A CERTAIN INVENTION (BEING IN THE FORM OF AND ANSWERING THE END OF POTT ASHES AND PEARL ASHES), IN THE SAID LETTERS PATENT DESCRIBED AND MENTIONED TO BE MADE FROM THE COMON GROSS LEES THAT ARE PRODUCED AFTER THE BOYLING, BOUKING OR BUCKING OF LANNENS AND COTTONS, OF MAKING THE SAME AGAIN SERVICEABLE AND FULLY EFFECTUAL IN THE BOYLING, BOURING OR BUCKING AND BLEACHING OF LINNENS AND COTTONS, AND LIKEWISE IN MAKING SOPE, AND IN EVERY OTHER MANUFACTORY WHEREIN POTT ASHES OR ANY OTHER VEGITABLE ASHES ARE USED
Year: 1749

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, KNOW YE,
that His present Matie King George the Second, by His Letters Patent under
the Great Seal, bearing date at Westminster, the Third day of April, in the
twenty-second year of His reign, hath, for Himself, His heirs and successors,
given and granted unto JOHN BAKER, of Bakewell, in the County of Derby,
Whitner and Hosier, and to his exors, admors, and assigns, especial lycence,
full power, sole priviledge and authority, to make use, exercise, and vend,
within that part of Great Brittain called England, the Dominion of Wales, and
Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, "A CERTAIN INVENTION (BEING IN THE FORM OF
AND ANSWERING THE END OF POTT ASHES AND PEARL ASHES), IN THE SAID LETTERS
PATENT DESCRIBED AND MENTIONED TO BE MADE FROM THE COMON GROSS LEES THAT
ARE PRODUCED AFTER THE BOYLING, BOUKING OR BUCKING OF LANNENS AND COTTONS,
OF MAKING THE SAME AGAIN SERVICEABLE AND FULLY EFFECTUAL IN THE BOYLING,
BOURING OR BUCKING AND BLEACHING OF LINNENS AND COTTONS, AND LIKEWISE IN
MAKING SOPE, AND IN EVERY OTHER MANUFACTORY WHEREIN POTT ASHES OR ANY
OTHER VEGITABLE ASHES ARE USED," together with the whole proffit, benefit, and
advantage from time to time accruing and arising by reason of the said Inven-
tion, for and during the term of fourteen years, according to the form of the
Statute in that case made and provided; in which said Letters Patent,
amongst other things, it is provided, that if the said John Baker should not
particularly describe and ascertain the nature and form of his said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing

page_text: under his hand and seal, and cause the same to be inrolled in the High
Court of Chancery, in four calendar months next and imediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent, and all
liberties and advantages thereby granted, should utterly cease, determine, and
become void, anything before in the said Letters Patent contained to the
contrary in anywise notwithstanding.
THEREFORE FURTHER KNOW YE, that I, the said John Baker, in
pursuance of the intention of the said Letters Patent, and of the provisoe
therein contained, do hereby fully and particularly describe the nature, form,
and manner of my said Invention in manner following (that is to say):-
The art and method of refining the comon gross lees produced after the
boiling, boucking or bucking of linnens or cottons is performed in the several
manners following:-
First, by dipping a quanity of bean straw, peas straw, or other dry straw or
reeds, into the said comon gross lees as will be sufficient to imbibe or drink up
the whole; then make a fire upon a hearth under a wide chimney with a little
dry straw, into which, by little and little, put the wet straw that hath imbibed
the lee till the whole is reduced to ashes, and then it is fit for use.
A second manner or method is, to power upon wood ashes, weed ashes, fern
ashes, or any other vegetable ashes, the said comon gross lee, (as in the method
of lixiviating with water those said ashes for making of pott ashes); then draw
the said gross lees from the ashes it was put upon, then take the straw as
aforesaid and dip therein, and burn it as above said.
A third method is, to boil the comon gross lee in pans of iron or lead (such
as used at the salt works), till it grows thick; and in that lee, so boiled, dip
in straw or reeds as above, and burn it.
A fourth method is, to boil the said comon gross lee to the consistency of
treacle, and when so boiled to put it in a furnace, with a fire made at one end
of it, of pit cole, wood, turf, or any fewell that will afford a considerable heat
and flame, with a partition between the fire and furnace to prevent the cole,
wood, turf, or fewell mixing with the lee, but to admitt the flame, which is to
be reced at the other end of the furnace by a chimney, and the flame in
passing over will evaporate the remaining humidity or moisture, and calcine
the lee, which, if the fire be kept hot, will goe liquid as glass in a hott fire, and
may then be lett off at a hole made in the furnace for that purpose; or, if not
so very hot, may be raked out with an iron rake.
And further, to make all or any of the above, which appear in the form of
course pott ashes (and which will as they are bleach or make sope), fine,
dissolve them in a cistern, such as wherein the sope boilers make their lee,

page_text: with water only, which draw off and boil until it is resolved into salts, which
said salts, calcined a second time in the above furnace, do produce a superfine
sort of pot ashes, comonly called pearl ashes. All which is a full and true
description of my said Invention.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, the First
day of August, in the twenty-third year of the reign of His Mätie
King George the Second, and in the year of our Lord One thousand
seven hundred and forty-nine.