CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE BUILDING OF TWO-WHEEL CARRIAGES, TOGETHER WITH APPLICABLE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE HARNESS TO BE USED FOR THE HORSE OR HORSES DRAWING SUCH TWO-WHEEL CARRIAGES, BY WHICH MEANS THOSE CARRIAGES WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT TO BE OVERTURNED, AND AT THE SAME TIME MORE EASY AND PLEASANT IN THEIR MOTION THAN ANY OTHER TWO-WHEEL OR FOUR-WHEEL CARRIAGE HITHERTO INVENTED
Year: 1792

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, BENJAMIN
VULLIAMY, of Pall Mall, in the Parish of Saint Jaines, Clockmaker to His
Majesty, sends greeting.
WHEREAS the said Benjamin Vulliamy did, by his Petition, humbly
represent unto His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Third
that he had, after much trouble, labour, and expence, invented "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE BUILDING OF TWO-WHEEL CARRIAGES, TOGETHER WITH
APPLICABLE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE HARNESS TO BE USED FOR THE HORSE OR HORSES
DRAWING SUCH TWO-WHEEL CARRIAGES, BY WHICH MEANS THOSE CARRIAGES WILL
BE MORE DIFFICULT TO BE OVERTURNED, AND AT THE SAME TIME MORE EASY AND
PLEASANT IN THEIR MOTION THAN ANY OTHER TWO-WHEEL OR FOUR-WHEEL CARRIAGE
HITHERTO INVENTED," which he conceived would be of great public safety, and
that he was the first and true Inventor thereof, and that the same had not been
made or used by any other person or persons whomsoever to the best of his
knowledge and belief, he therefore most humbly prayed His said Majesty that
He would be graciously pleased to grant unto him, his executors, administrators,
and assigns, His Majesty's Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great
Britain, for the sole use, benefit, and advantage of his said Invention, within
that part of Great Britain called England, His Dominion of Wales, and Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, for the term of fourteen years; and His said Majesty,
being willing to give encouragement to all arts and inventions which might
be for the public good, was graciously pleased to condescend to his request,
and therefore, by His Majesty's Royal Letters Patent, bearing date at West-
minster, the Sixth day of June, in the thirty-second year of His reign, of
His especial grace, certain knowledge, and meer motion, for Himself, His

page_text: beirs and successors, did give and grant unto me, tho said Benjamin Vulliamy,
his executors, administrators, and assigns, His especial licence, full power, sole
priviledge and authority, that he, the said Benjamin Vulliamy, his executors,
administrators, and assigns, and every of them, by himself and themselves, or
by his or their deputy or deputies, servants or agents, or such others as he,
the said Benjamin Vulliamy, his executors, administrators, or assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
hereafter during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend his said Invention within that part of
Ilis said Majesty's Kingdom of Great Britain called England, His Dominion
of Wales, and Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in such manner as to him, the
said Benjamin Vulliamy, bis executors, administrators, and assigns, or any of
them, should in his or their discretion seem meet, and that he, tho said
Benjamin Vulliamy, his executors, adminstrators, and assigns, should and
lawfully might have and enjoy the whole profit, benefit, commodity, and
advantage from time to time coming, growing, accruing, and arising by reason
of the said Invention, for and during the term of years therein mentioned ;
to have, hold, exercise, and enjoy the said licence, powers, privileges, and
advantages therein-before granted or mentioned to be granted unto him, the
said Benjamin Vulliamy, his executors, administrators, and assigns, for and
during and unto the full end and term of fourteen years from the date of the
said Letters Patent next and immediately ensuing, and fully to be complete
and ended, according to the form of the Statute in such case made and
provided; in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that if tho
said Benjamin Vulliamy should not particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of his said Invention, and in what manuer the samo was to be per-
formed, by an instrument in writing under his hand and seal, and cause the
same to be inrolled in His said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within one
calendar month next after the date of the said Letters Patent, then the said
Letters Patent, and all liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby granted,
should utterly cease, determine, and become void, anything therein-before
contained to the contrary thereof in anywise notwithstanding, as in and by
the said Letters Patent, reference being thereunto had, may more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, the said Ben-
jamin Vulliamy, doth hereby, and by the Plans or Drawings hereunto
annexed, and marked Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12, describe
the naturo of his said Invention, and in what manner the same is to bo per-
formed, as follows, that is to say :-

page_text: The said Invention or improvement consists of several different parts, which
are by the said Plans or Drawings, and by this present Instrument, fully speci-
fied and described. One part of the said Invention or Improvement consists,
in the application of two braces or shafts, fixed so as to move in an horizontal
direction only, one on each side of the pole, which braces or shafts may be
thus attached to the fore bar of any two-wheel carriage drawn by two or
more horses, or to any other part of such carriage, which may be judged more
convenient for the purpose.
Figure 1st represents the ground plan of such a carriage, the two braces
or shafts of which are here represented moveable at A, A, the Inventor judging
this the most advantageous place at which to place and make them moveable;
but they may be placed and made moveable in any other part, provided that
the horses are not thereby prevented from quartering. This motion may be
given either with a hinge, as it is represented at B, in Figure 2, or by any
other means that will let these shafts or braces allow to the horses the full
liberty of quartering. Applicable harness is necessary to be used to render
the above-mentioned braces or shafts efficatious in preventing the carriage
from overturning, which harness may be made and applied in any manner
that will occasion the horses to resist the raising or depressing of the shafts
or braces, when either of the wheels by being elevated tends to overturn the
carriage. The Inventor recommends it to be applied as is shewn in the
following Figures.
In Figure 3 the two horses are shewn supporting the carriage by the pole
at C, with a cross bar as is commonly used, and here represented by the
letter D. The straps A, A, and A, A, are additional straps which go across
the saddles, and may be fastened in any convenient manner to the pole, and
to each shaft or brace as at K, K. The straps B, B, may be fastened in any
convenient manner to the shafts and to the inside of each saddle, or they may
be fastened to the girths under the belly.
Figure 4, at A, shews a ring which is loose upon the pole, with two loops
to it to buckle or fasten the two straps A, A, to; and F is a stop joint in the
pole, at a distance of from two to four inches behind the strap, by which the
weight of the carriage is supported. This joint, in case one of the horses
should fall down, will permit the end of the pole to be pulled downward, and
thereby prevent the breaking of the pole.
Figure 5, at G, shews a ring which is to be loose upon each shaft or brace;
it has a loop at the top to buckle or fasten the other ends of the strap A, A,
in Figure 3 to, and underneath it has a loop to bucklo or fasten the strap B
in Figure 3 to, the other end of which strap fastens to the inside of the
saddle. I is a stop fastened to the shaft, to prevent the ring G from sliding

page_text: forwards. The straps A, A, are to bo loose, so as to prevent the. weight of
the carriage from being carried or supported by the cross bar D, in Figure
the 3d, and may, go over a roller fixed upon the saddle as at I, in Figure 6.
There must be a stop to those straps on that side of tho roller which is next
the polo, so as to provent more than one half of the strap from going through
the rollor on the brace or shaft side. The saddle will be most advantageously;
fastened with two woollon girths. If it is thought most convenient, the cross:
bar may be intirely laid aside, and the weight of the chaise may be supported
wholly upon the saddles by the straps A, A, and A, A, in Figure 3..
Figures 7, 8, and 9 are meant to represent various sorts of two-wheel
carringes drawn by one or more horses. Another part of the said Invention.
or improvement consists, in the application of one or more spring or springs
in such a manner, that such spring or springs may be attached and fastened
at each end thereof to such shafts or pole, and thereby become a part of such
shafts or pole, in whatever part of them may be judged the most convenient
place for applying such spring or springs. A mode of such application is
hereafter described in Figures 10, 11, and 12. This new spring may bo.
applied to any two-wheel carriage; and by proportioning its strength to tho
weight which the carriage bears upon the horse or horses, will preserve the
level of the chaise, and thereby totally prevent that unpleasant motion which
is given to a two-wheel carriage. When this spring is not used, for instance,
if the spring be too strong, the front of the chaiso will be. raised with tho
rising of the horse, but will drop or fall if the spring be too weak. A due
medium of strength, so as to preserve the level of the chaise, can be obtained.
by the proposed spring.
Figure 10 represents part of one of the shafts, with the new spring A.
making part of it on the under side, at about nine or twelve inches, a little
more or less distance from the axletree, this situation being recommended,
and judged best by the Inventor for applying the spring A to. K is a plate of
iron, or of any other metal, to be fixed on the upper side of the shaft overs
the spring at g, and the other end moves upon a pin in a notch at f, so thint
the shaft is to be entirely cut away from to g. This spring A should be
made rather too strong at first, as a part of the shaft is left coming upon tho
spring as shown at g, which part may be shortened a little at a time; by so
doing the spring which, by being lengthened, will become weaker, until it
attains the required strength. B represents one of the front springs to hang
the body upon, and is fixed upon the same blocking at C which fixes the
shaft D, D, to the axletree at H, that being the properest place to fix the
spring B when the patent spring A is applied near the axletree.
Figure 11 represents another manner of fixing the new spring A, in which

page_text: it is fixed upon the upper side of the shaft with a bent spring fixed upon the
under side.
Figure 12 represents another manner of fixing the new spring A, in which
it is fixed in a notch cut in the shaft. This spring or springs may be made
of tempered or soft steel, or of iron, or brass, or any other metal or substance
may be substituted, which will, by its elasticity, produce the same effect, as
this Patent is not grounded upon the material of which the springs are to be
made, but upon the discovery of the manner of applying a spring or springs
to such part of the carriage as will admit of being adjusted to the weight
which any two-wheel carriage bears upon the horse or horses, so as to preservo
the level of the chaise.
In witness whereof, the said Benjamin Vulliamy hath hereunto set his
hand and seal, this Fifth day of July, One thousand seven hundred and