CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ART OF BLOCK PRINTING
Year: 1836

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, Joux
PARKINSON, of Rose Bank, in the Parish of Bury, in the County of Lancaster,
Calico Printer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Nineteenth day of April, in the sixth year of His reign,
did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
John Parkinson, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said John Parkinson, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
and such others as I, the said John Parkinson, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no other, 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, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE ART OF BLOCK PRINTING;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a
proviso that I, the said John Parkinson, shall cause a particular description
of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be inrolled in His 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 there-
unto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
John Parkinson, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described and
ascertained in the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the following explanation
thereof, that is to say:-
My Improvements in the Art of Block-Printing apply particularly to that
branch of the same in which it is desirable to print two, three, or any required
number of colors upon velvets, muslins, calicos, paper, earthenware, or any
other article or manufacture capable of receiving them, and is accomplished by
forming the whole of a many-coloured design or pattern upon one block, and
imparting to each particular portion of the block its respective colour in a
novel and effective manner, instead of using a separate block to fill in each
colour as required; and it will also be seen that my improvement in the
manner of laying the colours, or spreading them upon the surface of the sieve
or elastic bed (upon which they are laid) after each dip of the block has been
performed, will prevent the necessity of each colour forming stripes either in
the length or crossway of the piece which is to be printed, but each colour
may be arranged in any form varying from the stripe or straight line in any
way, either vertically or diagonally, and may be spread or laid upon any part
or parts of the sieve to suit the required position of each color in the design
or pattern to be printed. It is necessary, in the common process of printing
calicoes or other fabrics with one colour, that an attendant be placed at the
"swimming tub" or clastic bed, upon which the sieve containing the colour is
placed, for the purpose of supplying and respreading the colour over its
surface after each dip of the block has taken place. This is done in order to
present an even surface of colour to the face of the block that all parts of the
same may take up an equal portion of the colour, and consequently prevent
the appearance of inequalities in the printing upon the surface of the fabric
under operation. Now the principal object of my improvement is to effect this
operation of respreading or mixing up of the colour upon the sieve in certain
portions or spots upon its surface, and at the same time prevent them from
being mixed or blended with each other, which would entirely prevent the
possibility of taking up any separate portion of the colour upon its required
place on the block.
In order that my improvements may be more fully explained and better
understood, I have appended to these Presents a Drawing containing different
Figures and views of the subject of my improvement, and marked the same
with letters of reference, which are placed upon each corresponding part
in all the Figures. Figure 1 is a horizontal or top view of part of the improved
apparatus, and Figure 2 a sectional elevation taken longitudinally through the
a, a, a, ", is the ordinary "swimming tub" or vessel containing the
same.

page_text: glutinous mixture which forms an elastic bed for the sieve or cloth b, b; upon
this sieve the colours are deposited ready to receive the dip of the block
upon which the pattern or design to be printed is formed in relief, as in ordi-
nary printing. c, c, c, is a framework of wood or other suitable material
attached to the swimming tub, and upon the inner sides of this trough or
frame slips of wood are fixed for the purpose of forming slides and grooves, as
at d, d; d. At that end of the frame c, c, which is on the right hand of the
operator, there is a series of small pots or vessels é, e, e, e, containing the
various colours to be printed from; and when it is desired to lay the colours
upon the surface of the sieve b, b; in commencing the operation of printing,
this is done by dipping a system of small brushes or pegs set in a board or bed
with a handle conveniently adapted for this purpose, into the vessels e, e. This
series of brushes is shewn in the detached Figures 3 and 4, and it will be
seen that the brushes f, f, are made to correspond with the centres of the
vessels of colour, so that, when the brushes are dipped into the vessels by the
hand of the workman, a certain portion of each colour is taken up by each
brush; there are also elastic springs g, g, affixed to the board or box containing
the vessels of colours, for the purpose of preventing the brushes from being
dipped too deeply into the vessels. The brushes, being now charged with
colours, are to be slidden down the grooves or way formed by the ribs or
projecting ribs d, d, and the colours deposited or left upon the surface of the
sieve cloth b, b; as seen in Figure 1, and then the brushes removed. When
this is done, another system of larger brushes h, h, h, is to be slidden down the
way or groove, and when they are immediately over the spots or portions of
colours left by the former brushes, the winch or handle i is to be smartly turned
round by the hand of the attendant, when the whole system of brushes will be
made to revolve each upon its own pivot or centre, and thus spread or lay the
colours evenly upon the sieve cloth; and as the diameters of the brushes h, h,
must be of the same size as the required portion of the colours, they will
always work up or spread each colour separately and at sufficient distance to
prevent their coming into contact or mixing with each other. After the
colours have been sufficiently spread upon the surface of the sieve cloth, the
brushes may be lifted again up the groove, which operation is assisted by the
lovers by which they are suspended, and counterbalance weight j, and slidden
along the rib or projecting piece or rail d, d, that the block may now in its
turn be introduced on to the surface of the sieve, in order to take up a portion
of each colour that has been spread for the purpose; and it is to be observed
that the revolving brushes are to be worked upon the sieve cloth after every
Jip of the block, so that the colours may always be kept evenly spread or

page_text: laid, but the small brushes for giving a fresh supply of colours from the
vessels e, e, e, are only to be used when the operator shall find that a fresh
supply is requisite. In the detached views, Figures 5 and 6, I have shewn
the system of revolving brushes, and the manner of driving them, Figure 5
being a plan or horizontal view of the face of the brushes, and seen just as
they have been removed from the sieve cloth, and Figure 6 is a plan or top
view of the gearing necessary to drive the brushes, or cause each to revolve
upon its own centre; this gearing, and a side view of the brushes, is also
shewn in the system of brushes suspended over the "swimming tub."
In Figure 2 it will be seen that the winch or handle i is connected by a
socket to the centre of the pinion on the middle of the set of revolving
brushes; and this pinion, on being turned, will give a rotary motion to
the whole series of brushes, as the pivot of each brush is furnished with
a small wheel or pinion for this purpose, which will be very readily
perceived by reference to the Figure 6. I have also thought it adviseable,
in order to prevent any part of this improvement from being misunder-
stood, to show a pattern after it has been printed by the block, which has
taken up its various colours and left them upon the surface of the fabric
intended to be printed, and this impression is represented at Figure 7.
In conclusion, I wish it to be understood that, although I have shewn in
the Drawing only one mode or way of effecting the object required, it will be
evident that as there are other modes of varying the manner of causing the
brushes h, h, h, to revolve, I do not mean to confine myself to any particular
manner of doing the same, nor do I intend to determine any particular size or
arrangement of the said brushes, as a centre might be formed of one colour
having a ring of another colour around it, and so forth, by a different arrange-
ment of the bristles or hairs forming the brushes; and it will also be under-
stood that instead of brushes small cushions of leather or other material may be
used in place of the said brushes. But I do claim any method by which
spots or compartments of two or many colours are kept in a proper state for
the presentation of the block in all processes of block printing, and thereby
properly spread and laid upon the surface of the sieve cloth after the manner I
have described in this my Specification, in which I presume I have fully com-
plied with the intents of the proviso made in the grant of the above recited
Letters Patent.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Parkinson, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty-six.
JOHN (L.) PARKINSON.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Thirteenth day of October, in
the seventh year of the reign of His Majesty King William the Fourth,
the said John Parkinson came before our said Lord the King in His
Chancery, and acknowledged the Instrument aforesaid, and all and every
thing therein contained and specified, in form above written. And also the
Instrument aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute
made in the fifty-fifth year of the reign of His late Majesty King George the
Third.