Year: 1887

page_text: I THOMAS HARPER of Phoenix Needle Works Webheath Redditch in the County of
Worcester Manufacturer 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 :-
My invention has for its object improvements in needles which are so constructed as
to require less power or force in their manipulation than those now in use.
In order that my invention may be clearly understood and more easily carried into
practice I have appended hereunto a sheet of drawings upon which is illustrated four
figures showing various views of one of my improved ordinary sewing needles but the
principle is equally applicable to all kinds of needles used for hand sewing.
Figure 1 is an enlarged view of the needle A looking right into the eye a¹ thereof.
Figure 2 is a cross section of the needle on the line B. C.
Figure 3 is a similar view to Figure 1 only showing a cotton threaded through the
eye a thereof.
Figure 4 is a part section on the line H. K. and a part elevation.
In needles as now used the end or body of the cotton or other material or substance
used in the needle has to be drawn through a hole which is only the size of say part a²
of the needle and thus considerable tightness is experienced especially in hard materials
or work such for instance as tailors seamstresses or harness and sail making though the
difficulty is experienced in all hand sewing and it is not unusual to see the hand slip
off the point of a needle time after time in the attempt to pull it through that is after
the point has already been forced through up to the eye thereof. Now I make a
portion a of the needle so long as to enable me to force the eye with the cotton or
other substance so far through the material with the thimble that the tightness of
compression is overcome before the hand lays hold of the front part to pull it the
remaining distance. But besides this I groove the back part a³ out at a and a' in
such a manner that the cotton or other sewing medium may lie therein as shown by
Figures 3 and 4 and when the grooves are so made as to be slightly narrower at the
entrance there is but little liability of the thread coming out, and indeed where the
grooves are quite plain or taper that is wider at the entrance than at the bottom
[Prine 6d1

page_text: the thread becomes compressed therein and does not easily move.
The groove may
be made easily near the back and so as to give freedom of movement to the cotton at
that part to open if necessary for the thimble but it is important to form the groove
accurately near the eye portion of a³. The inclines a' and a' of the eye a¹ are for the
purpose of assisting the operation of threading the needle.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is :-
The improvements in needles having the back ends formed so that the thimble will
push well through the work in combination with the grooves on each side thereof in
which the sewing material lies to reduce the bulk thereof substantially as and for the
purpose herein set forth and as shown upon the drawings.
Dated this 22nd day of December 1887