IMPROVEMENTS IN. METALLIC PENS AND PENHOLDERS
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Hinks and George Wells, of Birmingham,'
in the County of Warwick, Manufacturers and Copartners, for the
INNREWARD CITY OUTLETT ATT ST. NGAON WT 10 Попиелит
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Hinks and George
Wells at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 22nd March 1856.
We, JOHN HINKS and GEORGE WELLS, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturers, and Copartners, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN. METALLIC PENS AND PENHOLDERS," to be
as follows:-
Our improvements in metallic pens consist in making them as herein-after
described, so that when dipped into ink they shall take up a much larger
quantity of ink than the ordinary pen. We place upon the back of the pen a
saddle piece, the end of which, resting over the back of the pen and near the.
point, is formed into a dome-like shape. When the pen is dipped into ink the
said dome becomes filled with ink, and on the removal of the pen, the said ink.
is retained by capillary attraction between the said dome and the back of the.
pen. During writing, the ink is gradually withdrawn from under the said.
dome, by the greater capillary attraction in the slit of the pen. Instead of.
forming the dome-like reservoir of a separate piece of metal, we sometimes cut.
a tongue out of the metal of which the pen itself is made above the slit of the.
said pen, and by turning the said tongue down upon the back of the pen we.
produce nearly the same effect as by the arrangement last described. Our:
improvements in penholders consist in the following method of making,

page_text: them elastic-We pierce the blank, of which the metallic part of the
holder is made, in such a manner that the said blank is nearly divided
transversely into two parts, the said two parts being held together by two
necks, situated respectively midway between the middle and the two edges of
the blank. When the said blank is made into a cylindrical form, it constitutes
the metallic part of a penholder, and has great elasticity We sometimes
join the two parts of the penholders by one neck only, and give it the form of
of a bow for greater elasticity. The lower end of the holder may be prolonged,
so as to bear upon the back of the pen near the point, and thereby regulate
the hardness of the same. The prolonged point of the holder may be formed
into the dome-like shape before described, so as to convert an ordinary pen
into a fountain pen. We sometimes make the holder of a form somewhat
resembling that of the ordinary metallic pen, called a "barrel pen," laving a
long and broad slit therein. By inserting a metallic pen into the said
holder, and pushing it to a greater or less distance in the said holder, a
greater or less elasticity is communicated to the pen.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Hinks and George Wells, in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 20th.September 1856..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN HINKS
and GEORGE WELLS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manu-
facturers, and Copartners, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did for Herself; Hér heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said John Hinks and George Wells, Her special licence that we, the
said John Hinks and George Wells, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said John Hinks and George Wells, our. 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 METALLIC PENS AND PEN-
HOLDERS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John Hinks
and George Wells, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
"

page_text: under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us
or them, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In-
vention, 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 John Hinks, on behalf of myself and
the said George Wells, 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):-
Our improvements in metallic pens consist in making them in the manner
herein-after described, and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing; the said
pens, when dipped into ink, take up a much larger quantity of the said ink than
pens of the ordinary construction.
Figure 1 represents a back view, Figure 2 a side view, Figure 3 a front
view, and Figure 4 a section, of a pen constructed according to our Invention.
We place upon the back of the pen a saddle piece a, secured to the pen by its
ends turning round the edge of the pen, as will be best understood by reference
to Figure 3. The said saddle piece a carries a tongue or projection b, which
hangs over the back of the pen, and to which a dome-like shape is given, as
represented. When the pen is dipped into ink, the said dome b becomes filled
with ink, and on the removal of the pen from the ink vessel the ink underneath
the dome is retained, by capillary attraction, between the said dome and the
back of the pen. During writing, the ink is gradually withdrawn from under
the dome by the greater capillary attraction in the slit of the pen. Instead
of forming the dome-like reservoir 6 of a separate piece of metal, we sometimes
cut a tongue out of the metal of which the pen itself is made, the said tongue
being cut above the slit of the said pen, as indicated in dotted lines at c,
Figure 3. By turning the tongue c, Figure 3, down upon the back of the pen,
the same or nearly the same effect is produced as by the use of a separate
piece b.
Our improvements in penholders consist in the following methods of con-
struction: We pierce the blank, of which the metallic part of the holder
is made, in such a manner that the said blank is nearly divided transversly
into two parts, the said two parts being held together by two necks, situated
respectively midway between the middle and the two edges of the blank, as re-
presented in Figure 5. When the said blank is made into a cylindrical form, it
constitutes the metallic part of a penholder, and has great elasticity. We some-
times join the two parts of the penholder by one neck only, and give it the form
of a bow for greater elasticity, as represented in Figure 6. The lower end of

page_text: the holder may be prolonged, so as to bear upon the back of the pen near the
point, and thereby regulate the hardness of the same, as represented in Figure 7.
The prolonged part of the holder may be formed into the dome-like shape
before described, so as to convert an ordinary pen into a fountain pen. We
sometimes make the holder of a form somewhat resembling that of the
ordinary metallic pen, called a "barrel pen," having a long and broad slit
therein. By inserting a metallic pen into the said holder, and pushing it to a
greater or less distance in the said holder, a greater or less elasticity is com-
municated to the pen, as represented in Figure 8. We also sometimes,
construct penholders with a tongue projecting underneath the pen, so as
to enable the pen to hold a larger quantity of ink than it otherwise would.
This part of our Invention is illustrated in front view in Figure 9, back
view in Figure 10, side view in Figure 11, and in section in Figure 12,
of the accompanying Drawing. d is the barrel of the penholder; flaps e, f,
turn back against the convex side of the barrel d, and hold the pen, in a
manner which will be understood by reference to Figure 10; g is a tongue,
forming part of the holder, which said tongue is nearly parallel with the h,.
as will be best understood by reference to Figure 12. When the pen is dipped
into ink the tongue 9 retains a large quantity of ink between itself and the pen.
pen
Having now described the nature of our said Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit
ourselves to the precise details herein described and represented, as the same
may be varied without departing from the nature of our said Invention; but
we claim as our Invention,--
Firstly, the improvement in metallic pens, berein described, and illustrated
in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the accompanying Drawing.
Secondly, the improvements in metallic penholders, herein described, and
illustrated in Figures 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of the accompanying
Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Hinks, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Nineteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
it dual and fifty riv
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
JOHN HINKS. (L.S.)