IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SANITARY PURPOSES."
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Malcolm Macleod, of Manchester, in the County
of Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR SANITARY PURPOSES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Malcolm Macleod at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd September 1869.
I, MALCOLM MACLEOD, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SANITARY PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
My Invention is particularly applicable to privies known as Macleod's
dry ash closet, but it may be applied to other privies, and it consists in
applying to them an apparatus for screening ashes, earth, or other
absorbent, and conveying a portion of fine ashes, earth, or other
absorbent under the seat on to the excreta.
In performing my Invention I place a screen in a slanting direction
behind or near the privy, and under this screen is a slanting guide board,
which conveys the fine ashes or other absorbent into a spout opening

page_text: under the seat of the privy; by this means every time ashes or other
absorbent are thrown on the screen, the fine portions drop on the excreta
or are reserved for deoderizing purposes. A trapdoor may be placed at
the end of the spout, and this door can be opened and closed by a handle
passing through the seat of the privy or by a cord connected to the door
of the privy or otherwise. The coarse cinders are carried over the screen
into a box, from which they can be removed to be again burnt. I also
propose to make a passage with a door or hopper above the guide board
to allow any refuse to be thrown into the ash-pit, or for the admission of
deodorising absorbents.
The above apparatus for screening ashes and collecting them may be
used apart from the privy as an economiser of fuel. In privies where
the screen is not applied and where the emptying door is fixed at the
level of the back passage and kept locked or fastened I fix over the said
emptying door one or more apertures to receive ashes, refuse, earth, or
any absorbents, in such a manner that the said ashes or refuse will be
deposited upon the excreta. In some cases I form these apertures so as
to prevent slops or liquids being thrown into the closet.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Malcolm Macleod in the Great Seal Patent Office 2
on the 22nd March 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MALCOLM
MACLEOD, of Manchester, in the County of Lancester, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her 2
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Malcolm Macleod, Her special licence
that I, the said Malcolm Macleod, my executors, administrators, and 3
assigns, or such others as I, the said Malcolm Macleod, 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,

page_text: within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS
FOR SANITARY PURPOSES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Malcolm Macleod, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment 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 Malcolm Macleod, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement (that is to say) :—
My Invention is particularly applicable to privies known as Macleod's
dry ash closets, but it may be applied to other privies, and it consists in
applying to them an apparatus for screening ashes and other absorbents,
and conveying a portion of fine ashes or other absorbents under the seat
on to the excreta.
In performing my Invention I place a screen in a slanting direction
behind or near the privy, and under this screen is a slanting guide board,
which conveys the fine ashes under the seat of the privy; by this means
every time ashes or other absorbents are thrown on the screen the fine
portions drop on the excreta or are reserved for deodorizing purposes.
A trapdoor may be placed at the end of the spout or guide board, and
this door can be opened and closed by a handle passing through the seat
of the privy, or by a cord connected to the door of the privy or other-
wise. The coarse cinders are carried over the screen into a box, from
which they can be removed to be again burnt. I also propose to make
a passage with a door or hopper above the guide board to allow any
refuse to be thrown into the ash-pit or for the admission of deodorizing.
absorbents.
The above apparatus for screening ashes and collecting them may be
used apart from the privy as an economiser of fuel. In privies where the
screen may not be applied and where the emptying door may be fixed at
the level of the back passage and kept locked or fastened I fix over the
said emptying door one or more apertures to receive ashes, refuse, or any
absorbents or deodorents, in such a manner that such ashes or refuse

page_text: may be deposited upon the excreta. In some cases I form these
apertures so as to prevent slops or liquids from being thrown into the
closet.
And in order that my Invention may be fully understood, I will
proceed to describe the accompanying Sheet of of Drawings. .
Figure 1 represents a section of a privy constructed according to my
improvements. In this instance I place near the rear of the privy the
screen a in a slanting direction, so that when the ashes or other materials
to be screened are thrown upon it the fine portion falls through on to
the guide board c, and the rough falls into a box or drawer 6' forming
a portion of a box 6 containing the screen a. Under or in the rear of
the screen in any convenient position is the slanting guide board c,
which conveys the fine ashes or other absorbents or deodorents along its
surface and allows them to fall under the seat of the privy. This guide
board may be hung under or near the seat in such a position as to receive
the fine dust from the screen. When the board c which is jointed at the
point e is moved by the handled passing through the seat and when
dropped or pushed down it falls upon a spring to cause vibration for
measuring off and directing the absorbent or deodoriser under the seat
or towards the excreta. The guide board may be hinged or otherwise
jointed to the box containing the screen or from any convenient point,
and the board c instead of being moved by hand may be actuated by a
cord connected to the door of the privy, or by any of the contrivances
now in use for flushing waterclosets, or the guide board may be a
fixture. By this means every time ashes or other absorbents or
deodorents requiring screening are thrown upon the screen the fine
portion drops on the excreta or are reserved for deodorizing purposes.
Another compartment may be provided under the box b, as shewn in
dotted lines, to contain such refuse as is neither suitable for manure or fuel.
In Figure 2 the guide board c is hinged at e, and when moved by the
handle d or other equivalent apparatus the fine ashes will fall towards
the receptacle under the seat. In Figure 3 the board c is jointed at e.
In Figure 4 the board c may oscillate or rotate on the fulcrum stud e;
in this case a scraper fis used to remove the ashes or other absorbents or
deodorizers from the board. In Figure 5 the board c may be stationary
and the trapdoor g which is raised and lowered by the handle d or
other equivalent acts as a scraper on the board c. In Figure 6 I have
shewn a slanting double board c with a raised centre representing an angle,

page_text: with the point upwards to guide the ashes or other materials to the privics
from each side of the board; the screen a is placed above the board c,
and it may slant in any convenient direction according to the position
of the ash-pit, or as circumstances may require. In Figure 7 the
board c may be hinged at either of the points e, and it is placed in
the same direction as the screen a. In Figure 8 the double board c
oscillates on either of the centres e, c. In Fig. 9 the boards c
oscillate from the centre e to allow the ashes and other materials to
fall. Figure 10 is a combination of Figures 7 and 9 suitable for a
double closet; in this instance the boards c may be stationary, and
the trapdoors g are made to oscillate by the handles d or other
motions above referred to. Figure 11 represents a modification of
Figure 10, in this case the boards c, c, are jointed at e and are moved
by the handle d, as before described.
.
In Figure 12 I have shewn how I propose to make a passage with a
door or hopper i in the box or frame 6 containing the screen a, or
otherwise, above the guide board c to allow any refuse to be thrown
into the ash-pit or for the admission of deodorents or absorbents. A door
for receiving materials to be screened may be made at m, the other parts
of the apparatus are similar to those before described.
In Figure 13 I have shewn the mode of constructing privies where
the screen a may not be applied, and where the emptying door k may be
placed at the level of the passage or floor, as in Figure 1, for emptying
without the necessity of entering the privy, and where the door may
be kept locked or fastened I make over the said emptying door one or
more apertures to receive ashes, refuse, absorbents, or deodorents in such
a manner that such ashes, deodorents, absorbents, or refuse may be
deposited upon the excreta either directly they are thrown in, or they
may be reserved and distributed by the guide board c, as above described.
In some cases I form these apertures with a projection round or near
the face of the wall to prevent slops or liquids from being thrown into
the privy.
The above apparatus for screening ashes and collecting them may
be used apart from the privy as an economiser of fuel and for general
purposes, as shewn in Figure 14. This I effect by forming that portion
of the box 6 containing the screen a just above the cinder drawer 6', and
below the screen a into fine a ash receiver which may be a drawer b³, by

page_text: placing a movable seat upon this drawer I form a combined cinder sifter.
and sanitary commode.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, and described several
modes of carrying the same into operation, I wish it to be understood,
that I do not intend to limit myself to the details given, as the same t
may be varied or modified to suit particular localities and circumstances;
I would also remark that I make no claim to the screen excepting when
it is arranged in the manner described, and used in combination with
my improvements; but what I claim is, -
First. The application of a fixed screen which by its position screens
and directs the cinders into a receptacle for re-burning, and allows the
fine ashes or other absorbents or deodorents to fall on the guide board
or into a receptacle to be used for deodorizing purposes, as described.
Secondly. The guide boards or traps which serve to collect and dis-
tribute the absorbents, deodorents, or other materials, as described.
Thirdly. The screening and separate collection of ashes and cinders or
other materials for domestic or other purposes, as shewn and described
in reference to Figure 14.
Fourthly. The apertures above the emptying door for depositing ashes,
absorbents, deodorents, or refuse, either in combination with the guide
board or otherwise, as described in reference to Figure 13.
And, lastly. The combination of a fixed screen with a fixed guide
board, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Malcolm Macleod, have hereto set
my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of March One thousand
eight hundred and seventy.
MALCOLM MACLEOD. (L.S.)