MEANS OR APPARATUS TO FACILITATE THE ACQUISITION OF LANGUAGES, APPLICABLE ALSO IN PRODUCING VARIOUS CHANGES IN MUSICAL COMBINATIONS
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Alfred Long at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 1st June 1864..
I, ALFRED LONG, of 3, Aylesbury Terrace, Walworth, in the County of
Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "MEANS OR
APPARATUS TO FACILITATE THE ACQUISITION OF LANGUAGES, APPLICABLE ALSO IN
PRODUCING VARIOUS CHANGES IN MUSICAL COMBINATIONS," to be as follows:-
The object of the Invention is to effect various changes in the combinations
of words or parts of sentences, so as by variety in the use or combination of a
limited number of words or parts of sentences, to obtain familiarity with a
large number of expressions in a language. For this purpose a sentence or
other series of words being given, I divide or cut it up into parts and provide
for each a series of equivalents or parts capable of being used in substitution
thereof with other of the parts of the sentence or series of words, and the
separate words or parts of sentences are applied to tables or surfaces which
are capable of being brought into a line, or it may be a series of lines, to form
sentences or combinations of words. A convenient form of apparatus for this
purpose consists of a polygonal or other shaped vessel which is divided trans-
versely or in the direction of the length of it into separate compartments or
chambers, each of which is provided with a series of words or parts of sentences,
and each of such words or parts of sentences is adapted to combine with the
words or parts of sentences of adjoining chambers in the same row or line of
chambers, and each chamber has an opening or is otherwise capable of presenting

page_text: one word or part of a sentence of its series in a line to be read consecutively
with words or parts of sentences of other of the chambers. Then, supposing
the words presented at the several openings of a row of chambers to be "he
sent his servants home," and the blocks or forms of each of such chambers to
have four sides or faces, then the first chamber of that row would be pro-
vided with a series of pronouns or other words changeable with "he;" the
next chamber would be provided with a series of verbs changeable with "sent,"
and so on; and in like manner may other sentences have the equivalents of
them to produce other expressions. I prefer, for convenience, to apply the
words or parts of sentences of each chamber to the faces of a cube or other
form, so that there will be one, or there may be more than one, of these cubes
or other forms loose in each chamber so as to be capable of changing their
relative positions by the rotation or partial rotation or other shaking of the
series of chambers, so as to obtain a different face at each change from that
last presented. And to facilitate changes of the surfaces presented, and con-
sequent variety in the sentences or combinations of words obtained after each
rotation of the series of chambers I apply studs or projections to the chambers
to act on the cubes or other forms employed to ensure change. In applying
the system to music, musical notes or signs in bars will be substituted for the
words or parts of sentences on the sides or faces of the forms employed. Several
rows or series of chambers may be arranged one above the other. Variety
of colours may be brought in aid of the various indications. Instead of the
surfaces to which the indications or signs are applied being placed in chambers
they may be formed to rotate or otherwise come into position so as to bring any
one of the indications or signs on each of them in a line to form a sentence, or
part of a composition, care being taken to exclude from view the indications
which are not for the time to form a sentence.