IMPROVEMENTS IN AND AN ADDITION TO FOUNTAIN PENS
Year: 1849

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BRAM
HERTZ, of Great Marlborough Street, 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 the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Thirtieth day of
June (One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine), in the thirteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Bram Hertz, my exors, adñors, and assigns, Her especial licence,
full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Bram Hertz, my
exors, adiñors, and assigns, and such others as I; the said Bram Hertz, 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 England, Wales,
and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey,
Alderney, Sark, and Man, aud in all Her Majesty's Colonies and Plantations
abroad, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND AN ADDITION TO FOUNTAIN
PENS;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that I, the said
Briam Hertz, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument.
in writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her Majesty's High
Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, .
reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Briam Hertz, hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-
.

page_text: tained in and by-the-present Specification thereof, reference being had to the
Drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say.:-
The object of my improvements in and additions to fountain pens is
threefold:-
First, to enable these pens to be used for a greater length of time than
heretofore without replenishing.
Second, to make the interior parts easier of access for purposes of rectifica-
tion or repair, when they happen to get out of order.
And, third, to combine with the means for writing unintermittingly the
means also of using the instrument as an ever-pointed pencil.
The principal improvements and additions by which these objects are
effected are embodied in the fountain pen represented in Figures 1 and 2,
Figure 1 being an external elevation of the instrument in its complete state;
and Figure 2, an external view of the case only by itself.
A is the case, and from m to n the portion of it which forms the reservoir
for holding the ink; B is a plug, which is fitted into the lower end of the
holder A, and through which there is pierced a small hole a; C is a piston,
shewn separately in Figure 3, which is made of cork, or some other elastic
substance, and of such a size as to fit closely the interior of the case; D is the
piston rod, which is composed of two side pieces b, b, connected at the upper
end by a ring c, and at the lower end to another ring, which encircles the top
of the plug B. E, Figure 4, is a screw rod, by which the piston rod D is
worked, this rod (E) screwing first into the ring c and then into the side
pieces b, b, all three (that is c and b, b,) having threads on their inner faces to
correspond with the threads of the rod E; F is a milled head to the screw
rod E, by means of which the rod is turned either to the one side or the other,
and to any extent required, however minute. On one side of the ring c there
is formed a projecting stop or pind, which takes into a longitudinal slot e in
the side of the case A, reaching from the top of the ink space m, n, to near
the top. The use of this stop or pin d is to keep the piston from turning
round laterally, when either screwed up or down by the rod E within the case.
f is a small ferrule, an edge view of which is given separately in Figure 4ª,
which turns freely upon the neck of the rod E, but is prevented from moving
laterally by small collars placed on each side; this ferrule ƒ has a stop or pin
9. upon it, similar to that on the ring e, which stop also takes into the slot e in
the side of the case A. When the rod E is screwed into the top ring cand
sides b, b, of the piston rod D,. as shewn in Figure 5, and both D and E are
inserted into the case A, so that the stops or pins d and g may fall into the
slot e, the whole of these parts are then connected together means of a

page_text: locking piece h, the parts of which are shewn separately in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9,
and 10. Figures 6 and 7.are side views, and Figure 8 is an edge view of
the locking piece. Figures 9 and 10 are side and edge views of a washer,
which is interposed between the locking piece and the case A. i is a tongue
formed on the end of the piece k, which comes over the top or pin g.
When the instrument is in the state which has been just 'described, that is,
when all the parts are connected together (the nib of the pen only excepted),
the lower end of it is inserted into the ink or writing fluid, and the piston
screwed up the case by the head piece F, and a vacuum being thereby formed
between the piston and the plug, the fluid flows through the small aperture a
and fills the portion of the tube A between m and n. The pen or nib is then.
fitted into the mouth of the tube...
Figure 11 is an end view of the pen end of the holder when in its complete.
state. When at any time access is required to the interior parts of the instru-
ment for purposes of retification or repair, all that is necessary is to undo the
locking piece h, by which the parts are connected together. Figure 12, a
view of the top; and Figure 13, a section of the piston on the line x, y.
The feeding down of the ink in writing takes place by its own gravity,
assisted occasionally by turning the head in the reverse way to that in which
it is turned when drawing up the ink.
Instead of the plug B (Figures 1 and 2) terminating at the bottom end of
the outer case, as before described, it may be prolonged a little beyond it, as
shewn in Figure 14, and the pen nib may be made with a tubular head to
fit on to the prolonged part, as also shewn in the same Figure. The feed
aperture a is carried through the whole length of the plug as so prolonged,
and the ink is discharged from it directly towards the nib.
A fountain pen of the improved construction before described, combined
with an ever-pointed lead pencil, is represented in Figure 15. A represents
the penholder and fountain with the pencil case B put into it ready for use,
but when out of use the pencil case B is drawn out of its socket and put into
the interior of the screw rod E, in which position it is represented in Figure 16,
which is a longitudinal section of these parts detached from the penholder or
fountain.
To exclude any risk of the ink flowing out of the pen when not in use,.
either by the action of gravity or by the expansion of air, or otherwise, I.
adopt the contrivance represented in Figure 17. A thin disc a (colored red)
of india-rubber is interposed between the end of the fountain 6 and the nib-
holder C, which is screwed into it, and this disc has two or more incisions
nade through it, and crossing each other, as represented in the section of the

page_text: nibholder and plan of the disc given in Figure 18. When the piston-is
screwed down within the case or fountain, as already described, then the pres-
sure causes the ink to flow through the incisions made in the disc of india-
rubber, but the spring or elasticity of the material is sufficient unless so acted
upon to prevent its flowing through. d is a cap, shewn separately in Figure 19,
which fits upon either end of the holder, and can be employed for covering the
pen or the pencil. Its position when used for covering the pencil is repre-
sented in dotted lines in Figure 15, but when the pencil is in use then it is
put upon the other end to cover the pen, as shewn.
Figure 20 is an external view, and Figure 21 a section, of part of another
fountain pen and pencil case combined, differing from those before described
in the manner of regulating and stopping off the flow of ink to the pen. A
is the fountain; B, a small tap, which closes or opens up the communication
between the nib and the fountain; and C is a head (of which an end view is
given in Figure 22), which is used for the purpose of opening and closing the
tap. The rectangular opening a formed in the upper end of the head piece c¹
fits the projecting piece b, which is a prolongation of the plug of the tap:
Figure 22 is a back view of Figure 21.
Figure 23 is an external view of another modification of the Invention; in
which the fountain part and the piston are formed as before described, but the
opening up of the passage for the flow of the ink from the fountain is effected
in a manner somewhat different. a is the passage, which is opened and closed
by turning the nibholder A to one side or other, holding the case or reservoir.
B steady during the operation, which brings the two openings a and b opposite
or away from each other, as the case may be.
".
Figure 24 is a section of the lower end of the fountain and the nibholder.
when the passage is open; Figure 25, a similar section of them when shut;
Figure 26 is a cross section on the line x, y; Figure 27, a cross section on
the line Z, Z; and Figure 28, an end view of the nibholder.
Figure 29 is an external view of a fountain pen in which the reservoir is
charged with the writing fluid by the suction of the mouth instead of by the
means of a piston, as before described: Figure 30 is a longitudinal section
of the whole of this instrument with the nib only removed. a and b are two
small valves, made of india-rubber or some other like elastic material, which
are both fixed to the same rod or spindle; c, d, is a helical spring, which
keeps the two valves closed when the pen is to be filled with ink, or when
ink is to be supplied to the pen. The valves are opened by pressing down
the projecting knob e, and unless so acted upon they keep the ink from
'escaping either to the nib or to the air passage in the head at b.

page_text: Figure 31 is an external elevation of a pen partly made of metal and partly
of glass, which is nearly similar to that last described in the principle of its
action. A is a glass tube, which serves as the reservoir or fountain; B is the
nibholder, which is securely fixed by cement to one end of the glass tube A.
In the part A there is a valve which is acted upon by a helical spring and
knob c, the positions of which are partly indicated by the dotted lines in
Figure 31. The upper end of the glass tube A is covered by a metal head-
piece C, under which there is a small hole a, by applying the mouth to which
a supply of ink may be sucked into the reservoir, or down through which ink
may be poured with the help of a quill or narrow-mouthed funnel.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, I declare that the improve-
ments which I claim as constituting my said Invention are as follows:-
First, I claim the improved fountain pen represented in Figures 1 to 14
both inclusive, and before described, in so far as regards the manner of con-
struction of the piston, the piston rod, the screw rod by which the piston rod is
worked, and the locking piece by which all the parts are connected together.
Second, I claim the several modifications of the said fountain pen
represented in Figures 17 to 31, both inclusive.
Third, I claim the combination in one instrument of a fountain pen and
ever-pointed pencil, represented in Figures 15 & 16, and before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Bram Hertz, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-ninth day of December,
in the year of our Lord 1849, the aforesaid Bram Hertz came before our said
Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification 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.
Enrolled the Twenty-ninth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine.