IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF RUM
Year: 1850

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
SHEAFE GASKIN, junior, of the Island of Barbadoes, in the West Indies,
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 Thirty-first day of
July, One thousand eight hundred and fifty, in the fourteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said John Sheafe Gaskin, my exors, admors, and assigns, Her especial
licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said John
Sheafe Gaskin, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said John Sheafe Gaskin, 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, usė,
exercise, and vend, within the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark,
and Man, and also in all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad,
my invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF RUM;" in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said John Sheafe
said
Gaskin, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instru-
ment in writing under my hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately

page_text: 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
John Sheafe Gaskin, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
Heretofore in the manufacture of rum, it has been usual to employ the
skimmings (obtained in the making of sugar from the juice of the sugar cane,
also "sweet water" (the wash waters) and molasses, and these have been
mixed in various proportions, without any reference to the saccharine matter
contained; and the process of fermentation is and has been conducted in the
most slovenly manner, and in most cases no attention has been paid to
cleanliness, either in regard to the vats, pumps, pipes, and other apparatus
employed, or the buildings in which such process is conducted, and in addition
to this, it is and has been usual to keep such buildings very hot and close, and
to exclude a free access of the outer atmosphere. The skimmings and sweet
water (the wash water), are added to the molasses, and are set to ferment in
the trough and unclarified state, so that during the process of fermentation the
liquor under process has required to be skimmed from time to time. In thus
conducting the process, there results after distillation, a large per-centage of
the saccharine in the dunder, or refuse, which is again subjected to fermentation
with the other matters, which they tend to injure or taint. The effect of the
absence of cleanliness is to produce a general acid or sour condition of the
vats and apparatus and the building, which is highly prejudicial. The great
length of time also during which the fermenting process has to be conducted.
(in most cases from ten to fourteen days), in consequence of the great
quantity of saccharine matter in the liquor, added to the circumstance of the
dirt and refuse matters being retained in the liquor, causes much saccharine
matter to pass from the vinous into the acctous fermentation before the whole,
has become properly attenuated, and this state of things is not only the cause.
of much loss of spirit, but is also the cause of very inferior spirit being.
produced; and in regard to the juice of rotten canes, the same, if em-
ployed in the still-house, has been generally mixed with molasses, and also
with the skimmings and sweet water, and treated as above explained. Now,
according to my Invention; I cause great care to be observed in keeping the
fermenting vats and apparatus clean, by the aid of water and lime, so as to
prevent any acidity in such vessels and apparatus, and I keep the building, and
the exteriors of the apparatus, constantly lime-whited, by which acidity is
prevented. I also cause the building to be as freely supplied with atmosphere

page_text: as may be, and keep down the temperature of the building as much as possible
thereby; and I cause the skimmings and the sweet water to be clarified
before using them to mix or produce liquor to be fermented, and thus to
obtain wash for the still. I proceed as follows:-I cause the skimmings to be
placed in a suitable vessel of iron or copper, and to be clarified by stirring
in a cream of lime, till no acidity is indicated by litmus paper. The liquor
is to be heated up to about two hundred and twelve degrees of Fahrenheit,
and then the fire or heat. is to be removed, and the liquor is allowed to
stand for about half an hour, when the clear liquor is to be drawn or
removed into a cistern, conveniently situated for allowing it to be drawn
into the mixing cistern. The sweet water (wash waters) are to be
similarly clarified, and such is the caso with regard to the juice of rotten
canes. I employ the wash waters before clarifying them, to dissolve any
saccharine which may remain in the precipitated matters obtained when
clarifying.skimmings, and then tho wash waters are to be clarified as above
mentioned; these clarified liquids are to be run into the mixing cistern with
molasses in such quantities as to produce a liquor of the specific gravity
of 1050 to 1054 (taking water to be 1000). If the liquor be of greater
specific gravity, then in proportion the time of the process of fermentation
will be increased, and the liability of part of the matters to pass into the
acetous fermentation will also be increased. I prefer when the climate
will admit of it, to have the liquor of even less specific gravity than that
above mentioned. I commence the process of fermentation at as near
cighty degrees of Fahrenheit as may be, and if the fermentation goes on
satisfactorily, the heat will rise to ninety degrees, ninety-five degrees, and
even to ninety-six degrees, and if it is found that the temperature rises
injuriously, say to one hundred degrees, at an early period, or before the
specific gravity has arrived to 1020, in which case it will be evident that
a liquor of less specific gravity than 1050 may be used with advantage. I
have found that the fermentation may be said to be healthy if the attenuation
goes on at the rate of about one degree, or somewhat less, per hour for the
first twelve hours, and more afterwards, and the completion of the fermen-
tation should be come to in about three days, when the
immediately distilled, otherwise it is very apt to turn acid.
that if the fermentation has been well conducted according
above given, the "dunder" or residue will be of no value.
fermentation has not been so well conducted as it may be, the "dunder" may
again be fermented and used separately; it should on no account be
combined with fresh liquor. It will be found that by these means a more
wash should be
It will be found
to the directions
If however the

page_text: pure spirit will be obtained, and much larger produce from a given quantity
of molasses. After filling the still with wash, and the first rectifier with
low wines, I put in about one eighth of a gallon of common salt to each
gallon of low wines contained in the first rectifier, together with about
two gallons of freshly expressed cane juice, and I fill the second rectifier
with the same quantity of pure spring or rain water as there are low wines
in the first, say about thirty gallons. The first gallon of rum which comes
over I throw into the low wines butt; and on each receiving can I place a
small wicker basket containing vegetable charcoal, and cause the rum to
filter through such charcoal, which will be found to be of considerable
advantage in the process.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the means
pursued by me in carrying the same into practice, I would remark, that
I do not confine myself to the details as herein described, so long as the
peculiar character of the improvements herein described be retained.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Sheafe Gaskin, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty.
JOHN S. (LS.) GASKIN, Jr.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Sixth day of August, in the
year of our Lord 1850, the aforesaid John Sheafe Gaskin, jr., came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Speci-
fication 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-eighth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty.
VAATT