AN INSTRUMENT OR QUADRANT FOR TAKING AT SEA THE ALTITUDE OF THE SUN, MOON, OR STARRS, AS ALSO ANY OTHER ANGLES, BY MEANS OF TWO SUCCESSIVE REFLECTIONS OF ONE OF THE OBJECTS FROM TWO SEVERAL PLATES OF LOOKING GLASS OR POLISHED METAL, BY WHICH THAT OBJECT IS BROUGHT TO COINCIDE WITH THE OTHER; AND
Year: 1734

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Ju, v., o
whom these
presents shall come, greeting.
WHEREAS our trusty and welbeloved JOHN HADLEY, of East Barnet, in
our county of Hertford, Esquire, hath by his petition humbly represented unto
us, that he has, by long study and application, and at a very great expence,
invented and contrived "AN INSTRUMENT OR QUADRANT FOR TAKING AT SEA THE
ALTITUDE OF THE SUN, MOON, OR STARRS, AS ALSO ANY OTHER ANGLES, BY MEANS
OF TWO SUCCESSIVE REFLECTIONS OF ONE OF THE OBJECTS FROM TWO SEVERAL PLATES
OF LOOKING GLASS OR POLISHED METAL, BY WHICH THAT OBJECT IS BROUGHT TO
COINCIDE WITH THE OTHER; AND THAT AN EXPERIMENT HAS BEEN MADE OF THIS
INSTRUMENT IN A SMALL VESSEL, UNDER THE DISADVANTAGE OF A ROUGH SEA,
WHEREIN THE OBSERVATIONS MADE THEREBY WERE FOUND MUCH MORE CONSISTENT
THAN WHAT ARE USUALLY SEEN IN THOSE MADE ON BOARD A LARGE SHIP IN SMOOTH
WATER, AND BY CONSEQUENCE MAY BE OF SIGNAL USE TO OUR ROYAL NAVY, AND TO
THE TRADE AND NAVIGATION OF OUR KINGDOMS; AND THAT HE HAS ALSO INVENTED
A NEW LEVELL TO BE FIXED TO A QUADRANT FOR TAKING MERIDIONAL ALTITUDES AT
SEA, CONSISTING OF SPIRITS OF WINE CONTAINED IN A TUBE OF GLASS, WHICH HATE
WITHIN IT A SHALL HOLE TO STREIGHTER THE PASSAGE OF THE LIQUOR, BY WHICH THE
MOTION OF IT IS SO STRADY AND REGULAR THAT THEREBY AN ALTITUDE MAY BE TAKEN
AT SEA, ALTHO' THE HORIZON OR EDGE OF THE SEA BE NOT VISIBLE, MUCH BETTER
THAN BY ANY OTHER INSTRUMENT HERETOFORE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE, AND THERE-
PORE HE CONCEIVES-WILL ALSO BE OF CONSIDERABLE USE IN NAVIGATION;" he hath
therefore most humbly prayed us to grant him our Royal Letters Patent for
the sole making and vending the said instruments or quadrants for the term

page_text: of fourteen years, according to the statute in such case made and provided;
wee, being willing to give encouragement to all arts and inventions which may
be for the public use and benefitt, are graciously pleased to gratifye him in his
request.
KNOW YEE THEREFORE, that wee, of our especial grace, certain know-
ledge, and meer motion, have given and granted, and by these presents, for us,
our heirs and successors, do give and grant unto the said John Hadley, his execut-
ors, administrators, and assigns, our especial lycence, full power, sole priviledge
and authority, that he, the said John Hadley, his executors, administrators,
and assigns, and every of them, by himself and themselves, or by his and their
deputy or deputyes, servants or agents, or such others as he, the said John
Hadley, his executors, administrators, or assigns, shall at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times hereafter during the
term of years herein expressed, shall and lawfully may make, use, exercise,
and vend his said new invented instruments or quadrants, as above described,
within that part of our kingdom of Great Britain called England, our dominion
of Wales, and town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in such manner as to him, the
said John Hadley, his executors, adm", and assigns, or any of them, shall in
their discretions seen meet; and that he, the said John Hadley, his exe-
cutors, administrators, and assigns, shall and lawfully may have and enjoy
the whole profit, benefit, comodity, and advantage from time to time coming,
growing, accrueing, and arising by reason of the said Inventions, for and
during the term of years herein menconed, to have, hold, exercise, and enjoy
the said lycence, powers, priviledges, and advantages herein-before granted,
or menconed to be granted, unto the said John Hadley, his executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, for and during and unto the full end and term of
fourteen years from the date of these presents next and imediately ensuing,
and fully to be compleat and ended, according to the statute in such case
made and provided. And to the end that the said John Hadley, his executors,
administrators, and assigns, and every of them, may have and enjoy the full
benefit, and the sole use and exercise of the said Inventions, according to our
gracious intention herein-before declared, wee do by these presents, for us,
our heirs and successors, require and strictly comand all and every person
and persons, bodyes politick and corporate, and all other our subjects whatso-
ever, of what estate, quality, degree, name, or condition soever they be, within
that said part of our kingdom of Great Britain called England, our dominion
of Wales, and town of Berwick-upon-Tweed aforesaid, that neither they or
any of them, at any time during the continuance of the said term of fourteen
years hereby granted, either directly or indirectly, do make, use, or put in

page_text: practice the said Inventions, or any part of the same, so attained unto by
the said John Hadley as aforesaid, nor in anywise counterfeit, imitate, or
resemble the same, nor shall make, or cause to be made, any addition there-
unto or substraction from the same, whereby to pretend himself or them-
selves tho inventor or inventors, devisor or devisors, thereof, without the
lycence, consent, or agreement of the said John Hadley, his executors,
administrators, or assigns, in writing, under his or their hands and seals,
first had and obtained in that behalf, upon such pains and penaltyes as can
or may be justly inflicted on such offenders for their contempt of this our
royal comand, and further to be answerable to the said John Hadley, his
executors, administrators, and assigns, according to law, for his and their
damages thereby occasioned. And moreover, wee do by these presents, for us,"
our heirs and successors, will and comand all and singular the justices of the
peace, mayors, sheriffs; bayliffs, constables, headboroughs, and all other
officers and ministers whatsoever of us, our heirs and successors, for the
time being, that they, or any of them, do not, nor shall at any time here-
after during the said term hereby granted, in anywise molest, trouble, or
hinder the said John Hadley, his executors, administrators, or assigns, or
any of them, or his or their deputyes, servants, or agents, in or about the due
and lawfull use or exercise of the aforesaid Inventions, or anything relating
thereto. Provided always, and these our Letters Patent are and shall be
upon this condition, that if at any time, during the said term hereby granted,.
it shall be made appear to us, our heirs or successors, or any six or more of
our or their Privy Councill, that this our grant is contrary to law, or prejudiciall
or inconvenient to our subjects in general, or that the said Inventions are not
new inventions as to the publick use and exercise thereof in that said part of our
kingdom of Great Britain called England, our dominion of Wales, and town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed aforesaid, or not invented and found' out by the said John'
Hadley as aforesaid, then, upon signification or declaration thereof, to be made by
us, our heirs or successors, under our or their signett or privy seal, or by the lord's'
and others of our or their Privy Councill, or any six or more of them, under
their hands, these our Letters Patent shall forthwith cease, determine, and'
be utterly void to all intents and purposes, anything herein-before contained'
to the contrary thereof in anywise notwithstanding. Provided also, that
these our Letters Patent, or anything herein contained, shall not extend
or be construed to extend to give priviledge unto the said John Hadley,
his executors, administrators, or assigns, or any of them, to use or imitate
any invention or work whatsoever which hath heretofore been found out or
invented by any other of our subjects whatsoever; and publickly used or

page_text: exercised in that said part of our kingdom of Great Britain called England,
our dominion of Wales, or town of Berwick-upon-Tweed aforesaid, unto
whom like Letters Patent or priviledges have been already granted for the
sole use, exercise, and benefit thereof; it being our will and pleasure that
the said John Hadley, his executors, administrators, and assigns, and all
every other person and persons to whom like Letters Patent or priviledges
have been already granted as aforesaid, shall distinctly use and practice their
several inventions by them invented and found out, according to the true
intent and meaning of the same respective Letters Patent and of these
presents. Provided likewise, nevertheless, and these our Letters Patent are
upon this express condition, that if the said John Hadley, his executors or
administrators, or any person or persons which shall or may, at any time or
times hercafter during the continuance of this grant, have or claim any right,
title, or interest, in law or equity, of, in, or to the power, priviledge, and autho-
rity of the sole use and benefit of the said Inventions hereby granted, shall make
any transferr or assignment, or any pretended transferr or assignment of the
said liberty and priviledge, or any share or shares of the benefit or profit thereof,
or shall declare any trust thereof to or for any number of persons exceeding
the number of five, or shall open or cause to be opened any book or books for
publick subscriptions, to be made by any number of persons exceeding the
number of five, in order to the raising any sume or sumes of money under
pretence of carrying on the said liberty or priviledge hereby granted, or shall by
him or themselves, or his or their agents or servants, receive any sume or sūmes
of money whatsoever of any number of persons exceeding in the whole the
number of five, for such or the like intents or purposes, or shall presume to
act as a corporate body, or shall divide the benefit of these our Letters
Patent, or the liberty and priviledges hereby by us granted, into any number
of shares exceeding the number of five, or shall comitt or do, or procure to be
cōmitted or done, any act, matter, or thing whatsoever, during such time as
such person or persons shall have any right or title, either in law or equity,
in or to the said premisses, which will be contrary to the true intent
and meaning of a certain Act of Parliament made in the sixth year of the
reign of our late Royal Father King George the First, intitled (An Act for
the better securing certain powers and priviledges intended to be granted by
His Majesty by two charters for assurance of ships and merchandizes at sea,
and for lending money upon bottomry, and for restraining soveral extravagant
and unwarrantable practices therein menconed), or in case the said power,
priviledge, or authority shall at any time hereafter become vested in or in trust
for more than the number of five persons, or their representatives, at any one

page_text: time (reckoning executors or administrators as and for the single person whom
they represent as to such interest as they are or shall be intitled to in right
of such their testator or intestate), that then and in any of the said cases
these our Letters Patent, and all libertyes and advantages whatsoever
hereby granted, shall utterly cease, determine, and become void, any-
thing herein-before contained to the contrary thereof in anywise notwith-
standing. And, lastly, wee do by these presents, for us, our heirs and
successors, grant unto the said John Hadley, his executors, administrators,
and assigns, that these our Letters Patent, or the inrollment or exemplifi-
cation thereof, shall be in and by all things good, firm, valid, sufficient, and
effectual in the law, according to the true intent and meaning thereof, and
shall be taken, construed, and adjudged in the most favourable and beneficial
sence for the best advantage of the said John Hadley, his executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, as well in all our courts of record as elsewhere, and
by all and singular the officers and ministers whatsoever of us, our heirs and
successors, in that part of our said kingdom of Great Britain called England,
our dominion of Wales, and town of Berwick-upon-Tweed aforesaid, and
amongst all and every the subjects of us, our heirs and successors, what-
soever and wheresoever, notwithstanding the not full and certain describing
the nature or quality of the said Inventions, or of the materialls thereto con-
ducing and belonging.
In witness &
Witness ourself at Westminster the Tronts-sonond