Intrenching Tool and Shield.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Mar., 1899-Accepted, 1st July, 1899
Intrenching Tool and Shield.
We, JULIUS DEXTER RHODES, Inventor, WILLIAM LEDYARD STARK, Judge of
Court, CHARLES HENRY PIRTLE, Superintendent, ANDREW PANNELL GARDEN,
Police Department, and FRANK STEELE BRIGHT, Attorney at Law, all of
639 F Street, corner Seventh Street, in the City of Washington, District of
Columbia, U.S.A., do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:-
The intrenching tool and shield consists essentially of a steel blade, in form
of a convex spade, and having a sharpened edge and an attaching socket, and
means for carrying said blade or for using it as a head protector against bullets.
Referring to the drawings:
Fig. 1 is a broken sectional view of spade and short handle;
Fig. 2 is a broken face view of the same with handle attached;
Fig. 3 is a sectional view of containing sack with blade therein and handle
attached;
Fig. 4 is an elevation of a blade applied to a military cap;
Fig. 5 is an elevation of a blade applied to a slouch hat;
Figs. 6 and 7 are details of the supporting device on a cap visor.
The great advantage of a convenient intrenching tool is known to all well
informed military men. Not only for intrenching but for sanitary purposes is
a good intrenching tool valuable.
Troops in trenches are more likely to be wounded in the head than elsewhere,
owing to exposure in firing over the works. In this invention the intrenching
tool is utilized as a head protector.
The blade A is of tempered steel with a sharpened edge at a, and has a short
shank B attached to its inner concave face, said shank being screw threaded.
A short tubular metallic handle C may be screwed to shank B, and by pre-
ference this handle will fit closely into the small recess between the shank and the
blade, and the blade may be curved a little for the purpose. The upper end of
the handle C may be stopped with a plug D, or when a sapling or bough can be
had a longer temporary handle can be used, and held in by screw thread c or in
any other suitable manner.
The intrenching tool may be carried in a light canvas sack E, and the sack
can be readily suspended by a metal hook F, from the belt of the soldier, tho
hook F being adapted to hook over the edge of the belt, or into a cartridge
pocket. The hook F may have a ring G, into which the handle C may drop; or
the handle may be carried in the pocket of the soldier.
The soldier's hat or cap should have means for attaching this blade. A con-
venient means for attachment is to provide the hat H with an elastic band I,
which band extends over the blade, the concave side of the blade being turned
toward the head.
As the blade A weighs but a few ounces, it is not a great burden to the head
..מ
017

page_text: of the soldier. When placed on a cap K at an inclination, as indicated in Fig. 4,
a very light blade will deflect a bullet at short range, and as the soldier in
aiming from an intrenchment exposes little of his person but the top of his head,
the inclined blade affords a very substantial protection.
A military hat or cap K can be adapted to receive the blade A at different
angles, by attaching a sinall cup or socket L to the visor of the cap by a link M,
so that the socket may be turned in front of the visor as in Figs. 4 and 6, or
turned back as in Fig. 7, and the shank of the blade held in such socket.
A number of elastic bands I may be attached to the hat or cap, so that ono
may be used should another be broken.
It will be understood that with slight changes in the fastening device, tha
blade A may be adapted for use with almost any kind of military head covering.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. An intrenching blade having a removable handle, and provided with means
for attachment to a soldier's head covering, substantially as described.
2. A concave intrenching blade having a removable handle, and means for
securing the blade to a soldier's head covering, and in different positions and at
different inclinations, substantially as described.
3. The concave intrenching blade and its detachable handle, and the sack and
supporting hook for attachment to a belt; the hook having a sustaining loop for
the handle, substantially as deserilwd.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
Chartered Patent Agents,
62, Saint Vincent Street, Glasgow,
Agents for the Applicants.