AN IMPROVED SELF-CLOSING LETTER PAPER OR CARD
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Edmund Edwards at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 16th March 1883. A communication
to him from abroad by Auguste Callewaert, of Brussels, in the Kingdom of
Belgium
"
EDMUND EDWARDS, of the firm of Edwards and Co:-, Patent Agents and
Engineers, of 40, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex "AN IMPROVED SELF-CLOSING LETTER PAPER OR CARD [a communi-
cation to him from abroad by Auguste Callewaert, of Brussels, in the Kingdom of
Belgium]
9031
This invention relates to letters as ordinarily used for correspondence, in which
the paper or card on which such correspondence is written is itself provided with
means of securely closing it without the use of a separate envelope, and it has for
its object a novel method of manufacture of such letters by which they are simple
and easily used, and their contents are kept perfectly secret.
In the novel method hereinafter described the form of the letter does not differ
materially from those in ordinary use and it may be applied to them. By its use
the letter can be folded and closed with great ease and quickness, and its gumming
down is effected in less time than is required to close an ordinary envelope, whilst
the document itself always preserves the date of the official post stamp, a matter
frequently of importance. Moreover there is no fear of the body of the letter being
torn, as is the case with memorandum forms having gummed tongues, whilst
letters and post cards can be readily copied by taking care to leave outside the
closing tongue.
#
The accompanying drawing is in illustration of the invention. Figure 1 shows
the form of the unfolded sheet of paper, and figure 2 the same sheet folded as
hereinafter described.
a is the gummed closing tongue, b the safety fold, c a dotted line shewing the
second fold, d a dotted line shewing the first fold, e a perforated line which may
be sometimes used to define the closing tongue. 6162 are gummed corners upon
the safety fold b.
In order to use the sheet shewn, the rectangle formed by 1, 11, (in figure 1) is
falded down along the dotted line d, so as to leave the paper half the size, with

page_text: the addition of the tongue a and the fold b, the part 1 lying upon 2, and 11 upon 2³.
The part b is then folded upon 1, 11, as shewn in figure 2 and the rectangles 11, 21,
are folded along the dotted line c upon the part 1, 2.
The lower edge of 11, 21, will then be at the desired distance from the line e, and
the tongue a and the gummed corners 61, 62, of the safety fold b being moistened
with the tongue or otherwise, they are closed down.
The closing tongue a will adhere to part of 2' as well as to part of 1 which is left
exposed by 11, 2¹
It will also adhere to 6', and b' to 6' so that it will be impossible for the body
of the letter to be read whilst so closed. In order to open the letter a knife or
other instrument or the finger is introduced between 1 and 11 and the line'e is
torn. For cards this line e is preferably perforated so as to render the opening
more easy and prevent the body of the letter from being torn.
For paper of double shape, the part f of 1, 11, will be held by the safety fold
which will also be double.
A modified form of the invention consists in prolonging the closing tongue a
(figure 1) up to or beyond the exterior edge of the safety fold b, and this
prolonged piece is gummed and receives a postage stamp either impressed or
adhesive. The closing tongue a need not in this case be gummed except at the
corner opposite the stamp. The part reserved for the stamp will only adhere
to the closing tongue a, and will be separate from the safety. fold b.
In the shape and arrangement of the paper as described, 1, 11 being folded
upon 2, 21, the safety fold b on 1, 1', and 11, 2¹ on 1, 2, and then the closing
tongue a on 2¹, it will only be necessary to moisten the two gummed corners of
the tongue a in order to close the letter entirely, and to bring the stamp folded
upon 2 into the position usually occupied by it on the upper right hand corner
of the letter.
The gumming of the tongue a and of 6' 6' may be complete or not as desired.