IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPA- RATUS FOR GINNING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Christopher Brakell, William Hoehl, and William
Günther, of the North Moor Foundry Company, Oldham, in the County
of Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OR APPA-
RATUS FOR GINNING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS."
Partly a communication from abroad by Albert Westfeld, of Smyrna, Asia
Minor.
Sealed the 18th July 1865, and dated the 23rd January 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Christopher Brakell,
William Hoehl, and William Günther at the Office of the Com-
missioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 23rd January 1865.
We, CHRISTOPHER BRAKELL, WILLIAM HOEHL, and WILLIAM GÜNTHER, of
the North Moor Foundry Company, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR GINNING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS
MATERIALS," being in part our own Invention, and partly a communication
from abroad by Albert Westfeld, of Smyrna, Asia Minor, to be as follows:-
In the Specification of the Invention for which Letters Patent were
granted to Christopher Brakell, dated March 9, 1864, No. 587, is described

page_text: a ginning roller, having in its surface a number of shallow recesses of a
circular, oval, or oblong form, with or without spikes.
We now propose to form the roller of a number of circular plates or
washers of iron, steel, brass, artificial or composition stone, or other suitable
material. These plates or washers have teeth or grooves, recesses, corru-
gations, or spikes on their sides, which do not project beyond the peripheries
of the plates, and the sides of the plates themselves are either of a plain,
corrugated, or zig-zag form. The said plates are fixed on a shaft, either at right
angles or diagonally with it, and between each of them is placed a sheet of
leather, india-rubber, compressed paper, or other suitable material. The
surface of the ginning roller so formed is then turned in a lathe, and although
the teeth, grooves, corrugations, or other projections on the sides of the
wasbers do not project beyond the surface or periphery of the roller, yet the
leather or other substance between the plates being compressible or cut down
a little below the surface of the roller allows the projections on the sides
of the plates to seize or lay hold of the cotton which is brought in contact
with the surface of the roller, and carry it beneath the edge of a stationary
pressing knife or doctor, as in an ordinary Macarthy gin. The seeds, burrs,
or husks are cleared away by one of the knife rollers, described in the Speci-
fication of the Patent-before referred to, or by modifications of them, which
will be herein-after described. In any case the knife roller revolves in
contact or nearly so with the surface of the ginning roller before described,
and with the edge of the stationary or pressing knife or doctor, and any wear
of the surface of the ginning roller has the effect of sharpening the teeth or
other projections on the sides of the plates of which the roller is formed.
This improved ginning roller may also be used in connection with the
vibrating reciprocating knife of the ordinary Macarthy gin, or with other
descriptions of ginning. knives or contrivances for cleaning away the seeds,
husks, and refuse.
We now describe various modifications of the revolving knife.rollers
described in the Specification of the Patent before mentioned. With refer-
ence to the knife roller shewn in Figs. 5 and 6, Sheet 3 of the Drawings
accompanying that Specification, and described as consisting of a number of
circular plates or washers fixed diagonally round a spindle or roller; when
this form of knife roller is constructed to revolve in a cylindrical casing or
partly so, as shewn in Sheet 1 of the Drawings, and the cotton to be ginned
is fed into the spaces between the knives through an opening in the casing, it
is sometimes advisable to place spikes in the spaces between the knives at
such a distance from each other and projecting from the boss or body of the

page_text: roller to such an extent that they serve to steady the cotton without teasing
it, and at the same time allow it to be easily drawn away by the pressure of
the stationary knife or doctor on the ginning roller. The edges of the
circular plates or knives of the knife roller may also be formed with notches,
similar to the teeth of a circular saw, or sharpened on their edges, and the
distance between the knives and their depth from the boss of the roller may
be varied according to circumstances. The action of this form of knife roller
is to move the seeds of the unginned cotton to and fro along the surface of
the ginning roller and the edge of the stationary or pressing knife, and it also
at the same time partly pushes, cleans away, or carries forward the loose
seeds in the direction of its motion, which is more or less according as the
plates or knives are at a greater or less angle with the body, boss, or shaft of
the said roller. In some cases it is desirable that these plates or knives
should be placed at such an angle with the boss or shaft that their strokes or
acting parts at or near their peripheries will overlap each other, as otherwise
the cotton or seeds left at the extremities of the strokes would not be suffi-
ciently moved, especially in cotton of the longer staples. If, however, it is
required to keep the knives at a less angle, the strokes can be made to over-
lap by projections on the sides of the knives at that part of them which makes
the farthest point of the stroke. This overlapping effect can also be obtained
by causing the knife roller to move bodily in a lateral direction to and fro
independently of its revolving motion, in which case the washers or knives
may be at right angles with the shaft or boss of the knife roller.
Another modification of the knife roller is to place the circular plates or
knives on the boss at a right angle with the same, and attach to the sides of
the knives pieces of flat steel or other metal similar to flat springs, so that
when the roller is caused to revolve the pieces of steel or springs shall press
aside the seeds or cotton, and thereby loosen them from the edge of the
pressing or stationary knife. These pieces may either be placed opposite each
other on each side of the knives or washers, or one may be placed, say, on
the right-hand side of the washer, and another on the left-hand side some
'distance from it. The whole are, however, so arranged that the lines
described by the extremities of their strokes overlap each other in order that
all the seeds on the edge of the pressing knife may be moved a sufficient
distance to loosen them from the cotton. The plates or knives need not
extend round the roller from one piece or from one spring to another, but may
be left off or cut away, forming a blank space between one piece or spring,
and another into which the cotton is fed. Or instead of these flat pieces of
steel or other metal or springs being fastened to the sides of the circular

page_text: plates as before described, solid projections may be formed on the surface of
the boss or body of the roller, of a wedge or semi-wedge form, with spaces
between their sides, backs, and fronts, and these wedge-like projections may
be cast in lengths, and screwed to the body or boss of the roller. The points
of the wedges in each row are in the middle of the spaces between the wedges
of the preceding row, so that the lines described by the extreme or thick
edges of the wedges in one row would overlap the lines described by the
extreme or thick edges of the wedges in the preceding row.
.
In another modification of the knife rollers a number of short knives are
placed at an angle on the surface of the roller, and a blank space being left
another number of knives are placed on the roller, so that the extreme point
of the stroke of the knives in one row is covered by the beginning of the
stroke of the knives in the next row. One row of these knives may have an
angle from left to right, and the next row from right to left, the knives having
a zig-zag appearance, and moving the cotton and seeds to and fro in a lateral
direction with the shaft of the roller. If the knives are all placed at the
same angle, say, from left to right, they will only move the cotton or seeds in
one direction similar to the action of a screw.
In another modification of the knife roller, instead of, the knives or blades
being wound round the body or boss of the roller like the continuous thread
of a screw acting in one direction only, they may be arranged like the threads
of a right and left hand.screw, joining each other in the middle of the roller,
so as to move the cotton and seeds right and left from the middle of the
roller.
Another modification of the knife roller for giving a lateral motion to and
fro in the direction of the axis of the roller is made by forming the circular
plates or knives of a corrugated or zig-zag form.
In the before-mentioned Letters Patent granted to Christopher Brakell it
was stated that the cotton might be fed in the pods or husks or shells into
some of the gins therein described, but to increase the production of the gin
we prefer that the cotton should be prepared before it is placed in the gin by
separating it more or less from its husks or shells and from the dust and other
refuse it contains when brought from the cotton fields. This separation is at
present generally performed by hand labour, but the method we adopt is as
follows-We employ a casing or cylinder, the periphery of which is formed of
thin plates of metal or other suitable material. The said plates are fixed at
an angle so that they overlap each other, and spaces are left between them, and
in the inside of this casing is placed a knife roller, as described in the afore-
said Patent, or as herein described. The rough cotton in its husks or shells

page_text: mixed with sand or other extraneous matter is then passed into the casing, and
the knife roller is made to revolve, which causes the cotton and its refuse to be.
agitated or thrown to and fro, and also to be thrown or carried forward in the-
direction of the motion of the knife roller, the effect of which is to loosen or
break up the refuse, and separate the same from the cotton, the said refuse
falling out of the casing through the spaces between the plates, while the.
cleaned cotton remains in the interior of the casing. With some forms of the
knife rollers the cotton will be placed in the casing, and removed from it
through an opening or door in the periphery of the same, but with other forms
it may be placed therein at one end and pass out at the other end continuously,
the cylinder or casing being made of such a length that the rough cotton
fed in at one end will be separated from its husks and other refuse when
it is discharged at the other end. Any of the knife rollers referred to will
answer for this purpose, but it is preferred to use that shewn in Figs. 5 and 6,
Sheet 3 of the Drawings of the Patent before mentioned, or any of the modi-
fications herein described, by which roller the cotton is thrown to and fro
parallel with its axis, and at the same time forward in the direction of its
revolving motion. In some cases the casing is caused to revolve along with
the knife roller either in the same or opposite direction, and at the same or
different speeds. To facilitate the separation of the cotton from its husk or
shell as described, it may also be previously passed between a pair of rollers,
the surfaces of which revolve at such a distance apart as to efficiently crush the
husks or shells without crushing the seeds of the cotton. It is preferred to
make one of these rollers run quicker than the other, and either one or both
may be plain, or corrugated, fluted; or grooved, or formed with blunt spikes ;
or one roller working at a suitable distance from a fixed surface may also be
used instead of two rollers. If any portion of husks or shells should remain
with the cotton after it has passed through these operations, it is proposed to
separate them from the cotton by passing it through a coarse gin, which will
allow the cotton with its seed to pass, but clear away the husk, and this is.
accomplished as follows:-We provide a roller the surface of which is grooved
or fluted, or corrugated, or recessed, or formed with spikes, and at such a
distance from the surface of this roller as will admit of the passage of the
cotton with its seeds is fixed a stationary knife or doctor, at or near the edge
of which we place one of the revolving knife rollers. The roller with its
surface recessed, corrugated, or formed with spikes, also the knife roller, are
caused to revolve, and when the cotton to be operated upon is brought into.
contact with the surface of the first-mentioned: roller it is carried. by it to the
edge of the stationary knife or doctor, which allows the cotton in its seed to-

page_text: pass, but obstructs the passage of the portion of shells, husks, or burrs, which
are cleared away by the revolving knife roller. The surface of the first-
mentioned roller may also be made of leather or india-rubber instead of being
grooved, or it may be formed of a number of thin circular plates, either at
right angles or diagonally with the shaft or boss on which they are fixed, with
spaces between them; in this case the pressing knife may be in contact, or
nearly so, with the edges of the circular plates, and the cotton in its seed
would be pressed between the circular. plates, while the husks or shells, or
the greater part thereof, would remain on the surface of the roller or the edges
of the circular plates, and be cleared off by the knife roller.
The part herein-before described is entirely our own Invention; what now
follows has been partly communicated to us by Albert Westfeld, of Smyrna,
Asia Minor, and is in part our own Invention.
This part of the Invention consists, first, in improvements in ginning
machinery for separating cotton from the husks and seeds. In most gins the
cotton is separated from the seeds by means of a roller revolving horizontally
in close contact with a pressing knife, between which and the roller the cotton
fibres are pulled through, leaving the seed behind, and to separate the seeds
more effectually another knife, called the ginning knife, is used, which moves
rapidly up and down in a vertical direction past the edge of the pressing
knife, nearly in contact with it, and thereby beats the seeds from the fibres.
Our improvements consist in employing a ginning knife formed with teeth
like a rack or saw, and moving it to and fro in a parallel or slanting direction
with the axis of the roller by means of a cam, crank, or other mechanical
contrivance, so that it acts upon the cotton in both of its motions. The clean
cotton passes between the pressing knife and roller, and the seeds, husks, and
refuse pass through the spaces between the teeth of the ginning knife to the
seed box. In this machine the pressing knife can be formed much thicker
than those hitherto used, and therefore it may be made of hard brass or other
metal or material from which sparks or excessive heat is not evolved, and in
consequence of the great thickness of the pressing knife the breakages which
are at present so common in other gins are entirely avoided. The pressing
knife may be corrugated or grooved for the purpose of separating the husks
and refuse seed more effectually.
In another modification we employ a disc covered with leather rotating
round a vertical axis instead of a leather roller, and also apply one or more
pressing knives and ginning knives on its flat face.
Secondly, our Invention consists in improved machinery for opening and
cleaning cotton from the pod or busk. For this purpose we pass the pods

page_text: and cotton through a revolving fan or breaker where the husks are partly.
broken; this fan moves in a perforated or wire drum, through the spaces of
which the dust passes by the combined action of the centrifugal force of the
fan and the blast created by it, and the cotton free from its dust passes along
the inner surface of the drum and is removed from its open end. This
machine has the advantage of opening the husks and preparing the cotton
for the gin without undergoing the tedious process of hand picking, and our
improved gins before described are especially adapted for separating and
removing the broken husks and seeds from the fibre.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Christopher Brakell, William Hoehl, and William Günther
in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 22nd July 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we,
CHRISTOPHER BRAKELL, WILLIAM HOEHL, and WILLIAM GÜNTHER, of the
North Moor Foundry Company, Oldham, in the County of Lancaster, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said Christopher Brakell, William Hoehl, and William Günther, Her
special licence that we, the said Christopher Brakell, William Hoehl, and
William Günther, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said Christopher Brakell, William Heohl, and William Günther,
our 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, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY OF
APPARATUS FOR GINNING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBROUS MATERIALS,."
partly Invention and partly communicated by Albert Westfeld, of Smyrna,
Asia Minor, upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Christopher
Brakell, William Hoehl, and William Günther, our executors or administra-
tors, by an instrument in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the
hand and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain

page_text: 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 Christopher Brakell, on behalf of myself
and the said William Hoehl and William Günther, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
thereof, that is to say :-
Heretofore in constructing a cotton gin of the class known as Macarthy's
gins it has been usual to combine a gin roller acting with a doctor or knife
pressed against the gin roller together with a vibrating knife or beater to strip
off the seeds and foreign matters. In some cases revolving rollers or axes
having thereon pegs, vanes, or spiral blades have been applied to the feeding
sides of such gins in order to keep presenting the seed cotton to the action of
the gin rollers and their doctors or pressing knives; and in the Specification
of a Patent granted to one of us, namely, the said Christopher Brakell, dated
the 9th day of March 1864 (No. 587) is described an Invention consisting
in the employment of what is called a roller knife in place of the ordinary
reciprocating knife or beater in combination with the gin roller and doctor
or pressing knife of a Macarthy's cotton gin.
Now the present Invention consists partly in improvement in the last-
mentioned cotton gin, and, like it, the roller knife consists in a roller or axis
having fixed thereon a series of circular plates or discs or equivalent instru-
ments, the edges of which come nearly in contact with the edge of the doctor
or pressing knife, and also with the surface of the gin roller, in such manner
as to cause the seeds and refuse to be beaten off, and at the same time to
cause the fibres and seeds to be moved to and fro along the edge of the doctor
or pressing knife; but according to the present Invention the discs on the
roller are made to overlap each other more advantageously than heretofore, as
hereafter explained.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is an end elevation of part of one of our improved gins; Figure 2
is a transverse section of the same showing the doctor or pressing knife below
the ginning roller; Figure 3 is a plan; Figure 4 is a transverse section of part
of one of our improved gins shewing the fixed or "pressing knife" fixed above
the ginning roller. In each of these Figures the same letters of reference are
used to indicate the same parts.

page_text: a is the gin or roller of the ordinary construction covered with leather, or it
may be of any suitable material; 6 is another roller having a number of
knives c consisting of flat circular plates or discs fixed at an angle with the
axis of the roller; this roller b is called the "knife roller;" d is the ordinary
stationary or fixed knife or doctor which is caused to press against the surface
of the gin roller a by means of springs e. The doctor or knife is nearly in
contact with the edges of the flat plates or discs of the knife roller 6. The
ends of the axes of the two rollers a and b are supported in the bearings f on
the side frames g, which are connected by cross frames h. The knife roller is
partly enclosed in a casing i, part of which is formed as a grating or grid k.
is a feed board on which the attendant places the seed cotton or other fibrous
material to be operated upon, which is progressively pushed to the casing i.
The "gin roller" a and the "roller knife" 6 are geared together, as shewn in
the Drawings. The strap or band from the driving power is applied to the
pulley m, and the motion is communicated therefrom. The seed cotton or
other fibrous material to be cleaned is constantly fed into the casing i between
the spaces of the knives of the "knife roller" b, by which knives the cotton or
fibre is brought in contact with the surface of the roller a, and by such roller b
the cotton is moved along the roller a and the pressing knife or doctor which
stops the seeds, burrs, or other refuse which are cleared away from the edge
of the pressing knife by the action of the knife roller, and such seeds and
refuse pass through the grid. The cross frame h on which the pressing knife
or doctor d and its springs e are fixed have the bolt holes (by which the knife
or doctor is fixed to the frame of the gin) slotted so that it can be easily
raised or lowered. We have found that a speed for the gin roller of about
150 revolutions per minute, and for the knife roller of about 500 revolutions
per minute, answers very well. The action of the knife roller is such that it
not only beats the seeds and refuse but also moves the unginned cotton to and
fro along the surface of the ginning roller and to and fro along the edge of
the pressing knife or doctor, and by reason of the overlapping of the discs this
moving to and fro of the cotton and the beating of the seeds are more advan-
tageously done than heretofore.
In the Drawing it will be seen that the circular plates or discs forming. the
knives of the knife roller are so placed that their acting parts at or near their
peripheries extend beyond or overlap each other to such an extent that the
seed cotton is moved by each knife along the pressing knife or doctor to a
point some distance within the range of the next knife, by which the seed
cotton is moved a sufficient distance for the effectual separation of the seed

page_text: from the cotton. We have found in practice that an overlap of from one-hal
to three-fourths of the distance between the knives answers well for long-
stapled cotton, and from one-fourth to one-half of the spaces between the
neighboring knives for cotton of short staple. The distance between the
knives we prefer to be 1 to 2 inches for long staples, and 1 to 12 inches for
short staples, but this may be varied, and the depth of the knives from their
circumference to the body of the roller we prefer to make about 1 to 2 inches.
The advantages derived from the action of the knives in consequence of their
thus overlapping each other. are not only that the seed and impurities are
more effectually and advantageously removed from the cotton or fibres, but the
surface of the gin roller is better preserved as the working is more equally
divided over its whole surface. At the point marked o a guard is applied to
the roller knife embracing about one inch of its circumference, and being
nearly in contact with it; this is desirable not only to prevent the seeds from
being crushed by getting between the edges of the knives of the roller knife
and the surface of the gin roller, but also to prevent the choking up of the
gin by too much cotton passing to the roller knife. As the "gin roller" a
wears away and becomes of less diameter it is moved up to the doctor or
"pressing knife" d and to the roller knife b; this object may be accomplished
in various ways; in the Drawings it is shown to be attained by forming the inner
surface of the driving pulley m on the shaft of the "gin roller "a with internal
teeth which gear with a spur pinion p. This pinion is fixed on a spindle or
shaft
9, and on the other end of this shaft is fixed a wheel r which gears with
the wheel s. on the shaft or spindle of the knife roller b. By this arrange-
ment it will be seen that the axis of the "gin roller" with its pinion can be
moved nearer to the roller knife" or farther from it without interfering with
the proper gearing of the wheels.
In the Specification of the before-mentioned Letters Patent granted to the
said Christopher Brakell it was stated that the cotton might be fed in the
pods or husks or shells into some of the gins therein described, but to increase
the production of the gin we prefer that the cotton should be prepared before
it is placed in the gin by separating it more or less from its husks or shells,
and from the dust and other refuse it contains when brought from the cotton
fields. This separation is at present generally performed by hand labor, but
the method we adopt is as follows:-We employ a casing or cylinder, the
periphery of which is formed of thin bars of metal or other suitable material.
The said bars are fixed at an angle longitudinally towards the periphery, so
that they overlap each other, and spaces. are left between them, and in the

page_text: middle of this casing is placed a knife roller as described in the aforesaid.
Patent, or as herein-after described. The rough cotton in its husks or shells,
mixed with sand or other extraneous matter, is then passed into the casing,
and the knife roller is made to revolve, which causes the cotton and its refuse
to be agitated or thrown to and fro, and also to be thrown or carried forward
in the direction of the motion of the knife roller, the effect of which is to.
loosen or break up the refuse and separate the same from the cotton, the said
refuse falling out of the casing through the spaces between the plates, while
cleaned cotton remains in the interior of the casing. With some forms of the
knife rollers the cotton will be placed in the casing, and removed from it
through an opening or door in the periphery of the same, but with other
forms it may be placed therein at one end and pass out at the other con-
tinuously, the cylinder or casing being made of such a length that the
rough cotton fed in at one end will be .separated from its husks and other:
refuse when it is discharged at the other end. Any of the knife rollers
referred to will answer for this purpose, but it is preferred to use that shewn in
Figures 5 and 6, Sheet 3, of the Drawings of the Patent before mentioned,
or any of the modifications herein described, by which roller the cotton is
thrown to and fro parallel with its axis, and at the same time forward in the
direction of its revolving motion. In some cases the casing is caused to.
revolve along with the knife roller either in the same or. opposite direction,
and at the same or different speeds. To facilitate the separation of the
cotton from its husk or shell as described, it may also be previously passed:
between a pair of rollers, the surfaces of which revolve at such a distance
apart as to sufficiently crush the husks or shells without crushing the seeds:
of the cotton. It is preferred to make one of these rollers run quicker than
the other, and either one or both may be plain, or corrugated; fluted, or
grooved, or formed with blunt spikes; or one roller working at. a suitable
distance from a fixed surface may also be used instead of two rollers. If
any portion of husks or shells should remain with the cotton after it has
passed through these operations, it is proposed to separate them from the
cotton by passing it through a coarse gin, which will allow the cotton with
its seed to pass, but clear away the husk, and this is accomplished as follows:
-We provide a roller, the surface of which is grooved or fluted, or corru-
gated, or recessed, or formed with spikes, and at such a distance from the.
surface of this roller as will admit of the passage of the cotton with its seeds is
fixed a stationary knife or doctor, at or near the edge of which we place one
of the revolving knife rollers. The roller with its surface recessed, corrugated,

page_text: or formed with spikes, and also the knife roller are caused to revolve, and
when the cotton to be operated upon is brought into contact with the surface
of the first-mentioned roller it is carried by it to the edge of the stationary
knife or doctor, which allows the cotton in its seed to pass, but obstructs the
passage of the portion of shells, husks, or burrs, which are cleared away by
the revolving knife roller. The surface of the first-mentioned roller may also
be made of leather. or india-rubber instead of being grooved, or it may be
formed of a number of thin circular plates, either at right angles or diagonally
with the shaft or boss on which they are fixed, with spaces between them;
in this case the pressing knife may be in contact or nearly so with the edges
of the circular plates, and the cotton in its seed would be pressed between
the circular plates, while the husks or shells, or the greater part thereof,
would remain on the surface of the roller or the edges of the circular plates,
and be cleared off by the knife roller.
The part herein-before described is entirely our own Invention; what now
follows has been partly communicated to us by Albert Westfeld, of Smyrna,
Asia Minor, and is in part our own Invention..
This part of the Invention consists, first, in improvements in ginning
machinery for separating cotton from the husks and seeds. In most gins the
cotton is separated from the seeds by means of a roller revolving horizontally
in close contact with a pressing knife, between which and the roller the cotton
fibres are pulled through, leaving the seed behind, and to separate the seeds
more effectually another knife called the ginning knife is used which moves
rapidly up and down in a vertical direction past the edge of the pressing knife,
nearly in contact with it, and thereby beats the seeds from the fibres. Our
improvements consist in employing a ginning knife formed with teeth like a
rack or saw, and moving it to and fro in a parallel or slanting direction with
the axis of the roller by means of a cam, crank, or other mechanical contrivance
so that it acts upon the cotton in both of its motions. The clean cotton passes
between the pressing knife and roller, and the seeds, husks, and refuse pass
through the spaces between the teeth of the ginning kuife to the seed box.
Our Invention further consists in improved machinery for opening and
cleaning cotton from the pod or husk. For this purpose we pass the pods and
cotton through a revolving fan or breaker where the husks are partly broken;
this fan moves in a perforated or wire drum, through the spaces of which the
dust passes by the combined action of the centrifugal force of the fan and the
blast created by it, and the cotton free from its dust passes along the inner
surface of the drum and is removed from its open end. This machine has the

page_text: advantage of opening the husks and preparing the cotton for the gin without
undergoing the tedious process of hand picking, and our improved gins before
described are especially adapted for separating and removing the broken husks
and seeds from the fibre.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher Brakell, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of July, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
CB. BRAKELL. (L.S.)