IMPROVE- MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING SILK WASTE AND OTHER FIBRES,"
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Cunliffe Lister, of Bradford, in the
County of York, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING SILK WASTE AND OTHER FIBRES,"
MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING SILK WASTE AND OTHER FIBRES,"
Scaled the 11th December 1874, and dated the 13th June 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 13th June 1874.
I, SAMUEL CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Bradford, in the County of York,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING SILK WASTE AND OTHER FIBRES,"
to be as follows:-
In my last Patent dated 23 January 1874, No. 299, among other
things I propose to "jigg," that is, rough comb certain descriptions of
silk waste, and then to remove the gum, and then comb it a second
time. From further experiments I have discovered that cocoons and
other long fibred silk may with advantage be "jigged," in order to
remove the bulk of the noil and also to separate the fibres into suitable

page_text: lengths, the gum being first sufficiently discharged to allow of the
The "jiggings" are then drawn into
proper working of the silk.
suitable slivers and again combed.
I
A Patent was granted to me dated 1st April 1872, No. 3139, in which
propose to use segmental combs inserted into the cleaned fringe of
fibre, but I find that when fine combs are used it is difficult to get
them to penetrate, and also the pins are much damaged by the drawing
rollers. This I obviate by having a strong row of pins in front of the
fine ones, and I force the fibre into the fine combs by means of a card
or brush.
When using circular feed combs, such as described in the last-named
Patent, I find it advantageous to pull out the projecting fibres by a
circular nipper about an inch, or it may be a little more or less,
depending upon the fibre, as this enables me to place it better into the
teeth of the comb which works with it.
Another improvement consists in drawing out the fibrous material
from the circular feed comb by a nipper, which hold it until the ends
are cleaned by suitable means; a fine comb or by preference finc
segmental combs are inserted into the cleaned fringe, which is then
drawn into a sliver..
The cleaning cards hitherto used for combing silk have always been
képt clear by means of a brush, but I find I can dispense with it by
speeding the fancy and using a card roller to keep it clear from fibre,
this roller is cleared by the cleaning card..
Another improvement consists in crushing and at the same time
stretching and elongating the waste silk. For this purpose I have a
machine constructed with a pair of feed rollers into which the silk is
fed, and it is then taken by another pair of rollers which have a draft
of one or thereabouts; and for some sorts a succession of rollers may be
used having a draft between each pair. After passing through the
machine the silk is accumulated on to a lap cloth, and removed from
time to time, or it may be delivered into cans in a continuous sliver.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 12th December 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE. PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SAMUEL
CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Bradford, in the County of York, Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the
thirty-seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto me, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister,
Her special license that I, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Samuel Cunliffe Lister, 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 Islo
of Man, an Invention .for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBING SILK
WASTE AND OTHER FIBRES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister, 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
Invention, 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 Samuel Cunliffe Lister, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, that is to say:—
In my last Patent dated 23rd January 1874, No. 299, among other
things I propose to "jig," that is, rough comb certain descriptions of
silk waste, and then to remove the gum, and then comb it a second
time. From further experiments I. have discovered. that cocoons and
other long fibred silk may with advantage be "jigged" in order to

page_text: remove the bulk of the noil and also to separate the fibres into suitable
lengths, the gum being first sufficiently discharged to allow of the
proper working of the silk. The "jiggings" are then drawn into suit-
able slivers and again combed.
Hitherto cocoons, knubs, and other descriptions of waste silk (after
the gum has been sufficiently discharged) have been prepared by
drumming before being combed, although this process thoroughly opens
the silk it is apt to break it and make it very short; on the other hand,
if it is not drummed it is so rough and full of unopened pieces that it
destroys the combs. I have discovered after a series of experiments,
that by "jigging" it, that is, rough combing it, the silk is much longer
and that the combs are much less damaged than by combing it at one
process.
A. Patent was granted to me dated 1st April 1872, No. 3139, in which
I propose to use segmental combs inserted into the cleaned fringe of
fibre, but I find that when fine combs are used it is difficult to get
them to penetrate, and also the pins are much damaged by the drawing
rollers. This I obviate by having a strong row of pins in front of the
fine ones; and I force the fibre into the fine combs by means of a
revolving card or brush.
At Figure 1 of the Drawings hereunto annexed I have shewn a
diagram view of a revolving card or brush acting, as above described, to
force the fibre into the segmental combs. In this diagram a is a portion
of a circular feed comb, such as described in the Specification of the
above-mentioned Patent; b, an endless card for cleaning the fringe
projecting therefrom in the ordinary manner; c, a revolving roller
covered with wire card or fine teeth. The under side of this roller acts
upon the cleaned fringe and holds it out straight from the comb a;
whilst the fringe is thus held out by the revolving card the segmental
combs are caused to rise up between the comb a and roller c and to
penetrate the fringe held out between them. The segmental combs, as
above stated, I form with a strong row of pins in front of the fine ones.
The front row may advantageously be formed of pins set at about 17 to
the inch, whilst the back row or rows may be of pins at about 30 to the
inch. Segmental combs formed in this manner may be used for
inserting into a fringe of fibre projecting either from endless travelling
combs or from nippers. before drawing of the fringe therefrom,

page_text: When using circular feed combs, such as described in the last-named
Patent, I find it advantageous to pull out the projecting fibres by a
circular nipper about an inch, or it may be a little more or less, depend-
ing upon the fibre, as this enables me to place it better into the teeth of
the comb which works with it.
At Figure 2 of the Drawings I have shewn a diagram view of a
combing machine constructed in this manner:-a is the circular feed
comb which carries above it a number of bobbins carrying the slivers
to be combed. The ends of the slivers are laid into the comb, and pro-
ject out from it. The ends of the slivers are fed outwards from the
comb at the point 6* in the ordinary manner, being first raised out of
the comb, moved outwards, and again deposited into it. b is the
circular nipper to lay hold of the fringe of fibre thus caused to project
from the comb and to draw it out a distance, say of about one inch.
The fringe having been thus partially drawn out from the comb a is
deposited into another comb c at the point where the combs a and c
meet together. As the combs revolve the fibres are drawn through
their teeth, the shorter fibres are retained in the comb and carried
round to drawing rollers to be drawn off into a sliver, whilst the longer
fibres remain in the comb a to be drawn off separately. This fringe of
long fibre before being drawn off is by preference still further cleaned
by an endless revolving card d, and segmental combs are afterwards
caused to rise up into it at e in the manner herein-before described; the
fringe. of fibre is then drawn off, the ends of the slivers are again fed
outwards, and the same operations are repeated. The machine shewn
by the diagram is a double machine, their being two feed combs a
working on opposite sides of the comb c.
Another improvement consists in drawing out the fibrous material
from the circular feed comb by a nipper, which holds it until the ends
are cleaned by suitable means, a fine comb or by preference fine seg-
mental combs are inserted into the cleaned fringe which is then drawn
into a sliver.
Figure 3 shews a diagram view of a machine constructed in this
manner. a is the circular feed comb; b, a circular nipper by which
the fibrous material is drawn off from the comb, and by which it is
carried past an endless revolving card c or other cleaning instrument;
segmental combs d'arc then caused to rise up into the cleaned fringe

page_text: projecting from the nipper before the fibre is drawn off therefrom into
a sliver by the drawing rollers e.
Another improvement consists in crushing and at the same time
stretching and elongating the waste silk. For this purpose I have a
machine constructed with a pair of feed rollers into which the silk is
fed, and it is then taken by another pair of rollers which have a draught
of one or thereabouts, and for some sorts a succession of rollers may
be used having a draft between each pair. After passing through the
machine the silk is accumulated on to a lap cloth, and removed from
time to time, or it may be delivered into cans in a continuous
sliver,
Figure 4 of the Drawings shews a diagram view of four pairs of
rollers arranged to act upon waste silk in the manner above described.
a, a, are four pairs of metal rollers, each pair being set to run at a
slightly greater speed than the preceding pair. The lower rollers of cach
pair is shewn to have an endless band 6 of leather or such like material
around it, which not only affords a soft surface where the fibre is
gripped between the rollers, but may also serve to support the silk
whilst passing from one pair of rollers to the other, as shewn. The
band around the lower roller of the first pair serves as an apron for
supporting the fibre as it moves up to the first pair of rollers. The
fibre may if necessary be passed two or more times between the rollers.
The distance apart between the several pairs of rollers is determined by
the length to which it is desired the fibre should be divided into. By
acting upon waste silk by rollers in the manner above described,
not only may the fibre be reduced to the length desired, but it will also
be straightened and loosened out and any twist that there may be in it
will be removed.
In witness whereof; I, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of December,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four