IMPROVEMENTS IN ARRANGING BUILDINGS AND APPARATUS FOR BREEDING, REARING, PRESERVING, AND CARRYING LEECHES
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Nathaniel Johnston, of Bordeaux, at present in Paris,
Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ARRANGING BUILDINGS
AND APPARATUS FOR BREEDING, REARING, PRESERVING, AND CARRYING LEECHES."
-A communication.
Sealed the 6th February 1855, and dated the 9th December 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Nathaniel Johnston at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th December 1854.
I, NATHANIEL JOHNSTON, of Bordeaux, at present in Paris, Merchant, do
hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ARRANGING
BUILDINGS AND APPARATUS FOR BREEDING, REARING, PRESERVING, AND CARRYING
LEECHES," to be as follows:-
It has heretofore been the practise when breeding and rearing leeches to
have recourse to open marshes, which are necessarily subject to the prejudicial
consequences of varying temperatures, and there is also, by reason of want of
protection, much loss by the depredations of rats and other animals. Now,
the object of this Invention is to change the system of breeding and rearing
of leeches from what may be called a natural to an artificial system, by which
the breeding and rearing of leeches will be rendered more advantageous by
reason of the faster growth and more early maturity of the leeches.
The rearing of leeches will also be more under control, and they will be
more accessible to the rearer; hence, lecches of different ages and states of

page_text: being as to health and otherwise may be more readily kept in separate classes
than could heretofore be done, and this will admit of different treatment to the
different classes of leeches, which is found to be of great importance; and by
reason of the protection offered by the use of buildings and apparatus against
the ravages of rats and other animals, and the more quick breeding, the
quantities raised in a given time will be very largely increased.
Leeches may also, by using more suitable apparatus than heretofore, be
conveyed to great distances, and be kept packed for much longer periods with
much less loss than heretofore. For these purposes, in place of having recourse
to marshes in the open air, as heretofore, marshes are enclosed or formed in
buildings, arranged in such manner as to be light and airy, and so as to be
heated by means of steam or hot water pipes, or by other artificial means, to
maintain the various parts of the interior of the building at such temperatures as
are found most suitable for the different stages of growth, and also the different
states of being, of the leeches at different periods. These artificial marshes
are formed on peat or bog earth, and aquatic and other plants are provided.
In these marshes inverted pots or vessels (by preference of a conical form
and of earthenware, though other materials may be used,) are placed in series
and ranges, some being full of water, others being partly full, and others for
the most part dry, the leeches being at liberty to occupy either, according as
their own feelings may dictate; and such pots or vessels have packed therein
aquatic and other plants and roots and dry matters, amongst which the Iceches
enter. By these arrangements each pot or vessel can readily be emptied out,
and the leeches examined from time to time, and those of different growth
and ages may thus be more readily separated and be kept in classes, and the
nourishing and feeding of the leeches may be distinct, one class from another,
thus avoiding the objectionable and prejudicial consequences of giving the
same opportunities of obtaining nourishment to quantities of leeches mixed
together of different growth and ages. By these means also may quantities
of matured leeches be kept at all times ready for use, the feeding being readily
regulated. The leeches thus housed and protected will also for the most part,
if not wholly, be protected from the ravages of rats and other animals; and
by the employment of vessels, each with a central tube perforated at its lower
end, and filled with peat or bog earth, aquatic and other plants, roots, and dry
matters, with a few inches of water at the bottom, and with wire cloth at the
top, leeches may be transported to great distances, and preserved for a great
length of time, the leeches having been previously fed with reference to the
length. of time before they will be required for use.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Nathaniel Johnston in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
8th June 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, NATHANIEL
JOHNSTON, of Bordeaux, Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Nathaniel Johnston, Her special licence that I, the said Nathaniel John-
ston, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Nathaniel Johnston, 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, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
ARRANGING BUILDINGS AND APPARATUS FOR BREEDING, REARING, PRESERVING, AND
CARRYING LEECHES," (a communication,) upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Nathaniel Johnston, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, 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 Nathaniel Johnston, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof (that is to say) :-
It has heretofore been the practise when breeding and rearing leeches to
have recourse to open marshes, which are necessarily subject to the prejudicial..
reason of want of
consequences of varying temperatures, and there is also
protection much loss by theft, by the depredations of rats and other animals.
Now, the object of this Invention is to change the system of breeding and
rearing of leeches from what may be called a natural to an artificial system, by
which the breeding and rearing of lecches will be rendered more advantageous
by reason of the faster growth and more early maturity of the leeches. The
rearing of leeches will also be more under control, and they will be more
accessible to the rearer; hence, lecches of different ages and states of being, as
to health and otherwise, may be more readily kept in separate classes than

page_text: could heretofore be done, and this will admit of different treatment to the
different classes of leeches, which is found to be of great importance; and by
reason of the protection offered by the use of buildings and apparatus against
theft, the ravages of rats and other animals, and the more quick breeding, the
quantities raised in a given time will be very largely increased. For these pur-
poses, in place of having recourse to marshes in the open air, as heretofore, build-
ings termed "hirudinieres" are arranged in such manner as to be light and airy,
and so as to be heated by means of steam or hot water pipes, or by other arti-
ficial means, to maintain the various parts of the interior of the building at such
temperatures as are found most suitable for the different stages of growth, and
also the different states of being, of the leeches at different periods. In these
buildings are placed troughs, in wood or stone, or other material, which may
be of various shapes, lengths, and depths, intended to contain water, in which
are placed vases, pots, or cases, which may be of various shapes, and made of
various materials; conical forms of porous earthenware with or without small
holes or apertures at their lower ends are preferred for general purposes,
though those of different materials might be usefully adopted. Sufficient
water is put into the troughs to cover about one-third of each of the vases,
pots, or cases which are placed in them. By these means these vessels are
kept with their lower ends to about one-third of their total height in water,
the other two-thirds out of water. Into these vases, pots, or cases is put a
certain quantity of earth of a suitable quality, by preference that extracted
from marshes, on the top of which earth aquatic plants, dry or green, are put.
Into these vases containing the said carth and plants the lecches are put, the
quantities varying according to the size of the vessels and of the lecches them-
selves. A perforated top, either of metal, wire, or wood, is placed on these
vessels to prevent the leeches getting out. From the circumstances of the
vessels being made of porous materials, or being perforated to the height to
which they are placed in water, the lower portion of the earth contained in
them is kept constantly wet, the part immediately above the watermark is less
so, and the moisture gradually diminishes up to the surface, thus affording the
leeches the opportunity of seeking the degree of wet or damp most suitable to
their taste, and to their momentary state of health. By these arrangements,
each pot or vessel can readily be emptied out, and the leeches examined from
time to time, and those of different growth and ages may thus be more readily
separated, and be kept in classes, and the nourishing and feeding of the leeches
may be distinct one class from another, thus avoiding the objectionable and
prejudicial consequences of giving the same opportunities of obtaining nourish-
ment to quantities of leeches mixed together of different growth and ages..

page_text: By these means also may quantities of matured leeches be kept at all times
ready for use, the feeding being readily regulated. The leeches thus reared
may afterwards be kept in vessels covered with wire cloth, each with a central
tube, porous or perforated at the lower end. Into these vessels the leeches are
put, after having filled the vessels nearly with earth and aquatic plants, in the
same manner as has been described for the vases or pots in the "hirudiniere."
Through the central tube, which is perforated or porous at the lower end,
water is introduced from time to time at the lower portions of the earth, thus
keeping that portion constantly wet, and allowing the moisture to diminish
towards the surface, for the same purpose as has been described for the vases
or pots in the "hirudiniere." Leeches may also in such vessels be conveyed
to great distances, and be kept packed for much longer periods with much less
loss than heretofore. The leeches, when to be conveyed to a distance in appa-
ratus as above described, are to be previously fed with reference to the length
of time before they will be required for use.
Having thus stated the nature of the said Invention, I will proceed to
describe an arrangement of building and apparatus constructed and combined
according to the Invention. I would, however, state that the form of the
building and the arrangement of earthenware pots and apparatus used therein

page_text: "
of about 39 inches, and is full of marshy soil, where aquatic herbs are cul-
tivated, and where water can be let in according as it may be wanted. The
black lines represent deal shelves, one over the other, at about 13 inches
distance; on these shelves is placed a layer of "sphagnum," on which the
"cocons
are deposited, and where the young leeches are born. The "filets'
or small leeches, as they quit their envelope, fall or are thrown into the
aquarium, where they disperse themselves among the plants. Living animals
(generally horses) are then brought into the aquarium, in number according to
the dimensions of the place, to give to the leeches their first nourishment, and
when the leeches can be caught by hand, they are put into the earthenware
vessels already described, and are then to be nourished in what may be called
local baths. These baths consist of tubes of india-rubber, gutta percha, or of
linen or other cloth made waterproof, which, after having been drawn on to the
legs of the horses or other animals, are tied at the lower extremities round
the animals' legs; the waterproof tubes are then filled with water, into which
the leeches are thrown; the tubes are then to be tied at their upper ends,
and the leeches are allowed to take their food by suction, which, taking place in
water, is believed to give little or no pain to the animals; the leeches are then
placed again in the said vessels until they have reached the required size, 'and
gone through the purifying necessary for medical use. . H are the pipes of a
stove requisite to obtain a damp heat by having water trays on the upper
surface; these pipes or flues may be heated being connected with a fire-place
or fire-places, and act as horizontal flues leading to the chimney, or they may
be heated with hot water or steam. By these means, not only may an uniform
temperature be maintained in the building, but humid atmosphere also, which
greatly tend to advance the breeding and culture of leeches. In order to
insure the obtaining and preservation of cocons, floating islands are placed in
the common marshes in which leeches are usually bred, and this particularly
when the height of water is liable to vary. These floating islands are com-
posed of a grating or framing of wood, more or less open for the passage of the
leeches. These frames are covered over with dried aquatic plants, earth, or
other vegetable matters, which float for the most part above the water. The
heat engendered by the vegetable matters on the rafts or floating islands as the
lower parts become moistened and ferment is found advantageous. In con-
structing the buildings, care should be taken, either by paving or otherwise, to
prevent as much as may be vermin, such as rats and others, getting into the
building; the leeches being kept according to the different stages of growth
in the earthenware, or it may be other pots or cells, (capable of being lifted
separately and their contents examined.) The greatest facility is offered to the

page_text: parties superintending in the building to observe the state of health and progress
of the leeches, and this can be done with far greater case and certainty than
when numerous leeches in different stages of growth are in a marsh. The
feeding and nourishing of the leeches may, by thus keeping them separate
in classes, be attended to with greater advantage than could be the case where
leeches of different ages are mixed. The breeding and raising leeches, as it is
ordinarily practised in natural marshes being well understood by leech growers,
it will not be necessary to enter into any description of the manner of feeding
or of general treatment further than to remark, that with the exception of the
greater and more exact separation of leeches into classes or ages, and the quicker
maturity brought about by artificial warmth, as well as by the application of
what I term the local bath, to the animal from which they get their food, the
feeding and general treatment will be the same as before.
From the above description it will be seen that the Invention consists of
arranging and combining apparatus, and forming artificial marshes in buildings
under cover, capable of being artificially heated and ventilated, by which the
breeding, rearing, and maturing of leeches will be greatly improved, facilitated,
and advanced, at the same time the leeches will be protected from the ravages
of vermin and birds; and the Invention also consists of the means of keeping
and transporting leeches to any distance.
In witness whereof, I, the said Nathaniel Johnston, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
Witness,
NATHL. JOHNSTON. (L.S.)
L. V. CLOSE, of Northallerton,
now resident in Bordeaux.
It having occurred unto me, the said Nathaniel Johnston, that in England,
where the rearing of leeches is not generally understood, that further details
should be added to the Specification as to the course of treatment adopted from
the birth of the leeches to their arrival at maturity, I have to subjoin the follow-
ing information to what preceeds :-As soon as the building or hirudinière is
complete, cocons should be obtained from natural marshes, to be placed, as has
been already described, in the aquarium. Live animals are shortly afterwards
introduced, in order to give the leeches after their birth their first gorging.
After this operation, the young leeches can be taken out of the aquarium and
put into vases or pots, there to digest the food they have taken. Some three
weeks or so afterwards their digestion will be sufficiently advanced to enable

page_text: them to take a second gorging, which is effected by putting them in the local
baths, already described, applied to the quadrupeds, from which they derive their
sustenance. They are then replaced in the vases, pots, or cases to perform
their second digestion, which is effected within a month or six weeks afterwards;
then a third gorging in the same way is given them, after digesting which many
of the leeches will be arrived at a sufficient size to be sold; those that are not
will require a fourth, and sometimes a fifth, gorging. The leeches, towards the
summer months, that is, towards June & July, will commence making their
"cocons" in the vessels, pots, or cases in which they are kept; they will at that
period gradually come towards the surface of the earth in these pots, &c. in
order to avoid too great moisture. When the "cocons" are laid, they may
be taken out of these vases, pots, or cases, & put into the aquarium, & the
same process will then continue, as has been already described. If preferred,
the operation might commence with full-grown leeches, the order being
somewhat changed, but the principal being the same.
In witness whereof, I, the said Nathaniel Johnston, have hereunto set
hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
my
Witness,
L. V. CLOSE, of Northallerton,
now resident in Bordeaux.
NATH JOHNSTON. (L.S.)