A NEW METHOD OF MAKING AND MANUFACTURING GOLD AND SILVER BUTTONS AND STUDS, SET WITH STONES, PEBBLES, CORNELIANS, PASTE, AND GLASSE, BY MAKING THE CUPS OR BOTTOMS THEREOF OUT OF ONE INTIRE SOLID THICK PIECE OF GOLD OR SILVER, WITHOUT ANY SODERING, WITH A NEW LETTER LINK TO THE BUTTONS TO DISTINGUISH THEM FROM THE BUTTONS OF OTHER MAKERS; AND BY REPEATED TRIALS AND EXPERIMENTS THE SAID METHOD HAD BEEN FOUND TO ANSWER MUCH BETTER AND TO BE DONE SOONER AND WITH LESS EXPENCE, THAN THE COMMON METHOD NOW IN USE
Year: 1770

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, JOHN SMITH,
of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Jeweller, sends greeting.
WHEREAS the said John Smith did, by his Petition, humbly represent
unto His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third (amongst other
things) that he had, by long study, pains, and expence, found out and invented
"A NEW METHOD OF MAKING AND MANUFACTURING GOLD AND SILVER BUTTONS
AND STUDS, SET WITH STONES, PEBBLES, CORNELIANS, PASTE, AND GLASSE, BY
MAKING THE CUPS OR BOTTOMS THEREOF OUT OF ONE INTIRE SOLID THICK PIECE OF
GOLD OR SILVER, WITHOUT ANY SODERING, WITH A NEW LETTER LINK TO THE
BUTTONS TO DISTINGUISH THEM FROM THE BUTTONS OF OTHER MAKERS; AND BY
REPEATED TRIALS AND EXPERIMENTS THE SAID METHOD HAD BEEN FOUND TO ANSWER
MUCH BETTER AND TO BE DONE SOONER AND WITH LESS EXPENCE, THAN THE COMMON
METHOD NOW IN USE," and thereby prayed His Majesty to grant unto him
His Royal Letters Patent for the sole making and vending of gold and
silver buttons, with stones, pebbles, cornelians, paste, and glass, made by
and after his particular and new Invention; and His said Majesty, being
graciously pleased to condescend to his request, did, by His Royal Letters
Patent, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-fifth day of May, in the

page_text: tenth year of His reign, give and grant unto the said John Smith, his exe-
cutors, administrators, and assigns, especial license, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that he, the said John Smith, his executors, administrators, and
assigns, and every of them, by himself and themselves, or by his and their
deputy or deputies, servants or agents, or such others as he, the said John
Smith, his executors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and
no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term of
years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend
his said Invention within that part of His Majesty's Kingdom of Great Britain
called England, His Dominion of Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed,
and also in His Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, in such manner
as to him, the said John Smith, his executors, administrators, and assigns, or
any of them, should in his or their discretion seem meet, and that he, the
said John Smith, his executors, adminstrators, and assigns, should and lawfully
might have and enjoy the whole profit, benefit, commodity, and advantage
from time to time coming, growing, accruing & arising by reason of the said
Invention, for and during the term of years therein mentioned; to have,
hold, exercise, and enjoy the said license, powers, priviledges, and advantages
by the said Letters Patents granted or mentioned to be granted unto the said
John Smith, his executors, administrators, and assigns, for and during and
unto the full end and term of fourteen years from the date of the said Letters
Patent next and immediately ensuing, and fully to be compleat and ended,
according to the Statute in such case made and provided; in which said
Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that if the said John Smith shall not
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of his said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under
his hand and seal, and cause the same to be inrolled in the High Court of
Chancery within four calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent, and all liberties
and advantages whatsoever thereby granted, should utterly cease, determine,
and become void, anything therein-before contained to the contrary thereof
in anywise notwithstanding, as in and by the said Letters Patent (relation
being thereunto had) more fully appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that he, the said John Smith, doth by this Instrument
in writing, under his hand and seal, particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of his said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed;
in manner following (that is to say) :—

page_text: .
to be made, cut the bits out with a punch
or press, either round or oval, according to
the shape of the buttons or studs to be made,
then take a steel punch and also a stcel dye,
both of the form and shape of the Drawing
in the margin of these Presents, which
punch and dye may be made cither round
or oval, but quite plain, without the little
nicks or notches. Then fix them true in a
stamp or press provided for that purpose,
and put the bit or bottom in the dye, and
with a blow of the stamp the punch rises
it into the form of a round or oval cup, thins
the bottom of it, and thickens the bezel for
the cramps. The same may be performed
also with a flat punch and a flat dye, but the
round ones are the most preferable. And to
make a more slight or inferior sort of buttons
or studs, take the bottoms, which are usually
the others, and strike them up in the dye with a common
vith the metal or lead force fixed to it. Then, to finish the cups
struck as aforesaid ready for the shanks, links, and setting, take
el punch, and another steel dye of the same size, form, and shape
with the addition of the little nicks or notches in it, in which
cup or bottom, and with a metal or lead force strike the punch
h compleats the cup or bottom with the cramps on it for fastening
or the cups may be made in the plain dye alone without the
n them, which may likewise be made by raising them on the
instead of sinking them in the die, and then striking the cup or
a punch into a lead, pewter, or metal dye, which would form
he same as the dye, with nicks or notches in it. And the same
as to making the cups and forming the cramps upon them, might

page_text: also be produced by various methods, as well similar as differing from those
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, the said John Smith hath hereunto set his hand
and seal, the Twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand seven hundred and seventy.