IMPROVEMENTS IN MINING OPERATIONS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH
Year: 1852

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME OR BE MADE
KNOWN, I, WILLIAM PIDDING, of the Strand, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, and bearing
date at Westminster, the Eighth March, in the fifteenth year of Her reign,
and in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Pidding, my exors, adññiors, or assigns, Her especial license, full
power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said William Pidding, my
exors, admors, or assigns, or such others as I, the said William Pidding,
my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within Her said
Majesty's Kingdom of England, Her Dominion of Wales, the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and
Man, and also in all and every Her Majesty's Colonies and Plantations
abroad, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MINING OPERATIONS, AND IN THE
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS CONNECTED THEREWITH;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso, that I, the said William Pidding, shall

page_text: cause a particular description of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed or carried into practical effect, to be enrolled
in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said herein in part recited Letters
Patent, as in and by the same, reference being had thereto, will more fully
and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, I, the said William Pidding, do hereby declare that the
nature of my said Invention and improvements, and the manner or manners
in which the same are to be performed, are fully described and ascertained
in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the Figures
of the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked
thereon, that is to say:-
My Invention consists of improved apparatus or combinations, mechanical
and chemical, for facilitating mining operations generally. My mechanical
improvements consists of new apparatus for drilling holes previous to blasting,
and for certain new applications of the levers and wedge during the progress of
the operations. My chemical improvements consists of certain combinations
of ingredients in various proportions for explosive compounds for the purpose
of blasting, and of certain application of heat and cold, as are herein-after
described.
And firstly, as regards the mechanical portions of my Invention, my
improved mode or apparatus used for drilling holes previous to blasting
the ore, quartz, or other earth or material surrounding the same, by sub-
stituting steam instead of manual labour, is effected whereever possible
by the machine or apparatus for drilling, boring, or perforating earthy
or other substances, represented in the accompanying Drawing, in which
Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of the same, Figure 2 an end view
of the drill, and Figure 3 a transverse section through the line f.f, in
Figure 1. It will be noted that A, in coming in contact at its point or head
with any hard substance, forces B, B, out or in advance, and thus, by the
action of the points of B, B, widens the hole partially drilled by it; and the more
readily to admit of the entrance and exit of the drill, at the same time that the
drill, if knocked rapidly against the substance to be drilled and as rapidly with-
drawn, it is made to revolve, so as to act on every part of the substance of the
earth or other substances the apparatus may come in contact with. I prefer
in drilling as aforesaid to operate in a slanting or angular direction upwards,
to allow the broken quartz or other earth to fall by its own weight out of the
hole drilled. Two cutting instruments are shewn only in the Drawing to act
laterally with the centre drill, or with the drill, but more may be used with

page_text: advantage. It will be sometimes necessary to have a collar at E, that the
action of a against any resisting substance may force c, c, outwards; the
spring will make it recover its place. To prevent the entrance of grit, india
rubber or other suitable material may or is to be placed between c, c, and A,
and the whole surrounded with such other suitable material, except near tho
end. The metals of B, B, to be tempered sufficiently to make them spring
in so far as it is possible to their original position when receding. The
drilling instruments to be numerous and always to admit of being removed;
and steam or other motive power, instead of manual labor, in drilling holes
for the purpose of blasting, should be used with my apparatus. Again, I
employ the following mode of drilling either by motive power or manual
labor: First, I apply a drill, heated to a red or even a white heat, against
or into the quartz or other earth, and allow it to act in or remain a sufficient
time to convey its heat, or the greatest possible portion of it, to the earth;
then apply a drill cooled, and sometimes with advantage, to as many degrees
below zero as by any artificial freezing process can be obtained, the insertion
of which cold metallic or other appropriate drill will cause the quartz or other
earth to crack in all directions and more readily admit of the hole being
perfected by any convenient drill, or the cold drill may be so formed as also to
be applicable to that purpose. I also use, in addition to the said drills
(applying alternately heat and cold thereto) and therewith use, instruments
made of alumina, silicate of magnesia, and other substances capable of retaining
a high degree of heat without fusing. I also use the following fluxes for
other earths or substances
obtaining gold from quartz, granite, or
containing gold.
And for such purpose I mix with every pound weight
of quartz or other substances, about two ounces of soda or potash, or fluor
spar (fluate of lime) and of lime about an ounce of each to every pound of
I also use salt alone with sufficient
quartz or other earths or substances.
heat to flux the silica and to effect combination with the silica either alone or
in combination with either of the above mixtures; when desirable I employ
oxide of iron. In all cases the heat must be sufficient to fuse the mass and
to render it sufficiently fluid to allow of the subsidence of the gold again. I
take muriatic acid 3/4ths, nitric acid 1/4th, these form aqua regia, muriatic
acid 2/3ds, chromic acid 1/3rd, common salt 1/3rd, and chromic acid 2/3rds; or
common salt 1/3, chromic acid 1/8, and nitric acid 1/3. The ore, after
being crushed or pulverised by the assistance of the alternate actions of heat
and cold, is to be steeped in or mixed with either of the above liquids and
solids; sufficient heat is to be applied to assist the action, and the operation is
to be performed in such vessels as are not acted upon by the above acids (say

page_text: glass or earthenware), the dissolved gold is then to be reduced in the usual
way, namely, by washing the pulverised matter and precipitating the gold
with copper, iron, or other cheap metal.
To facilitate mining operations by the alternate action of heat and
cold, and to apply caloric to quartz, auriferous and other substances,
for the purpose of forming holes or compartments previous to blasting,
I do so by means of electricity generated or set in motion by a voltaic
or galvanic battery, and conveyed by wires to the part or parts to be
heated, at which place or places there is placed some appropriate com-
bustible or inflammable substance, and the wire or wires are there to be
separated, to allow of the emission of the electric fluid or sparks and the
heating consequent thereon. The heating is used for the purpose before
described of assisting the drilling operations by means of the alternate action
of heat and cold. Or I fuze or melt quartz, &c., for making holes previous to
blasting by the addition of soda and potash, and, when desirable to assist the
fusion, the addition of litharge and borax in the same way as heating by
means of a voltaic or galvanic battery, the melted substance (glass) to be
removed in any convenient way, as by a heated tube to be inserted in the hole,
drilled, and one end to be placed in the melted glass, and exhaustion to be
effected in any convenient way at the other end to draw out the melted glass;
or quartz, &c., may be dissolved with fluoric acid for the purpose of making
holes for blasting; or, instead of using the electric spark, I use, when desirable,
the direct or radiated heat proceeding from combustible bodies combined with
others containing oxygen when ignited by heat or electricity; and I intend to
heat quartz for the purpose of making or increasing the size of holes for
blasting by means of the alternate action of heat and cold, placing against
the quartz or in the holes combustible or fusible explosive compounds
of all descriptions, as, for example, the following:-From about 15 parts of
charcoal or coke to one of saltpetre, with or without the addition of a small
quantity of brimstone, sulphur, and others. Whatever combustible or ex-
plosive body is used, it must be set fire to, or the electric fluid may be
caused to act on it to ignite it. I place into the holes, or against the
quartz, &c., required to be heated or cooled, a bent tube or tubes of metal
or other suitable material, in order to force a continuous stream of cold water,
cold quicksilver, or melted metal or semi-metal and glass, and sucb frigorific
compounds as are usually employed, through it or them. I also put salt into
the water so used, to admit of the water being reduced much below the
freezing point, which I use so cooled. I also pour into or fill the holes afore-
said with water, as well for the purpose of cooling as blasting. When the

page_text: operation is required to be performed, it may be desirable to heat the water to
any required degree, and sometimes to put into the water so heated salt, &c.,
or other substance, to facilitate the acquirement of a higher degree of heat
than that at which water alone usually boils. I also blast by means
of the electric fluid so decomposing water, and thereby causing the sudden
expansion, formation, development, or otherwise, of the gasses forming water,
which gasses so formed it is sometimes desirable to ignite by an electric
spark or otherwise.
I also force through a pipe or force into the holes
heated or cooled water or other liquids or compounds of any degree of
temperature, at any convenient distance from the hole, or placed in the hole,
and I use a metal or other appropriate pipe having a projecting end turned on
one side to force air out from the further end of any drilled hole, the more
readily to admit of the entrance of the fluid or compound forced into the hole;
and still further to effect such object I place, if desirable, a valve in such pipe,
connected with an exhausted receiver, which valve is to be turned at the
moment of the entrance of the fluid at the mouth of the drilled hole. I
also use the following explosive compounds for the purpose of blasting:
Finely powdered charcoal or coke, about one pound; chlorate of potash, also
finely powdered, about 1/3rd of a pound. Put them into a fine sieve, and let
them be un through into a vessel. They must not be triturated together,
nor be ground in contact, as explosion will be likely to ensue. Phosphorus
and sulphur may be added, but with great caution, as the explosive tendency
is greatly increased. The phosphorus and sulphur, mixed with one third of
chlorate of potash, may be used without the charcoal; but although the
heat is very intense, the explosive power is not so great.
I pour or
force a quantity of water into the bored holes in quartz or other earthy
substances, as aforesaid; then introduce the electric wires so as not to be
in contact, but immersed in the water; close or place the entranco air-tight
and firmly; then set the battery in action. The oxygen and hydrogen will be
liberated, and expand with great power; the quartz may then be blasted by
igniting the gases by the aid of the electric fluid, either by the alteration in
any convenient way of the position of the wires from the water to the gases,
or by separate wires placed in the gases, or in the position they would occupy.
Sometimes an explosive compound may be placed with advantage in the space
to be occupied by the gases.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Pidding, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
WILLIAM (L.S.) PIDDING.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eighth day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1852, the aforesaid William Pidding came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specifi-
cation aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified,
in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.