CERTAIN MACHINES OR MACHINERY, UPON IMPROVED PRINCIPLES AND METHODS OF USING THE SAME. FOR THE PURPOSE OF CLEANSING DRY AND OTHER HARBOURS, RIVERS, CREEKS. BARS OF HARBOURS, AND PREVENTING BARS FROM MAKING. REDUCING BANKS OR SHOALS, OPENING A CHANNEL THROUGH SANDS AT SEA, OR CLEARING AWAY THE SAND OR BEACH TO GET OFF SHIPS GROUNDED BY ACCIDENT OR STRESS OF WEATHER ON SANDS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1803

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I. STEPHEN
HOOPER, of Walworth, in the Parish of Saint Mary, Newington, and County
of Surrey, Gentleman, 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 Third day of February.
in the forty-third year of His reign, give and grant unto me. the said
Stephen Hooper, His especial licence that I, the said Stephen Hooper, during
the term of years therein mentioned, should and lawfully might use, exer-
cise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed.
my Invention of " CERTAIN MACHINES OR MACHINERY, UPON IMPROVED PRINCIPLES
AND METHODS OF USING THE SAME. FOR THE PURPOSE OF CLEANSING DRY AND OTHER
HARBOURS, RIVERS, CREEKS. BARS OF HARBOURS, AND PREVENTING BARS FROM
MAKING. REDUCING BANKS OR SHOALS, OPENING A CHANNEL THROUGH SANDS AT SEA,
OR CLEARING AWAY THE SAND OR BEACH TO GET OFF SHIPS GROUNDED BY ACCIDENT OR
STRESS OF WEATHER ON SANDS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES:" in which said Letters
Patent there is contained a proviso obliging me, the said Stephen Hooper,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, to cause a particular
description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery
within six calendar months after the date of the said recited Letters Patent,
as in and by the same (relation being thereunto had) may more fully and at
large annear

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Stephen Hooper, do hereby declare that my said Invention is described by the
above Drawings, and the following explanation thereof, that is to say: -
Fig. 1, the apparatus for this back water, and the reservoir may be erected
either in a concave form or any other which local circumstances may require,
in any place where the waves of the sea come up to the harbour's mouth, or
near to it, as at the letter A. It may be built of any dimensions, with timber
or other materials, but the larger reservoir the greater will be the force of the
back water, and the proportion should be about thirty feet in length to twenty
in breadth. If built of timber, a number of square piles B must be placed at
about two feet asunder, and of such a length as, when driven sufficiently deep,
to leave the upper part of them on a level with the top of pier head. A row
of these piles being being placed in front, another row must be driven close to
the pier head to answer to it, and a range to form each end; the front and
back rows must be strongly tied, or locked together by timber C, framed
across, and keyed, and the piles at the ends in like manner, for the whole
must be made sufficiently strong to confine the body of water contained in it,
and to withstand the action of the sea against it. The front part of the reser-
voir, and the end next the sea, must be supplied with a number of blocks or
pieces of timber, D, about twelve inches square, framed between the piles from
the bottom to the top, to be flush or square with the inside of the piles, for
the valves to shut against. These blocks must be placed about one foot
asunder, and thus openings will be formed between the piles, of about two feet
wide by one foot deep. The whole of the front, and the end next the sea,
must be formed with these openings, to each of which a flap or valve E must
be so fixed that it may open inwards and freely admit the water when the
waves drive against the reservoir; and then by closing, when the wave draws
back, prevent the water from returning. Thus a large quantity of water will
be continually collecting. The bottom of this reservoir must be covered with
stones or boards, to prevent the water passing through the back part of it, and
the side next the harbour must be strongly planked within the piles to confine
the water, that part only excepted which communicates with the tunnel, for at
the lower part of the reservoir, on the side next the harbour, a sufficient opening
must be left to admit the mouth of a tunnel or tube F, F, of proper dimen-
sions and length, to convey the water from the reservoir to the upper part of
the harbour. This tunnel or tube F, F, must be fixed along by the inside
of the pier head, close to the ground, and be fitted with a number of
sluices G. G, about ten feet distant from each other. In cleansing a dry
harbour, the person employed to superintend the business must, at high water,

page_text: open the sluice next above the water's edge, and, when the sea runs high, the
next below it; for the water in the tunnel will, by the action of the waves on
the reservoir, be considerably higher than the tide itself, or level of the water
in the harbour; and the current from the sluice or sluices will drive the soil it
meets with into the water; and as the tide ebbs he must open another sluice,
and then another, during the whole ebb, or while any water will flow from
them, which it will do at all times when the waves beat against the reservoir.
This process will scour from each part of the harbour, along the head in
succession, a quantity of soil proportioned to the height of the tide, and of the
water driven into the reservoir.
Fig. 2. Horizontal Windmill.-A, the outer part of the mill, which may be
built upon an octagon, square, or any other form, from twenty feet diameter,
more or less, by fourteen feet deep, more or less, with posts B, to be braced or
otherway's secured. The outside to open and shut like Venetian blinds D, D,
or with a number of valves, or with shutters or otherways, either on an hori-
zontal or perpendicular directions, to admit the wind coming into the building on
the weather side, and to fall down or shut to prevent the wind going out on the
leeward side. On the top of the building, at E, must be a bay or circle for a fly
wind wheel F, G, to work between in a horizontal direction. This fly wheel F, G,
is fixed upon an upright shaft. The inside part of this wheel, next the shaft, at
G, must be boarded close, about seven feet and a half from the centre, to form
a rim fifteen feet diameter, more or less, to fasten thirty floats or flyers upon,
more or less, of a length to work as close to the bag or circle at E as possible;
cach float two feet and a half broad, more or less, fixed upon an angle of
about ten degrees, more or less. This mill may be built on any suitable build-
ing to carry forward any kind of manufactory.
Fig. 3 is a machine for pecking up rocks under water, so as to open or
assist in making a navigation. A, A, two views of a lighter or vessel.
B, B, B, B, are peckers prepared for pecking of stone, fixed at the end of iron
bars or spars C, C, C, C, of a sufficient length to reach the rocks the vessel is
riding over. The upper end of the bars or spars to have a number of knotches
to hook upon catches, as at a, fixed on the side of the vessel. These peckers
are worked by the rolling of the vessel. When the side is down, the knotch on
the bar or spar hooks to the catch at a, on the side of the vessel; and when
that side rolls up, the lower part of the spar or bar pressing against the ship's
side at d, when it frees the catch at a, the pecker falls down with velocity to
peck up the stone at the bottom. Each bar or spar must have a guide at E to
steady the upper end, with a roller at the back part to let the spar slip up and
down. There must be a weight hanging on a pully fixed on the center of the

page_text: vessel, communicating to the roller, to draw the upper end of the spar or bar
to the vessel's side on her rolling down, and to admit of its freeing the catch on
her rolling up. f, the weight; 9, the pulley; h, the roller. These peckers
may be fixed by different machinery to work by the motion of the vessel.
Where the vessel has no motion, the peckers may be worked by the roller D,
working round this roller, extending fore and aft on each side of the vessel as
far as the peckers extend, with a number of cogs about three parts round the
roller for a set of cogs fixed to each spar or bar to work into. On the rollers
going round, the bar is raised up till it comes to that part of the roller where
there is no cogs, when it frees itself, and drops down with velocity to peck the
stone. These rollers may put in motion by manual labor, horse, wind, or
water, and may be worked by different machinery.
Fig. 4, a shifting keel to assist ships, hoys, barges, or other vessels, in
going to windward. ,A, A, A, represent the bottom, side, and end of a
barge; the keel forty feet long, more or less, in three pieces or lengths
B, B, B, more or less, two feet deep by three inches thick, more or less, to
fasten together at the ends by hooks and rings or otherways, which forms
a joint convenient for putting together or taken to pieces.
On the upper
and lower edges of the keel, at each joint, and in the middle part of the
after length and the fore part of the foremast length, are chains fixed as
at a, b, c, d, to confine the keel to the bottom of the vessel in a perpendicular
direction, and to keep the middle part of the after length in the center of the
bottom at a. The chains to be confined as tight as possible. The other three
pair of chains b, c, d, when going to windward, a proportion of each chain
must be veered away from the lee side, to keep the keel straight, one part with
the other, about four degrees from a line with the main keel, or middle line
fore and aft with the vessel, as p* Fig. The keel being in this position
will draw the vessel to windward. When going through the water observe
when the chains to leeward are veered away, to take in those to windward;
and when put about, to veer away the other chains to shift the keel on the
opposite angle; but, on making short tacks, the keel may be kept entirely fore
and aft, by taking in on cach side an equal quantity of the chains. If the
vessel will not stay with a common helm, by veering away the chain d till the
foremost length of the keel is about four degrees more across, will assist in
bringing her about when the water is too shallow for the keel. By slacking
the lower chains on one side, and taking in those on the opposite side, will
trace the keel to lay flat to the bottom of the vessel, or may be taken on
board. This keel may be made all in one piece, and made fast by joints,
hooks, or otherways, to the side or bottom of the main keel, to admit of

page_text: it's hanging up and down, and kept in that position by changing ropes or
otherways, to admit of its being traced up to the vessel's bottom on her
taking the ground or coming into shallow water.
Fig. 5, two views of a lighter or vessel for scouring away bars, &c. A, A,
lighter or vessel, forty feet long, more or less, by sixteen feet broad, more
or less, with three wells in the bottom B, C, D, one on each side. and
one in the centre; the bottoms to be level with each other from
side to side of the vessel. The middle well C to be ten feet square, more
or less; the sides straight up, about three feet, more or less, and
then to contract to about eight feet at the top, more or or less, and may be
built up of a heighth level with the deck; the two side wells B and D twenty-
eight feet long, more or less. The sides next well C may be continued upright
about three feet, and then a deck laid across to make the upper part light, the
ends forward and aft to be built up square with the top of these side wells;
the whole to be made water-tight. To let the water into the outer wells
B and D, must be six holes, more or less, E, E, E, E, E, E, cut thro' each
side of the vessel's bottom, each hole to be about twelve inches square the
lower part level with the bottom of the well the foremast and aftermast of
these holes to be kept as near to the ends as convenient, and the others
divided at nearly equal distances; to have a valve on the inside of each hole to
admit of the water flowing into the well on the side rolling down, and closing
on the vessel's raising up, to prevent the water returning out again; the wells
B and D communicating with the well C by four holes F, through that part
adjoining the side wells B, D, with valves on the inside of the wells C to
admit of the water discharging from the outside wells into well C, and prevent
it's returning, by which means a body of water will be raised in well C, above
the level of the water withoutside of the vessel, in proportion to the rolling of
the vessel by the agitation of the sea, or by other means.
The water may be
raised likewise by the vessel's pitching, when the water flows in the fore part
of the side wells B and D, and when raising up, there being a middle parti-
tion in the side wells at G, the water will discharge itself into the middle well
at F; the same in the after part of the vessel when falling and raising. The
head of water in well C is conveyed into a trunk or small well H, about two
feet square, communicating with a hole cut through the vessel's bottom, as
near the center as convenient, to admit of a tunnel I to convey the water
through to reach down to the ground, to scour away the soil, &c. This
tunnel may be made of canvas, or other fit materials of different lengths, to
lace or otherwise fasten together, to lengthen or shorten, as the depth of
water may require.

page_text: Fig. 6, improvements upon a water wheel for raising water, secured by
Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of November, One thousand eight hundred
and one, as described in my Specification. A, a square case or cylinder made
water-tight, seven feet wide, more or less, by thirteen feet long or high, more
or less. B, B, B, the bay or reams for the wheels to work between. C, C, C,
the wheels for raising the water, with four floats, more or less, fixed on one
shaft F. D, D, D, a floor or partition under each wheel, made to hold water,
with eight holes E, E, E, more or less, of a sufficient size to admit of the
water coming through each hole to have valves E, E, E, fixed with hinges, or
otherways, on one side, the other side permitted to open about seven inches,
which will cause the water that comes through to flow in a circular direction,
contrary or opposite to that which the wheel works upon, which will assist the
raising of the water. These partitions and bays for the wheels to work in must
be kept about three feet asunder, or as far as one wheel will raise the water up
for the other to take hold of it; and by increasing the number of water wheels,
&c., the water may be raised to any heighth, and the pace or velocity for the
wheels to work to raise the water will be about sixty revolutions per minute.
Fig. 7. A, a water wheel fixed upon an horizontal direction twelve feet
diameter from the outer part of the floats, more
or less. B, B, B,
sixteen floats, more or less, two feet long by two feet broad, more or
less, fixed on an angle of ten degrees, more or less, on the outer rim of
the wheel at A, eight feet diameter, covered with boards close home to
the shaft, to prevent the water passing through. This wheel is fixed on
a shaft C, the lower end working in a step fixed on the ground, the wheel
being fixed on the shaft upon a level with the tail water in a bay D, D,
for the floats of the wheel just to work clear, and built secure, to prevent the
water from dispersing, with an opening to that part next the sluice at E to
admit of the water flowing or forcing under the wheel A, which will put the
wheel in motion with a power equal to the head of water; the floats of this
wheel may be put upon a perpendicular direction, as Fig. 9.
Fig. 8, a water wheel and tunnel for scouring away sand or loose soil for
getting a ship off the sand or main. A, the wheel, six feet diameter,
more or less, described in section of the wheel Fig. 6. B, B, the frame,
seven feet square, more or less, of a sufficient depth for the wheels to work
clear of the bridgtrees C, C, for the upper and lower gudgeons of the shafts
that the wheels A, E, and F, are fixed on to work clear. D, D, a circle or
bag for the water wheel A to work between. F, a cog wheel, about twenty-
seven inches diameter, working into a cog wheel E, about nine inches diameter,
fixed on the main shaft that the water wheel A is fastened to.
At the upper

page_text: end of the gudgeon of the shaft that wheel F is fixed upon, is an universal
joint affixed with a hook or an eye to fasten the end of a small cable or
hawser G, by turning round of which will put the water wheel A in motion;
the frame B being covered over with canvas. or cther fit materials, to
prevent the water dispersing out at the top, except upon one square, where
an opening must be left about two feet, with a short tunnel H pointing down
to direct the force of the water to scour away the ground. The frame B, B,
must have a ring at each corner to fix ropes K, K, K, K, to lower the frame
down within about one foot of the ground, and a rope to each of the outer
corners to guy the frame to that part of the ship where the ground is wanted to
be scoured away, the cable G being fastened one end to the shaft that wheel
F works upon, the other end brought on board and fastened to a hook with
an universal joint. The work may be put in motion by a wye wheel, with an
endless rope, which, or other proper means prepared for the purpose, to fix at
any part of the ship; the cable to be guyed up at different parts. as at I, I, I, to
lead it clear-N.B. The multiplying wheels F and E, if required, may be
fixed with the wye wheel, &c., &c., to work at the upper end of the cable on
board the ship, and the lower end of the cable being made fast, as before
described, to the upper end of the shaft of the water wheel A.
Fig. 9, a wheel twelve feet diameter, with a rim A, A, on the outside, to which
the upper part of the floats B, B, B, are fastened; these floats to be thirty inches
long, more or less, fixed upon an angle of ten degrees, more or less, and con-
nected together by a rim C, C. at the lower ends, which rim must be kept down
close to the bay E, Fig. 2, and at D, D, Fig. 7, to prevent as little wind or water
as possible passing under the wheel, the upper end, at rim A, A, being closed
into the centre to prevent the wind or water passing through that part of the
wheel, when the wheel will be put into motion by the water acting against the
floats in passing through bay next to the rim C, C, as section Fig. 9. The
water in passing or forcing through the floats will put the wheel in motion
according to the head of water; or this wheel may be worked by both ends of
the wheel being closed into the centre at C, C, and A. A, and the water let in
between the floats, as per section of Fig. 9. This wheel may likewise be worked
in a river or stream, keeping the wheel just under water across the stream,
observing to keep the rim C, C, that the ends of the floats are fastened to
fronting the stream or tide, when the water in forcing through between the
floats will put the wheel in motion to carry forward any work according
to the strength.-N.B. When the wheel is made to work in the tide, then
the floats may be twelve feet long. more or less.
The scouring away the ground for getting ships off the sand, &c., (as per

page_text: P. HOLFORD.
STEPHEN HOOFER. S.)
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the same First day of August,
in the year above mentioned, the aforesaid Stephen Hooper came before our
Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, and all and every thing therein contained, in form above written. And
also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor of the
Statute in that. case made and provided.
Inrolled the same First day of August, in the year above written.