IMPROVEMENTS IN SOLIDIFYING THE RASPINGS AND OTHER WASTE OF HORNS AND HOOFS, AND IN APPLYING THE PROCESS TO THE CEMENTING OF PREPARED HORNS, HOOFS, AND TORTOISESHELL
Year: 1858

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Macpherson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
27th December 1858.
I, JAMES MACPHERSON, of Aberdeen, in the County of Aberdeen, North
5 Britain, Comb Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SOLIDIFYING THE RASPINGS AND OTHER WASTE OF HORNS
AND HOOFS, AND IN APPLYING THE PROCESS TO THE CEMENTING OF PREPARED
HORNS, HOOFS, AND TORTOISESHELL," to be as follows:-
My said improvements refer to subjecting the dust, sawdust, shavings,
0 raspings, crossings, and cuttings of animals horns and hoofs, first, to the action
of moisture and heat, and afterwards to considerable mechanical pressure,
whether to solidify the softened waste materials, or to cement prepared pieces
of horn or hoof to each other, or to tortoiseshell.
One method I employ is to take the waste materials in as clean a state as
[Price 6d.]

page_text: possible, free from extraneous matter, then enclose them in a cotton or other
cloth, and completely saturate them with pure water until sufficiently softened,
after which they may be transferred to a preparatory metal mould, heated to
300 degrees of Fahrenheit or thereabouts; pressure is then to be applied
until the superfluous moisture is expelled, in which state it must remain until
the materials have acquired sufficient firmness, when the roughly prepared
article must be removed to a finishing mould, and heat as carefully applied
as is usual when treating the natural solid horn or hoof, and it is at this
stage of the process that the work may be inlaid, when desired, with
ornamental devices. Parts of horn or hoof requiring to be cemented or
joined, either to each other or to tortoiseshell, must be previously neatly
fitted, and afterwards subjected to a like process of saturating with water,
and then heating and pressing in a vice press, or by similar means, and when
cold the parts so operated on will be found firmly united.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Macpherson in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th June 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
MACPHERSON, of Aberdeen, in the County of Aberdeen, North Britain, Comb
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty in the twenty-second year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said James Macpherson, Her special license that I, the said James
Macpherson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or, such others as I,
the said James Macpherson, my executors, administrators, or assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN SOLIDIFYING THE RASPINGS AND OTHER WASTE OF HORNS AND
HOOFS, AND IN APPLYING THE PROCESS TO THE CEMENTING OF PREPARED HORNS,
HOOFS. AND TORTOISESHELL," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said James Macpherson, by an instrument in writing under my hand and
seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-

page_text: vention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause
the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Macpherson, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, that is to say:
My said Invention relates to subjecting the dust, sawdust, shavings,
raspings, croppings, and cuttings of animal horns and hoofs, first, to the action
of moisture and heat, and afterwards to considerable mechanical pressure,
whether to solidify the softened waste materials, or to cement prepared pieces
of horn or hoof to each other, or to tortoiseshell.
One method I employ is to take the waste materials in as clean a state as
possible, free from extraneous matter, then enclose them in a cotton or other
cloth and completely saturate them with pure water until sufficiently softened,
after which they may be transferred to a preparatory metal mould, heated to
300 degrees of Fahrenheit, or thereabouts, pressure is then to be applied
until the superfluous moisture is expelled in which state it must remain until
the materials have acquired sufficient firmness, when the roughly prepared
article must be removed to a finishing mould, and heat as carefully applied as
is usual when treating the natural solid horn or hoof, and it is at this stake
of the process that the work may be inlaid, when desired, with ornamental
devices. Parts of horn or hoof requiring to be cemented or joined either to
each other or to tortoiseshell, must be previously neatly fitted, and afterwards
subjected to a like process of saturating with water, and then heating and
pressing in a vice press, or by similar means, and when cold the part so
operated on will be found firmly united.
In carrying out of my Invention practically, it is important to guard against
the contact of oil or grease either with the materials under operation or the
moulds used in the process. The water used in the preparatory operation of
steeping the waste horn must have been previously deprived of air by boiling,
as I have found that the air contained in unboiled water prevents the perfect
solidification of the moulded horn. Instead of using pure water for the
steeping process, preference is given to a solution of lime and potass, which
accomplishes the partial softening and preparation of the horn in a more
rapid and effectual manner than water alone. The proportions of lime and
potass which I prefer to use for this purpose are one ounce of lime and
half an ounce of potass to three gallons of water, which has been previously
deprived of air by boiling. The steeping of the horn in this solution produces

page_text: a partial decomposition, and cleanses it, so as to render it in the best state for
the subsequent operations to which it is subjected. Although, as I have
stated, it is necessary to avoid carefully the contact of oil or grease either with
the horn or the moulding apparatus, yet it will in some instances be requisite,
in order to prevent the adhesion of the horn to the mould, to apply to its
surface a very small quantity of fine grease, in applying which as little as
possible should be used. The moulds used in this process of utilising waste
horn are of the "boxed" kind, that is to say, they are made with a ledge
all round the lower half of the mould, into which the upper half fits closely, so
as to allow of its collapsing or following up the compression of the horn. The
two parts of the mould must be made to fit each other with accuracy, in order
to. prevent the escape of the material during the severe compression to which
it is subjected. The moulds used in this process are "boxed" round the four
sides, with a view of obtaining a perfect edge on all sides of the moulded slab
or other article, which would not be the case if the moulds ordinarily used
were employed, as these are only "boxed" on two sides, and thus the ends of
the moulded article are imperfect. In the preliminary moulding operation,
heat is applied in the usual manner, but the temperature is not raised quite so
high as that required for the final moulding. In this operation the horn is
subjected to pressure, which may be effected either by means of a screw or
hydraulic press, the compression serving to agglutinate or form into a solid
mass the previously disintegrated particles of horn, and also to expel the
moisture contained in the mass. After compression, the block of horn will
be nearly the shape and size of the intended block, and it is allowed to remain
in the heated mould for a few minutes, to give it firmness and solidity. The
mould for the final operation is exactly the size of the intended article, and it
is at this stage that the work may be inlaid with various ornamental devices,
if required. These devices, which are pressed into the moulded horn, may be
executed in gold, silver, or other metals, ivory, tortoiseshell, ornamental woods,
crystal, stone, or other suitable decorative materials. In the operation of the
final moulding, care must be taken to maintain an exact and regular heat; but
as this part of the process is precisely similar to that ordinarily followed m
preparing horn in the solid or natural state, it will be unnecessary to enter
into further particulars. In forming slabs or other articles according to my
improved mode or system, I set aside the smallest or finest horn dust to form
the surface or external layer of the slab, as this produces the best and choicest
work, whilst horn scraps or dust of a commoner quality may be used for the
larger portion or main body of the block. The superficial layer of fine horn,
or the whole of the horn composing the article, may be dyed or stained to any-

page_text: desired tint or colour prior to the moulding operations, that is, provided a
colour different to the natural tint is required. In cementing or joining pieces
of horn thus manufactured, the parts to be joined are neatly fitted to each
other, the edges are then wetted with water, and the parts covered with paper,
which serves to confine the moisture and steam, and prevent the air from
acting on the surfaces at the moment of cementation. A pair of tongs
suitable for grasping the scarfs or bevelled parts are then heated to the
ordinary heat usually employed for pressing horn; the parts are grasped with
the tongs and placed in a vice. the jaws of which are screwed up with
sufficient force to make the work extend under the pressure. The joined
pieces are allowed to remain in the vice until quite cold and solid, when the
parts will be found to be perfectly united. In this manner all kinds of waste
horn, hoofs, and so forth, may be used for the manufacture or production of a
variety of useful and ornamental articles.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, I may observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine
or restrict myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had
occasion to describe or refer to, as many variations may be made therefrom
without deviating from the principles or main features of my Invention; but
what I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention
secured to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,―
First, the system or mode of utilising waste horn and other similar animal
matters, and applying the same to the production of useful and ornamental
articles, as herein-before described.
Second, the system or mode of manufacturing useful and ornamental articles
from dust, raspings, and otherwise waste scraps of horn and other similar
animal matters by the means and in the manner herein-before described, or
any mere modification of the same.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Macpherson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-fifth day of June, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-nine.
JAMES MACPHERSON. (L.s.)