THE BETTER APPLICATION AND ARRANGEMENT OF INDICES TO BOOKS OF ALL KINDS.
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Stephen Yeldham, of No. 9, Stamford Street,
London, for the Invention of "THE BETTER APPLICATION AND ARRANGEMENT
OF INDICES TO BOOKS OF ALL KINDS.".
Sealed the 21st July 1857, and dated the 13th May 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Stephen Yeldham at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 13th
May.1857.
I, STEPHEN YELDHAM, of No. 9, Stamford Street, London, do hereby declare
the nature of the said 'Invention for "THE BETTER APPLICATION AND ARRANGE-
MENT OF INDICES TO BOOKS OF ALL KINDS," to be as follows:-
An Invention the peculiarity of which consists in a new arrangement of the
index of books so as to render it always visible, and thus save much of the
time and trouble which is expended in turning to the ordinary indices. This
end is effected by extending the index leaves laterally to a sufficient extent
beyond the other leaves of a book to admit the index letters, and by printing
the latter on the front instead of the back of the leaves as the book is laid
open, as illustrated by the Drawings hereunto annexed. The necessary exten-
sion is obtained mainly by bringing out the index leaves nearly flush with the
edge of the cover or binding, and in a lesser degree. by a very slight extension
or enlargement of the binding. The ready index is applicable to books of all.

page_text: kinds and sizes requiring indices, and may be placed either at the beginning
or end of a book, and bound with the other leaves of the book in the usual
way.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Stephen Yeldham in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
12th November 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, STEPHEN
YELDHAM, of No. 9, Stamford Street, London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Stephen Yeldham, Her special licence that I, the said Stephen Yeldham, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Stephen
Yeldham, my executors, administrators, and 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 "THE BETTER APPLICATION AND
ARRANGEMENT OF INDICES TO BOOKS OF ALL KINDS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Stephen Yeldham, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said "Inven-
tion, 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 Stephen Yeldham, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be. particularly 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:
1
Heretofore the pages of indices have been made of no greater breadth than
the books to which they are attached, and their index létters, ori:letters of
reference, have generally been placed (especially for account book indices) on
the margins of the leaves, and in such manner that when the book is opened.
for. use at any part beyond the index, the index leaves are not readily distin-

page_text: guishable from the others, and the letters of reference are completely hidden,
whence considerable time and trouble are expended in referring thereto. Now,
the object of the present Invention is to allow of an index being more readily
and conveniently used, and more prominently brought within view than at
5 present, in order to facilitate and expedite reference to the same.
And my
Invention consists in applying to or combining with a book an index, the
pages of which are caused to extend laterally beyond the other pages of the
book (sufficiently to admit of the letters or characters of reference being placed
thereon), and to have such index letters, or letters or characters of reference,
▸ placed on the thus extended margins in such manner as to come in front and
altogether within view beyond the outer latéral edges of the other pages of the
book (or pages of the body of the book) when the book is opened for use at
any part excepting at the index. Thus the lettered margins of the index
leaves protruding beyond the leaves of the body of the book, and being within
ready reach and exposed to view, the index is easily handled, and reference
thereto considerably facilitated.
This improved arrangement is clearly exemplified in Figure 1 of the
annexed Drawing; the alphabetical letters of reference are arranged on con-
secutive pages, one below the other, but as before stated, instead of being as it
were on the back of the page so as to be concealed when the book is laid
open elsewhere than at the index, they are placed on the extended margins,
and (the leaves being properly cut for the purpose) are thus in front and all
exposed to view when the book is open for use, and may even be so when the
book is closed and lying on the same side as that on which the index is
situated.
In Figure 1 (a view of an account book with my improved arrangement
of index applied), the margins of the index leaves are shown as protruding
laterally beyond the pages of the book, and the letters of reference or alphabet,
A, B, C, &c., being on their extended margins, and on the left-hand side
thereof, come in front and within view when the book is open at any part
beyond the index, as stated. The fly leaf or first leaf of the index may, when
convenient, be made of stiffer material than the other leaves, or stiffened by
the addition of cloth or other suitable stiffening substance, or be caused to
extend laterally beyond the other index leaves, and be strengthened by cloth
or other suitable material, or may have attached to it a band of cardboard,
vellum, cloth, or other suitable substance for the more convenient handling or
turning over of the pages, and thus preserving them from wear. This last
mentioned projecting piece, which I call a guard, is illustrated at a, a, Figure
1, and may conveniently extend slightly beyond the edges of the binding, or a

page_text: piece of tape or other suitable material may be used with it or instead of it, as
shewn in Figure 2.
In carrying the Invention into effect, the mode I prefer to adopt (taking an
account book by way of illustration) is, after selecting the leaves for the index
and those for the body of the book, to take the leaves of the body of the book
(exclusively of those for the index), and cut them down longitudinally until
their breadth is suitably diminished, and the index leaves when attached will
consequently protrude to the desired extent. The book is then ruled, the
index and other leaves attached together, the edges trimmed, and, if desired,
marbled or sprinkled, and the whole bound; the index is then cut for the
alphabet, and the alphabet marked in or placed on. For other descriptions of
books I proceed in a similar manner; or leaves or pages may be selected for
the index of greater breadth than those intended for the body of the book, and
sufficiently so as to leave properly protruding margins. The index leaves
come nearly or wholly flush with the edges of the cover, or a binding some-
what enlarged or broader than ordinary may be adopted. It is customary at
present to mark the letters of reference on consecutive pages, beginning with
A, or A, B, on one leaf, and so on; cutting longitudinal strips from the outer
margins of the leaves so as not to conceal the letters on the following pages;
but to suit my improvements the arrangement of the letters may be altered to
a certain extent; thus, for example, according to the mode which I prefer to
adopt, the last letter Z may be marked on the first leaf, Y on the second, and
so on to A on the last; and the longest strip of leaf cut away from the last
page, the next less long from the preceding, and so on, in such manner as not
to hide the consecutive letters; this arrangement is clearly shown in Figure 2.
The margins may be strengthened with bands of parchment, cloth, or other
suitable material, as is now usual, and the letters printed or otherwise im-
pressed, marked, or placed on. Although the Drawings only represent the
index as applied to an account book, and with an alphabet of reference, it is
obvious that the same arrangement may, when convenient, be adopted for
other kinds of books (even for printed books), and other characters, or words,
or marks of reference to the contents of the index may be made use of.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare I am aware that books have
been hitherto made with projecting pieces in various parts of the book, occa-
sionally bearing letters, &c., to facilitate reference to certain portions of such
book, and I lay no claim thereto; but what I claim as constituting my said
Invention is the employment or combination with or application to a book
of an index, the leaves of which are caused to protrude or extend laterally

page_text: beyond the other pages of such book, and to bear on the thus extended
margins the index letters, or letters or characters of reference, so placed as to
come in front, and all simultaneously within view beyond the lateral edges of
the other pages of the book when the body of the book is open for use, as
herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stephen Yeldham, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eleventh day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
0 Witness,
M. HENRY,
77, Fleet Street.
STEPHEN YELDHAM (L.S.)