IMPROVEMENTS IN APPLYING POWER FOR DRAWING AND WORKING PLOUGHS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTS AND CARRIAGES USED FOR AGRICULTURAL PUR- POSES
Year: 1844

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
STACE, of Berwick, in the County of Sussex, Farmer, and PHILLIP VALLANCE,
of the same place, Farmer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Second day of April, in the seventh year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said William Stace and Phillip Vallance, Her especial licence, full power, sole
privilege and authority, that we, the said William Stace and Phillip Vallance,
our exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as we, the said William Stace
and Phillip Vallance, our exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term
of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPLYING POWER FOR DRAWING AND WORKING
PLOUGHS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTS AND CARRIAGES USED FOR AGRICULTURAL PUR-
POSES;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that we, the said
William Stace and Phillip Vallance, or one of us, shall cause a particular
description of the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date

page_text: .
of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
William Stace and Phillip Vallance, do hereby declare that the nature of our
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference
being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon (that is to say) :-
Our improvements consist in the application of wind power, by means of
portable wind mills or machines to drawing or working ploughs, and some
other agricultural implements and carriages used in agriculture, such as
harrows, rollers, scarifiers, clod crushers, drills, horse hoes, drain ploughs, mole
ploughs, thrashing machines, winnowing machines, chaff cutters, and other
implements that can be worked by power given off from a rotatory motion.
The most essential features in our improvements are the great reduction of
expense in cultivating land by substituting wind for horse power, and in being
able by it to plough, drain, and cultivate land without injuring it by the treading
of horses. But in order that our Invention may be better understood we will
proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 represents a plan, and Figure 2 a side view, partly in section, of a
horizontal windmill such as we prefer to use. 1, a, are two pieces of timber
joined together at equal distances from their ends in the form of a cross. Place
this cross on the ground horizontally for the base of the machine. b is a block
of wood on the centre of the cross piece a, a, with a hole in its centre for the
perpendicular shaft c to revolve in. This shaft c we prefer to be of iron, rounded
at the lower end, that it may turn easily in the hole in the block b. b is
another block of wood through which the shaft c passes. This block b is sup-
ported by four braces d, d, d, d, each brace having one end morticed into one
end of the cross bar a, a, forming the base of the machine, and the other end
morticed into the block b¹. e, e, e, e, are sockets, affixed to the upright shaft c,
to receive four arms f, f, which are fixed into them, and form a cross in a
horizontal position. These arms are secured to each other by strong iron
wires g fixed to each arm, and they are further supported in a horizontal posi-
tion by strong wires or tension rods g', each of which is fixed at one end to the
top of the shaft c, and at the other end to each arm f. On the end of each
arm f, farthest from the shaft c, is fixed an upright or mast h of wood, sup-
ported outwards (from the shaft) by a wooden shore or thrust ', fixed to the

page_text: top of the mast h, and to the arm f on which the mast is fixed. The upright.
masts h are further supported sideways by wires i, i, each of which is fixed at
one end to the top of the mast, and at the other end to the arms f, f, at right
angles with the one on which that mast is fixed, so that the masts may be
supported in a perpendicular position by the shore or thrust h' and the tension
wires i, i. jj, are iron hooks, fixed near the top and bottom of each mast h,
on the side farthest from the shaft c, to support the sails or vanes k. These
sails or vanes k (one of which is shewn separately at Figure 3) we prefer to
construct in the following manner-1, 1, is a rectangular frame of wood, into
the top and bottom of which frame a piece of wood (2) is morticed, of the
same dimensions as those which form the sides of the frame, and on this piece
of wood we fix two iron eyes or rides, at the same distance apart as the hooks
are on the masts, and equi-distant from the centre of the piece of wood.
Through the sides of the frame we cut the mortices, equi-distant from each other
and from the top and bottom of the frame. Into these mortices are fixed slips of
wood (3), (3), each reaching from the fore side to the hind side of the frame into
both of which they are morticed, thus forming bars across the frame amongst
which cloth or canvass is interlaced, which may be partly rolled up or spread
over the whole surface of the frame in proportion to the power of the wind.
One of these sails may be hung on each mast h by the eyes on the sails and
the hooks on the masts, so that it may turn freely and point the foreside of
the sail to the wind, like weather cocks when left at liberty. 7 are springs of
wood or steel, placed in a horizontal position across each arm f, at right angles
with a line drawn from the centre of the sail to the spindle, when the sail is
in such a position that that line will be at right angles with the plane of the
sail. To the hind part of the frame of the sail attach that end of the spring
opposite to it by a rod of wood m, at such a distance from the end of the
spring that a horizontal line from the centre of the sail to the shaft would be
at right angles with the plane of the sail. This end of the spring should be
sufficiently pliant to allow the hind part of the sail to yield to the pressure of
the wind about two feet outward and two feet inward. The fore part of the
frame of the sail should be attached to that end of the spring opposite to it by
a piece of wood n, wide enough for a slit or groove to be cut through it. This
groove should be cut through it at the end to which the spring is attached.
Through this groove the end of the spring should be admitted far enough to
admit of a pin or screw nut being applied at the end of the spring to keep it
on, and another pin should be put through the spring to keep this piece of
wood near the end of the spring, so that this piece of wood which attaches the
fore part of the sail to the short part of the spring may slide to and fro on the

page_text: way
end of the spring before this end of the spring is brought into action; and, as
the hind part of the sail is twice as far from the point on which the sail turns
as the fore part is, the hind part will yield to the pressure of the wind two
feet each way when the fore part yields only one foot each way; and as the
fore part may yield nine inches each way before the short part of the spring
is brought into action, that end of the spring will yield only three inches each
when the other end yields two feet each way; therefore the long part of
the spring may be sufficiently pliant to act on the sail in every position except
when the plane of the sail is at right angles with a line from its centre to the
shaft of the mill, and the short part may be sufficiently stiff to prevent the fore
part of the sail yielding to the pressure of the wind much more than one foot
each way. The wind, pressing on sails thus fixed, has a tendency to drive
the arms round in a circle in the same direction, whatever may be the
situation of the sails in that circle; for whenever the wind presses on either side
of the sails the springs are brought into action, and press the arms forward;
thus a powerful rotatory motion is given to the shaft in the direction of the
arrow in Figure 1. On the shaft c we fix firmly cross bars o, o, (shown
separately at Figure 7,) in a horizontal position, and in the form of a cross.
The ends of the bars we prefer to extend three feet from the shaft, and to be
fixed to each other by strong wires o¹. On these bars, at any distance from
the spindle, fix four pairs of pincers p (one pair on each bar). The distance at
which the pincers should be fixed from the shaft must depend on the relative
power of the wind to the resistance to be overcome. The farther the pincers
are from the shaft the faster they will move, but the less will be the power of
the mill. The pincers should be made sufficiently broad, say two and a half
inches, and grooved on the inside of their jaws longitudinally, so
a rope from slipping if pressed across the grooves and pulled. The pincers
may be fixed to the cross o by bolts through the upper jaw. The hinder part
or handle of the lower jaw should extend towards the shaft c, and be suffi-
ciently long and heavy to keep the jaws closed with considerable pressure, so
that the rope which they are intended to hold may not slip. This pressure
may be assisted by the centre, on which the lower jaw turns, being placed
below that part of the jaw on which the rope presses when drawn towards the
shaft. By this means the pressure of the rope itself will tend to close the
pincers on it. The pincers may be opened so as to release a rope from their
gripe, or to admit one into it, by the inclined plane q, fixed under the bars o in
such & position that the handles of the pincers p slide up it, and are thus
lifted sufficiently high to open the jaws of the pincers at the place where it is
desired that the rope should leave or enter. The machine may be prevented
as to prevent

page_text: from drawing itself towards the resistance which it has to overcome by stakes
driven into the ground close to the timbers forming the base of the machine,
and on that side of them nearest the resistance; and it may be prevented from
being blown over by a lever fixed to the same timbers, and extending beyond
them in the direction from which the wind blows, and staked to the ground.
The machine may be stopped in the following manner:-a cord r fixed to
the hind part of the frame of each sail, and attached to the arms f on which
the sail is hung, at any convenient distance from the shaft, but sufficiently
slack when the machine is working to allow the sails to swing outwards as far
as the springs will yield, when it is required to stop the machine, draw these
cords tight, and fix them so, when the hind part of the sails respectively are
pressed inwards by the wind; thus will all the sails be fixed, and the machine
will stop; for it is only by allowing the sails to yield to the pressure of the
wind that the rotatory motion is produced.
We will now describe the operation of ploughing by this or other suitable
construction of portable windmills, and we will suppose the field to be ploughed
bounded by fences on the north, south, east, and west, and the furrows to be
ploughed in the direction north and south. Place one wind machine A near the
north-west corner of the field, and another B (see Figure 4) near the south-
east corner, then place a strong pole C on stools of any convenient height, say
eighteen inches, parallel with the north fence and about ten feet from it. As near
to the north-west machine as convenient fix the pole (by chains attached to iron
stakes 4, 4, driven into the ground close to the fence, and by one chain about
ten feet long, attached to the east end of the pole, and to a stake 5 driven into
the ground, ten feet east of that end of the pole and ten feet from the north
fence, thus the pole. C will be fixed so that it cannot be drawn southward nor
westward; then fix another pole D opposite to it, at the same distance from the
south fence, by similar chains and stakes, in such a way as that it cannot be drawn
northward nor eastward; then attach to the middle of each pole two blocks or
rollers 6, 6, the blocks or rollers being temporarily fixed in their places by pins
passing through the pole. E is a rope sufficiently strong to draw a plough.
This rope is fixed in the pincers of the north-west machine, beginning on that
side of the machine nearest the blocks on the north pole, and passing it round
the pincers in the direction from south to west till it reaches near the place where
it is entered. At this place is situated the inclined plane q and suitable rollers to
guide the rope into the pincers. The rope E then passes round the east roller
on the north pole, thence round the east roller on the south pole, then to the
south-east machine B, and is fixed to it by its pincers, in the same direction
as in the north-west machine, guided in and out by rollers near the inclined

page_text: plane; it is then passed round the west roller on the south pole, thence round
the west roller on the north pole, and finally joined to the other end of the
rope at the north-west machine A, thus producing an endless rope. Then
attach two ploughs to this rope E, one between the north-east roller and the
south-east roller, but close to the north-east roller, and the other plough
between the south-west roller and the north-west roller, but close to the
south-west roller. The position of the plough is indicated in the side view
Figure 5, and by red lines across the line E in Figure 4. The ploughs, which
have wheels, may be attached to the rope in any convenient way, so that the
ploughman can readily attach or detach them without stopping the machines,
but we prefer to use the apparatus shewn at Figure 6; F being a pair of
pincers capable of holding the rope E securely between their jaws, which are
formed with teeth that their hold may be more secure; to the arms of the
pincers are attached links G, to which are affixed one end of a chain H by
which the plough is drawn; and it will be seen that any strain on the chain
H will have a tendency to close the jaws of the pincers securely on the rope
E. I, I, are other chains attached to the eyes F', with a tendency at all times
when those chains are acted upon to open the jaws of the pincers F, and
release the rope E. J is a hook connecting the parts of the chain H; but it
will be evident that that connection is preserved only so long as the ring K is
passed over the hook J; and when the ploughman wishes to stop his plough, or
other implement being drawn by the rope E, without stopping his windmill it
will only be necessary for him to release the ring K from the hook J, which he
will do by means of the line L, when the parts of the chain H will be
separated, and the chains I will be acted upon to open the pincers F. The
sails of the mills being hung on the arms in such a position that the fore
part of the sails will be on the south side of the arms when the arms point to
the east, with sufficient wind the sails will drive the arms round in a circle
from east to south, from south to west, &c., and the plough will traverse with
the rope respectively from the north-east roller to the south-east roller, and
from the south-west roller to the north-west roller, ploughing two furrows in
the direction north and south. The ploughs on reaching the rollers must be
detached, and each attached again to the rope in the other's former place. The
rollers must be moved the width of a furrow farther from the centre of the
poles, and the plough will proceed to plough two other furrows, and they may
continue to do so till all the land is ploughed between the poles. The poles may
then be moved farther eastward, and proceed as before, and so on until the
field is ploughed. The ploughs when they are detached from the rope at
either end are again attached to the rope between the blocks, and then again

page_text: to be detached when they come to the other block, and the plough is to be
attached to the other rope. It will be evident that although we have spoken
only of ploughs, other implements may be attached to and moved by the
ropes; and where the machinery, such as thrashing machines, chaff cutting
engines, and other machines which are stationary when in use, they may have
motion communicated to them by suitably arranged portable windmills or
engines, and we prefer the windmill shewn in the Drawings for that purpose.
Having thus described the nature of our said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we would wish it to be understood that we do
not confine ourelves to the precise details herein described, provided the peculiar
character of our Invention be retained; but what we claim is-first, the applica-
tion of portable windmills or machines for the purposes of drawing and working
ploughs and other implements and carriages used for agricultural purposes.
And, secondly, we claim the mode of constructing a horizontal windmill or
machine whereby the wind causes the sails to assume the proper positions,
subject to the resistance of springs or such like means applicable to the
drawing or working ploughs and other implements and carriages used for
agricultural purposes.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Stace and Philip Vallance, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Thirtieth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and forty-four
WILLIAM (L.S.) STACE.
PHILIP (L.S.) VALLANCE.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Thirtieth day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1844, the aforesaid William Stace and Philip Vallance,
came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged
the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and
specified, in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was
stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Second day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-four.