IMPROVEMENTS IN CARBOY HAMPERS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR OTHER MEANS USED FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Frederick Claus, of Fearnhead, in the
County of Lancaster, Chemist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
CARBOY HAMPERS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR OTHER MEANS USED FOR
MANUFACTURING THE SAME."
Sealed the 2nd June 1863, and dated the 3rd December 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Frederick Claus
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd December 1862.
I, CHARLES FREDERICK CLAUS, of Fearnhead, in the County of Lancaster,
Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN CARBOY HAMPERS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR OTHER MEANS USED FOR MANU-
FACTURING THE SAME," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, first, in substituting hampers made of wire, or even
hoop iron, covered or coated with tar, varnish, lead, or alloys of lead, for those
now in use made of willow twigs, cane, and other materials.
Secondly, in the means and machinery used for manufacturing the same,
which consists in weaving the wire or hoop iron round a metal or wooden
mandrill, representing the shape of the hampers. The said mandril being
furnished with an axle through the centre parallel to the wires forming the
uprights or vertical ribs of the hampers, a rotary motion is given to it by
means of a crank or rack and lever or similar means.
As a provisional description of this process I will state the following details:-

page_text: The wires intended to form the bottom and the vertical ribs or uprights of the
hampers being placed crossing each other at right angles on that part of the
mandrill which represents the bottom of the hamper are woven together (as
far as the bottom extends) by hand, and held in their places by screws and
clasps; they are then bent parallel to the axle of the mandrill, and the rotary
motion being applied another wire is then interwoven in one continuous length
with the said uprights by passing it from the bottom upwards in the form of a
spiral alternately under and over the said upright, crossing them at nearly right
angles, so as to form what might be called horizontal ribs. When the inter-
weaving of the spiral is completed the ends of the uprights are turned firmly
round the last round of the spiral, or round a ring of stronger wire, which may
be inserted instead. If hoop iron be used the operation on the mandrill is
performed in the same manner as with the wire. Instead of weaving the wire
as described above, it may also be worked around the mandrill in the manner
commonly employed in manufacturing wire netting, the former method, is
however preferable.
My Invention consists, thirdly, in coating the carboy hampers with lead or
any alloy of tin and lead or similar alloys, in order to cause them to resist
better the action of acids and other chemicals, and to make them firmer. I
effect this purpose by following a similar course to that employed in galvanizing
iron, with the addition only that in order to coat them with lead I pass the
hampers first through an alloy of lead and tin, and then into two or three
consecutive baths of lead only.
SPECIFICATION. in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Charles Frederick Claus in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 3rd June 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
FREDERICK CLAUS, of Fearnhead, in the County of Lancaster, Chemist, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto"
me, the said Charles Frederick Claus, Her special license, that I, the
said Charles Frederick Claus, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Charles Frederick Claus, my executors, admini-

page_text: strators, 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 CARBOY HAMPERS, AND IN THE MACHINERY
OR OTHER MEANS USED FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Charles Frederick Claus, 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 Charles Frederick Claus, 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 and accompanying Drawings (that is to say) :-
:-
My Invention consists, first, in substituting hampers made of wire, or even
hoop iron, covered or coated with tar, varnish, lead, or alloys of lead for those
now in use made of willow twigs, cane, &c.
Secondly, in the means and machinery used for manufacturing the same,
which consists in weaving the wire or hoop iron round a metal or wooden
mandrel representing the shape of the hampers. The said mandrel being
furnished with an axle through the centre parallel to the wires forming the
uprights or vertical ribs of the hampers, a rotary motion is given to it by
means of a crank or rack and lever or similar means.
As a provisional description of this process I will state the following details:-
The wires intended to form the bottom and the vertical ribs or uprights of the
hampers being placed crossing each other at right angles on that part of the
mandrel which represents the bottom of the hamper are woven together (as
far as the bottom extends) by hand, and held in their places by screws and
clasps; they are then bent parallel to the axle of the mandrel, and the rotary
motion being applied, another wire is then interwoven in one continuous
length with the said uprights by passing it from the bottom upwards in the
form of a spiral alternately under and, over the said upright, crossing them at
nearly right angles, so as to form what might be called horizontal ribs. When
the interweaving of the spiral is completed the ends of the uprights are turned
firmly round the last round of the spiral, or round a spring of stronger wire,
which may be inserted instead. If hoop iron be used the operation on the

page_text: mandrel is performed in the same manner as with the wire. Instead of
weaving the wire as described above, it may also be worked around the
mandrel in the manner commonly employed in manufacturing wirė netting;
the former method is, however, preferable.
My Invention consists, thirdly, in coating the carboy hampers with lead or
an alloy of tin and lead, or similar alloys, in order to cause them to resist
better the action of acids and other chemicals, and to make them firmer. I
effect this purpose by following a similar course to that employed in galvanizing
iron, with the addition only that in order to coat them with lead I pass the
hampers first through an alloy of lead and tin, and then into two or three
consecutive baths of lead only.
In order that the Invention may be better understood and explained in
detail, I have hereunto annexed a Sheet of Drawings, made upon a scale of
about one inch and a half to the foot.
Fig. 1 represents the mandrel, A being the mandrel itself, and B an axle
on which it can be made revolve; C is a rack or wheel, to which a lever may
be attached, by means of which the rotary movement may be produced, instead
of which, however, any other means, such as a crank and cog wheel, or else
treddle, may be adopted; D is the part of the mandrel on which the bottom of
the hamper is to be produced; e, e, e, are grooves into which the wire com-
posing the bottom are made to fit, so as to prevent them from moving; E, E,
are clasps or bars which hold the wires fast in the grooves through being
screwed down upon them by means of the screws and nuts f,f. Fig. 2 repre-
sents the bottom of the mandrel, seen from above.
Now, to manufacture a hamper by these contrivances the proceedings are
as follows: After the wires intended to form the uprights of the hamper are
cut the requisite length one row of the wires m, m, m, is laid down in the
grooves d, d, d, parallel to one another, as shewn in Fig. 3; the bar or clasp E
is then placed over them, as shewn in the same Figure, and screwed firmly
down; after this the second row of wires o, o, o, is then interlaced or inter-
woven with the first m, m, crossing them at right angles, and the wires having
all being pushed into the grooves e, e, e, the second clasp is screwed down on
the same, as shewn in Fig. 4. The wires m, m, and o, o, after being thus
secured, the ends of the same are then bent down to the shape of the mandrel,
as in Fig. 6. The next operation is to interweave another wire in one con-
tinuous length with the said upright by passing it from the bottom upwards in
the form of a spiral alternately under and over the said upright, crossing them
at nearly right angles, so as to form what might be called horizontal ribs.
This operation, during which the mandrel is made to revolve by the means

page_text: indicated above, is best performed whilst the mandrel is in a horizontal position,
the ends of the axle resting on suitable framing.. The end of the wire intended
to form the spiral is now secured to one or two of the uprights, and the
rotary motion being applied the said spiral is interwoven with the uprights, as
stated, and shewn in Fig. 7.
During the interweaving process a strain is put on the wire forming the
spiral by passing it through a set of pegs or pins, an operation understood,
thus described, by every wire worker. When the interweaving of the spiral
is completed, the projecting ends of the uprights are turned firmly round the
last coils or rings of the spiral, or around a ring of stronger wire, which may
be inserted instead, and that part of the hamper is finished. The handles are
also made of wire in a manner which will suggest itself to every wire worker,
but the caps or lids are made by the same operation as the body of the
hamper, viz., on a mandrel, revolving or otherwise, of the same shape as the
lid or cap is intended to be. Fig. 8 represents the mandrel, and Fig. 9 the
finished cap. The cap is furnished with a hole in the centre, so as to allow
the neck of the bottle to project through it. The loose wire t, t, are intended
to be fastened to the bottom part of the hamper, so as to form one piece with
the same, holding the bottle firmly down in the packing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Frederick Claus, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Second day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
CHARLES FREDERICK CLAUS. (L.S.)