CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FIRE-ARMS, AND IN CARTRIDGES FOR CHARGING THE SAME
Year: 1852

page_text: ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL
STEPHEN TAYLOR, of New York, Gentleman, send greeting.
E, 1,
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria,
by Her Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain,
bearing date at Westminster, the Tenth day of September, in the six-
teenth year of Her reign, did, for, Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Stephen Taylor, Her especial license,
full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Stephen Taylor,
my exors, aditiors, and assigns, and such others as I, the said Stephen
Taylor, my exors, adñiors, 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 mentioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, and in
the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, an Inven-
tion of CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FIRE-ARMS, AND
IN CARTRIDGES FOR CHARGING THE SAME," being a communication from

page_text: abroad; in which said Letters Patent is contained a provisó, obliging
me, the said Stephen Taylor, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, and
to cause the same to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after tho.
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, 1, the said
Stephen Taylor, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly
described, and ascertained in and by the following description thereof,
reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):
The improvements constituting the subject of the present Invention
are shewn in several views in the accompanying Drawings, wherein.
Fig. 1, is a partial side elevation of a breech-loading gun constructed
according to the first head of the Invention; and Fig. 2, is a section
through the line A, B, of Fig. 1. Fig. 3, is a section of an improved
shot cartridge, forming the second head of the Invention; and Fig. 4,
<is a section of a ball cartridge containing the same improvement.
Fig 5, shews a leather sole for the same; and Fig. 6, shews the
forward end of the shot cartridge. The like marks of reference
designate the same parts. A, is the stock'; B, is the barrel of this
<fire-arm. E, is a metal chamber containing the working parts, and also
connecting the barrel with the stock. 1, is a centre pin carrying the
radius bar a, the lower and rear part b of which both forms the trigger
guard, and serves as a lever to move the radius bar a. A pin 2, on
the lever b, enters a hole in the strap of the chamber E; and a bow or
loop 3, receives a finger to move the lever b. The loading slide and
breech pin 3, lies in the chamber E, the front part of which slide is
formed round, as at e, to enter the rear end of the barrel B, and form a
shoulder. 4, is a projection on the side of the breech pin c, which has
ȧ touch-hole opening to the centre of the barrel from a nipple 5. The.
forward end of the breech pin c is formed as a semi-circle, correspond-

page_text: ing with the bore of the gun in front of the dotted line 7, and behind
that line as a square, taking and sliding in a groove in the chamber E.
Fig. 2, shews the semi-circular form and the position of the barrel in
dotted lines. At 6, the rear of the slide c is formed as a pair of jaws
with a
pin 8 through them, and on the fore end of the radius bar a, a
tenon 10, has a slot 9 through it, which takes the pin 8 to connect the
radius bar a with the slide c. The upper part of the radius bar a, and
slot 9, is formed nearly as an are of a circle struck from the centre of
the pin; and a recess, corresponding in form to the head of the radius
bar, is made in the rear of the breech pin c. The slot 9, and tenon 10,
are curved around the lower edge of the end of the radius bar a, and
extended on the side towards the centre pin 1. At d is the trigger,
fitted to communicate by a lever 11, to the seer of a common lock,
with the usual springs, tumbler, and percussion hammer, the parts of
which are inside the moveable cover plate f, as seen in Fig. 2. At
12, is a pin to hold the barrel B3 in place; and 18 is the ramrod
thimble.
The formation of these parts is as follows:-The guard b, being
turned into the position shewn by dotted lines, the radius bar a is
also brought towards the back of the | iece, as shewn by dotted lines,
drawing with it the slide c, by the pin 8, which, as the radius bar a
swings on its centre, comes into the position in the slot 9, shewn by
dotted lines in Fig. 1. This withdrawal of the breech pin leaves a
space between that and the barrel B, forming a receptacle into which
a proper cartridge is to be entered; and on again returning the guard
lever to the position shewn in Fig. 1, the radius bar is forced
forward, carrying with it the breech pin c, and pushing the cartridge
into the barrel of the gun. It will be seen that when the radius bar
a, has pushed the breech pin c as far as possible, its end, being the arc
of a circle, allows of the parts being further moved to bring the radius
bar a and guard into the position shewn in Fig. 1, with the pin 2 in
the strap. In these motions, the square behind 7, sliding in the square
groove in the chamber E, maintains the rectilinear motion of the
breech pin. The cartridge being fired by a cap on the nipple 5, the

page_text: 1 T)
exposion is in the line of the breech pin c, and the recoil is taken
through the radius bar a, and pin 1, on the chamber E; and this radius
bar a, standing nearly at an angle of 45° with the line of the explosion
(see full lines in Fig. 1,) the effect of the recoil is as much to force
the radius bar downward and forward as to force it upward and back-
ward, so that by thus balancing the forces of the recoil the ultimate
shock is thrown on the parts of the metal chamber E, above the breech
pin and on the parts that carry the centre 1, making it nearly impos
sible for the brecchi pin to be blown back by the force of the explosion
without disruption of the parts.
The cartridge which is used with this gun, as before noted, is shewn
in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, but this cartridge may be used with any other
gun that loads at the breech, as also any other proper cartridge may be
used with this gun, although the cartridge here shewn is preferable, and
specially intended for use with the arm herein shewn; and it is dis-
tinctly to be understood that neither the cartridge, nor the arrangement
for working the breech pin, are to be limited in their size, as they may
be applied to all kinds of fire-arms.
In Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6, 9 represents a leather sole with a hole
through its centre, in the line of the touch-hole in the breech pin, to
allow of the passage forward of the flash from the detonating cap.
This hole is to be made with a punch, or burned with a wire, so as to
leave the same entirely free; and the size of the leather sole is to be
such as will fit tightly into the chamber of the arm with which this
cartridge is to be used. Attached to this sole is a paper or other
cylinder h, of a size to pass freely into the barrel, and forming a
chamber for containing the powder i, which is kept from running out
of the hole in the sole g, by a piece of fine tissue paper or similar
substance that will not obstruct the detonation from the cap reaching
the powder.
Figures 3, and 6, shew a shot cartridge, with the powder i separated
from the shot by a wad or division, and both secured in the cylinder
h, by a plug or wad 7 inserted in the end thereof.
Figure 4, shews a ball cartridge, in which the bullet fis to be of a

page_text: size to fit properly into the bore of the gun with which it is to be used,
and is attached to the cylinder h by being made smaller to enter within
the cylinder with a rebate, as at 14.
The shell or cylinder is in general preferred to be of paper, but
it may be made of flannel, leather, metal, or other substance when
required of a large size. The bulk and stiffness of the leather sole is
to be such that it will accomplish the objects next set forth.
It will be seen that as the explosion of the cartridge is in front of the
sole g, part of the cartridge will be left in the gun after the discharge
has taken place, but as the next cartridge is pushed forward from behind
this sole will form the wad for the next succeeding cartridge, and being
pushed out by the next explosion, and fitting tightly into the barrel,
and of the proper stiffness, carries out before it all the soilage caused by
the explosion of the cartridge to which it was attached; thus after any
number of explosions the barrel cannot have more than the soilage of
one explosion in it. The leather sole of the cartridge serves the further
purpose of a packing, which both protects the breech pin and effectually
prevents the escape backwards of fire, smoke, or any soilage on to the
breech pin, and between that and the barrel, the explosion serving
merely to consolidate the leather, and make it fit closer against that
end of the breech pin which is within the barrel. The leather not
being burned or damaged by the explosion, or abraded by passing through
the barrel, falls from the bullet shortly after it leaves the muzzle, and
does not obstruct its course; all of which are advantages which I am
not aware can or ever have been attained by a sole of any other sub-
stance.
Having now described the Invention communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, I wish it to be understood that under the above
in part recited Letters Patent, I claim,-
First, actuating the sliding breech pin by means of a radius bar,
which will act as an abutting lever, and prevent the breech pin (when
in its forward position) starting from its place on the discharge of the
fire-arm.
Second, I claim the application of the leather sole or breech piece g,
to cartridges used with breech-loading fire-ams, such leather breech

page_text: piece or sole serving the purpose of a protection to the breech pin, a
wad for the next cartridge in succession, and of a swab to clean out the
soilage caused in the barrel by the antecedent explosion.
In witness whereof, I, the said Stephen Taylor, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
STEPHEN (L.S.) TAYLOR.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eighteenth day of
October, in the year of our Lord 1852, the aforesaid Stephen Taylor
came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknow-
ledged the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein con-
tained 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 Tenth day of March, in the year of our Lord One