AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS ON BITS
Year: 1828

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, VALENTINE
LLANOS, of Hampstead, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His present Majesty King George the Fourth, by His
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Fifteenth day of
December now last past, did give and grant unto me, the said Valentine
Llanos, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, [that
I, the said Valentine Llanos, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or.
such others as I, the said Valentine Llanos, my executors, administrators, or
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term of years therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, an Invention communicated to me by a certain
person residing abroad, of "AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS ON BITS;" in
which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said
Valentine Llanos, 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
inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said recited Letters Patent, as
in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Valentine Llanos, do hereby declare that the nature of the said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained by the Drawing hereunto annexed, and as follows, that is
to say:-
The great inconvenience and frequent accidents that have been experienced
from the improper form and construction of bits for horses, has given rise to a
great variety of shapes and methods of combining the parts of bits, in order to
suit them to the various qualities that are found in the mouths of different
horses. Some horses are known to be so tender in the mouth that very easy
means are found to be sufficient to restrain them; while others, whose mouths
are not so sensible to pressure, require more ample means to make them obey
the will of their rider. There are also some horses whose mouths possess a
quality intermediate and between the two extremes above described; for such
it is necessary that sufficient restraint should be provided, without being too severe,
to meet the necessities of the case. The essential and principal parts of a bit
may be most properly classed under two heads, namely, the branches and the
mouth piece; each branch may also be divided into two distinct parts or
portions, namely, the shortest portion, called the cheek, which is above the
mouth piece, and forms the upper part of each branch, and the lower part,
which is the longest, being under the mouth piece. This part is sometimes
called the leg of the branch. It is by means of the branches that all the other
parts of the bit are brought into action, and as the restraining power of the bit
depends essentially upon the branches, the proportions of these are made to
vary very considerably, as may be seen by referring to numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
and 6 in the said Drawing. In all these Figures, a is the cheek and b is the
leg, c being the part where the end of the mouth piece is attached. The
function of the leg of each branch is very similar to the longest arm or lever of
a steelyard, serving, by its power, to equilibriate the appuy or force of the
horse's mouth, the part where it is attached to the mouth piece at c being the
fulcrum or centre of motion. Every person, therefore, in the slightest degree
acquainted with the principles of mechanics will easily see that the longer the
legs of the branches are in proportion to the cheeks the greater will be the
power obtained. In most of the ordinary bits the branches are immovably
fixed to each end of the mouth piece, which method I shall very soon prove is
the cause of much injury to the horse, and considerable inconvenience, and
sometimes danger to his rider. But before I enter into the advantages of my
improved mode of attaching or uniting the two parts together, I shall first
describe the improved form and construction of my mouth piece, and after-

page_text: wards I will shew my improved manner of uniting them, so as to form a more
perfect bit than was ever before known or made use of.
Figure 1 represents a view of one of my improved mouth pieces in the
position it assumes when placed in the mouth of a horse, a section of that
portion of the under jaw of a horse upon which it bears being placed imme-
diately below it. The duplicate parts contained between A, B, A, B, are
generally called the cannons. The two parts reaching from B to C are called
the heels of the cannons; and the curved portion, included and reaching from
C to C, forming an arch for the tongue to lay in, is called the port. Near the
external end of each cannon a short cylindrical axis is formed, which enters a
cylindrical hole made to fit it. In each branch, and upon these axes, each
branch may be turned partly round; but in order to limit the extent of such
motion to about ninety degrees, or the quarter of a circle, a portion of the end
of each cannon is cut away, as seen at d, d, and a fixed pin or stud being firmly
rivetted in a cavity or recess formed in each branch, the pin or stud so fixed
enters the recess cut out for it in the end of each cannon, and by these means
the motion of each branch upon its axis is limited.
Figure 2 represents a fragment of one of the branches detached from the
end of a mouth piece. In this Figure the fixed stud is seen in a recess at e,
and the recess formed in the end of one of the cannons is shewn in d in
Figure 3.
Figure 4 shews a plan of the button and screw that unite all these parts
firmly together.
Figure 5 represents a front view of Figure 7. In this Figure the exact
breadth of the broad portion of the mouth piece, called the port, may be seen;
and I shall here observe, that however the diameter of the cannons may be
varied to suit the qualities of different mouths, the dimensions of the port
remains the same, or with exceedingly little variation. When a mouth piece
of this form and construction is united to its branches, in the manner I have
before described, it will be found that the port of the mouth piece is at all
times in that position which is best suited to the tongue without piuching it,
or by the action of the branches rendered liable to press upon or against the
palate; and as the mouth piece in my improved bit is not immoveably fixed to
the branches, but allows either the branches or the mouth piece rotation to the
extent of about a quarter of a circle, or ninety degrees, it will be found that
great freedom will be given to the motion of the tongue, and when the branches
are acted upon by the bridle at any time, they will press the heels of the
cannons of the mouth piece against the bars of the mouth, without the slightest
tendency to produce that grinding action upon the bars that takes place with

page_text: common bits; and as the mouth piece and its port are not disturbed in position
whenever the branches are brought into action, the palate and tongue will be
very securely protected from the injurious effects that so frequently occur from
the use of bits as heretofore constructed. In military operations, where cavalry are
employed, it has been frequently found that releasing the bits from the mouths
of horses, for the purpose of feeding them, is attended with very serious con-
sequences, for, before they could be replaced, whole troops have been either
destroyed by an enemy or taken prisoners. But these circumstances may be
most completely avoided by the use of my improved folding branches, which,
being attached to the mouth piece, may be folded up or shortened, that they
will enable a horse to feed without' impediment, either from a nose bag, the
manger, or the ground, without removing the bit from the mouth.
Figure 8 represents a side view of one of my improved cavalry bits, having
a folding branch attached. The joint seen at fis made in the same manner
as a rule joint, and the centre part has two holes made in it, to permit a small
short pin to enter, which keeps it fixed and stationary when it is folded up, as
shewn in the Figure. On the inside of each branch a steel spring is placed,
in the position shewn in dotted lines in Figure 8; the upper end is fixed
firmly to the branch by a screw, and a stud or short pin is fixed to the lower
end, which drops into two holes made in the joint, by which means the branch
may be kept stationary when it is folded up, or in the extended state; the pin
or stud which locks it may be released by pressing the thumb upon a small
projecting button, seen at g, which passes through the branch, and is rivetted
to the spring. A fragment of this joint is represented near Figure 8, in order
to shew the two holes which the stud or pin enters, to keep it locked in either
position; of course there is but one such hole in the other part of the joint.
I shall now observe, that having had great experience in the use of these
improved bits, I am enabled to state, that the three kinds of mouth pieces,
represented in Figures 1, 5, 6, and 7, will be found quite sufficient to meet all
the cases arising from different kinds of mouths, when they are combined with
properly proportioned branches, and also with such curb chains as I have shewn
in the Drawing. Figure 1 is a mouth piece with cannons of the smallest
diameter; this will be most suitable for horses with very hard mouths. The
reduced size of the cannon will of course render any pressure of it upon the
bars of the mouth very severe, and consequently effective. Figure 6 will be
suitable for horses whose mouths are of an intermediate quality. Figure 7 is
a mouth piece with cannons of the largest diameter; this, from the great
breadth of surface that it will cover, when pressed against or on the bars of the
mouth, will be very mild in its effects, and thereby suited to horses that have

page_text: very tender mouths. As. most of the effect of the mouth piece must at all times
be produced by a very careful proportion and combination of the branches, the
curb hooks, and curb chain, I have, in the Figures represented in Numbers
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, given the most exact and proper proportions that are suited
to the following kinds of mouths, each part having been duly considered with
reference to all the others combined therewith. Of the branches, No. 1 is
suitable for a very hard mouth; No. 2 for a hard mouth; No. 3 for a good
mouth; No. 4 for a tender mouth; No. 5 suited for those horses that carry high
to bring in the head; No. 6 is suited for horses that are said to arm themselves
by carrying the head low, and where it is desirable to raise the head. The
mouth piece, Figure 1, should be combined with the branches Nos. 1 and 2;
Figure 6 should be combined with the branches Nos. 3, 5, and 6; Figure 7
should be combined with the branch No. 4.
Description of the curb chains.-No. I., very severe; No. II., less severe;
No. III., regular; No. IV., A, mild; No. IV., B, is still better, adapted to very
tender mouths, on account of its elastic properties; No. V., sufficiently mild;
No. VI., sufficiently severe. It will be easily observed, by referring to the
Drawing, that all the curb hooks are made of such a length that the bottom of
each exactly reaches to the centre of the cannon or fulcrum upon which the
branches turn; this being a rule that should be universally adopted, and the
curb chains being placed contiguous to the branches with which they should.
be combined, there will be no difficulty in assigning each to its proper branch,
especially if similar numbers are combined. Every part herein represented is
drawn of its real size, and therefore suitable for ordinary-sized horses; but
should any reduction or increase in point of size be desired, care should be
taken to preserve the proportions herein given, as they have been determined
by considerable experience. The whole of the parts herein described may be
made of steel or iron, case-hardened in the usual manner; and although I
have shewn the method which I prefer of securing the mouth picce to the
branch by a screw and washer or button, yet they may be united by rivetting
the end of the mouth piece so as to combine the two parts, without departing
from the principle herein, applied; and also the method of limiting the
rotation of the branches may be considerably varied, at the option of the
workman, without departing from the principle of limiting the motion of the
parts, for the purpose of producing the advantages I have described.
And I hereby further declare that the said Invention consists, firstly, in the
peculiar shape or form of the mouth piece, by the application of which, in the
manner and way I have described, both the tongue and the palate will be
effectually protected from injury, and also the bars of the mouth from being

page_text: bruised, an effect which is so commonly produced by the mouth pieces in
general use.
Secondly, in so combining and uniting the mouth piece with the branches,
that the rotary motion which the branches have upon the ends of the mouth
piece, or the mouth piece upon the branches (that motion being common to
both), may be limited to about ninety degrees, or the quadrant of a circle, by
which means such a degree of freedom will be given to the tongue that the
horse will be enabled to chew and swallow his food with the greatest ease,
while the action of the heels of the mouth piece, caused by the power of the
branches, will be that of simple pressure, only the grinding effect produced by
the common bit being completely avoided by the rotatory motion of the
branches upon their axes.
And, thirdly, in applying a joint to the lower portion of a branch, which I
call the leg, by the use of which, in the manner I have described, horses
may be conveniently fed without the necessity of releasing the bits from their
mouths.
In witness whereof, I, the said Valentine Llanos, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Eleventh day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twenty-nine.