IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH WIRES OR CONDUCTORS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Clark, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer & Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH WIRES
OR CONDUCTORS."-A communication from abroad by Mr.E. D. Rosencrantz,
of New York, United States of America.
Sealed the 20th April 1860, and dated the 9th November 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Clark at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th November 1859.
I, WILLIAM CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer & Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ELECTRIC TELE-
GRAPH WIRES OR CONDUCTORS," to be as follows:-
These improvements in telegraph wires consist in the employment of a com-
pound wire, such as a silver central wire, and an outside casing of copper (or
any other metal) as a centre, having a greater conductive power than the
outside; the two metals are united by heat previous to being wire-drawn, so
that strength is given to the best conductor without any material increase of
cost. By this improvement in employing the better conductor as the centre
of the compound wire, an increase of conducting property is given by said

page_text: centre as it tends to centralize the current, and thus prevent its dissipation in
long circuits.
These improvements further consist in the manner of forming the compound
wire, viz., by melting the silver in a previously formed hollow ingot of copper
heated; by this course a union of the two metals takes place, thus forming a
compound metal at their junction of a high conducting power. In drawing
wire a direction is given the fibre or lamina so that they overlap in conical
sections. In placing the wires of a telegraph I take advantage of this
peculiarity, and by selecting the rear end of the wire in a coil as my connection
end, so that the current through it shall take the same direction that the wire
did in passing through the draw plate, the current may be thus kept more in
the centre of the wire.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Clark in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
8th May 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer &
Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said William Clark, Her special licence that I,. the said William
Clark, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said William Clark, 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH WIRES
OR CONDUCTORS," a communication from abroad by E. D. Rosencrantz, of New
York, United States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said William Clark, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should parti-
cularly 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

page_text: 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 William Clark, 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, reference being had to the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
In conducting electric and magnetic currents it has been found that while
iron is represented by 600 and copper by 3838 as their conducting power,
that silver is represented by 5152, which renders it an important medium for
the transmission of the fluid for.electric telegraph purposes.
These improvements in telegraph wires consist in the employment of a
compound wire, such as a silver central wire, and an outside casing of copper
or any other metal as a centre, having a greater conductive power than the
outside; the two metals are united by heat previous to being wire-drawn, so
that strength is given to the best conductor without a material increase of cost.
By this improvement in employing the better conductor as the centre of the
compound wire an increase of conducting property is given by said centre, as
it tends to centralize the current and to prevent its dissipation in long circuits.
These improvements further consist in the manner of forming the compound
wire, viz., by melting the silver in a previously formed hollow ingot of copper
heated; by this course a union of the two metals takes place, thus forming a
compound metal at their junction of a high conducting power. In drawing
wire a direction is given to the fibre or lamina so that they overlap in conical
sections. In placing the wires of a telegraph I take advantage of this pecu-
liarity, and by selecting the rear end of the wire in a coil as my connection
end so that the current through it shall take the same direction that the wire
did in passing through the draw plate, the current may be thus kept more in
the centre of the wire.
To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my improved wire, I
will describe it as follows:-A hollow ingot of copper is first prepared; the
silver at melting heat is poured into the heated ingot of copper; after cooling
it is subjected to the ordinary process of wire-drawing by which the copper and
silver centre are elongated, a perfect and complete union of the metals having
taken place. A represents the silver centre, and B the outside copper; the
compound metal being shown by dotted line at c, c.
Having described the nature of the Invention, and the manner of performing
the same, I declare that what I claim as the Invention to be protected by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-

page_text: First, the employment of a compound wire for telegraph purposes, consisting
of a silver centre and outside of copper or other equivalent metal, in which
the centre is the best conductor for the purposes set forth.
Secondly, I claim, in forming the compound wire for telegraphs that the
inner metal or centre is made to unite with the outside, in the manner and for
the purpose set forth.
Thirdly, I claim, in placing telegraph wires, the selecting the end leaving
the draw plate, for the purposes set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Clark, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventh day of May, in the year of our Lord,
One thousand eight hundred and sixty.