portman Square, Middlesex, Engineers do hereby declare the
nature of our said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The object of our invention is to make by casting or otherwise a "Butterfly" for
a Hansom Cab that it can have affixed at some part a head lamp or an indicator
or both.
For the purpose of our invention we form a skeleton frame of a bottom and a
flat plate to the top bar of which we form spikes having balls thereon somewhat
like a coronet with spaces between the spikes for the reins to be lodged in. To
the flat plate we arrange appliances for the reception of a head lamp and also for
an indicator such as that patented by us on the 25th day of August 1884,
N° 11607.
The flat plate can be dispensed with and the lamp or the indicator can be affixed
to the uprights by which the coronet is carried or appliances can be affixed or
arranged on the head lamp or on the indicator or on both by which one or both of
those articles can be affixed to the Butterfly.
Our invention will be clearly understood by the annexed drawings in which at
Figure 1 we show a front elevation of the improved Butterfly.
a is the base plate for fixing it by screws to the front roof of a Hansom Cab.
To this base plate a two uprights b, b, are fixed to carry a top or cross bar c of
curved form, this having spikes d, d, arranged fan shape and surmounted by
spheres as on a coronet. The two uprights b, b have also a stay e the front face of
which has a socket f with or without a spring for holding the tongue of a Head
lamp therein. The back part of the stay e or of the uprights b, b are formed with
apertures to enable a "Director" to be fixed to it or them, the cords or wires F, F,
of which pass through the Cab roof as to be within reach of the passenger so that
he can pull either of the cords F, F, to raise an indicator hand A directing the
driver to go to the right or to the left or to stop by simultaneously pulling both
cords F, F, as described in our previous patent before referred to.
In the drawing Figure 2 we repeat the same letters of reference as in our
previous specification. This Figure not only shows our "Director" in position as
attached to the frame of the Butterfly with the reins QQ led through between
the spikes d, d, as guides but shows a Head Lamp affixed. Figure 3 being a front
view of the same.
1
The Head Lamp can be set at any angle for deflecting the light in the necessary
direction and instead of the Butterfly frame being made in skeleton form i.e. of
uprights and cross bars it may be made, by casting or otherwise, of a sheet or

page_text: plate of metal, with a shiftable plate pivotted thereto on which the word
Disengaged" can be exposed to view when a "fare" is desired, this plate being
under the control of the Driver.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is:
The improved form of Butterfly for Hansom Cabs, and the means of fitting a
lamp or a direction Indicator or both thereto as described and substantially as
shown in the annexed drawings.