IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU- FACTURE OF LUBRICATING MATTERS
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Christopher Hill, of the Great Western Railway,
Chippenham Station, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF LUBRICATING MATTERS."
Sealed the 13th March 1857, and dated the 13th September 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Christopher Hill at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 13th
September 1856.
I, CHRISTOPHER HILL, of the Great Western Railway, Chippenham Station,
do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF LUBRICATING MATTERS," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists in combining a saponified substance made from
the materials generally used in the composition of soap and a gelatinous
substance made from vegetable matters, and amalgamated with animal,
vegetable, or mineral fats and oils, together with caustic alkali, soda or lime
water, and in combining rosin oil or rosin grease, commonly known as
antifriction grease, with dead or heavy oil, fish or vegetable oils, lime or
argillaceous earth.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Christopher Hill in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th March 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHRISTOPHER
HILL, of the Great Western Railway, Chippenham Station, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Christopher Hill, Her special licence that I, the said Christopher
Hill, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Christopher Hill, 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 " IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE MANUFACTURE OF LUBRICATING MATTERS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Christopher Hill, 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 Christopher Hill, 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, that is to say:-
This Invention consists in combining a saponified substance made from the
materials generally used in the composition of soap and a gelatinous substance
made from vegetable matters and amalgamated with animal, vegetable, or
mineral fats and oils, together with caustic alkali, soda or lime water, and in
combining rosin oil or rosin grease, commonly known as antifriction grease,
with dead or heavy oil, fish or vegetable oils, lime or argillaceous earth.
And in order that my said Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, I will proceed to describe the methods in which I
prefer to prepare lubricating matters for lubricating railway and such like
axles, where great speed is required.

page_text: I prepare a saponified substance, made after the usual method of soap-
boiling, and I keep the same down to what is called "a reduced soap," that is
to say, to retain about four times more fluid than hard soap, or I reduce the
common hard soap by remelting and adding four parts of water to the
same.
"
I prepare a vegetable pulp or gelatinous matter by taking cwt. of flour,
3 cwt. of water, and mix them well together, and to this I add 3 cwt. of a
solution of caustic soda or potash at the specific gravity, by Twaddle's aero-
meter, of 1.120, and I add this preparation to 10 cwt. of the "reduced soap,'
such as above described, whilst in a melted state, and I mix them intimately
together; and, lastly, I add 3 cwt. of tallow and 1 cwt. of palm oil, or other
fats or oils may be used, and I place the mixture over a slow fire, so as to
make the whole perfectly liquid; I stir the ingredients well together until they
are intimately mixed; I then cool down, and the process is complete. I
sometimes add 1 cwt. of pure clean argillaceous earth.
To make a common cheap grease for slow speeds, tramways, trucks, road
carts, &c., I select a pure clean argillaceous earth, perfectly free from grit, and
which upon analysis contains about 4 parts of potash in 100 parts. I reduce
this to a fine powder, and take 2 cwt. of it, to which I add about the same
quantity of rosin oil, or rosin oil with shale, or paraffine, or other dead oil, and
one part of caster oil or rape or other vegetable oil; I mix these well with the
argillaceous earth, and add about 1 cwt. of fresh thick lime water or cream of
lime, or in place thereof about 7 lbs. of alkali solution of the strength pre-
viously mentioned; in some cases I omit either of the last and combine the
oils and earth together. Or, in place of the above, I take 7 lbs. of wheat flour
and mix it with 28 lbs. of cold water, I then add 14 lbs. of alkali solution, to
which I add and well stir until thoroughly combined cwt. of rosin oil; I
then take 2 cwt. of argillaceous earth and 2½ cwt. of rosin oil, mix these two
well together so as to be perfectly free from specks; I then add the vegetable
pulp previously made; when they are well mixed, I add one cwt. of thick lime
water, stir them thoroughly, and then leave it all to "set up," which will take
place in a short time.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner
of performing the same, I would have it understood that I do not confine
myself to the proportions above described; nor do I make any claim to the
employment of the pulp or gelatinous matter obtained from vegetable sub-
stances in the preparation of lubricating substances; nor do I claim any of the
fatty or oily bodies above mentioned when separately considered; but what I

page_text: claim is, the combination or compound first herein described; and I also claim
the combination or compound secondly herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher Hill, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
WILLIAM JORDEN REYNOLDS,
Chippenham.
CHRISTOPHER HILL. (L.S.)