IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BLOWING BUBBLES FROM SOAPSUDS OR OTHER LIQUIDS TO AMUSE CHILDREN, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, SUCH AS PERFUMING THE ATMOSPHERE OF APARTMENTS
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BLOWING BUBBLES FROM
SOAPSUDS OR OTHER LIQUIDS TO AMUSE CHILDREN, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES,
SUCH AS PERFUMING THE ATMOSPHERE OF APARTMENTS."-A communication
from abroad by Joseph Antoine Emile Chazelles, of Brussels, in the
Kingdom of Belgium.
Sealed the 24th January 1865, and dated the 6th December 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th December 1864.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BLOWING BUBBLES FROM
SOAPSUDS OR OTHER LIQUIDS TO AMUSE CHILDREN, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, SUCH
AS PERFUMING THE ATMOSPHERE OF APARTMENTS," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of a vase or other suitable vessel of any desired
form or material having two openings at the top. Into one of these openings
is soldered or otherwise secured. a plug or stopper which has a tube passing
vertically through the centre, and which extends nearly to the bottom of the
vase, and has also at its upper end a bell-shaped mouth-piece. About half
way down this plug or stopper is a short horizontal tube, one end of which

page_text: opens into the vertical tube and the other end extends at the short distance
beyond the plug or stopper and has round it a knob or projection to which is
attached an india-rubber pipe. To the other opening is fitted another bell-
shaped piece, and over the mouth of this is stretched a piece of india-rubber
and fastened down in such a manner as to present an air-tight joint. In order
to facilitate the charging of the vessel with the soapy liquid an aperture is
made at the upper part of the vessel to allow of the escape of the air from the
interior while the liquid is entering. When the apparatus is to be used this
aperture must be closed by a plug.
The manner of operating this apparatus is as follows:-The vessel having
been filled with the liquid, upon pressing upon the sheet of rubber which is
stretched over the lower aperture the air in the vase will be compressed and
will force a small quantity of the soap and water or other liquid contained
therein up the pipe into the bell-shaped mouth-piece above, then by blowing
gently through the indià-rubber pipe a fine bubble will be the result, and this
may be detached from the apparatus by a side motion of the hand. It will
be evident that perfumed air may be passed through the apparatus and may
be conveyed into a room by the soap bubbles, so that when the bubbles break
the perfumed air will escape into the atmosphere.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 6th June 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Edward Newton, Her special licence that I, the said
William Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Edward Newton, 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

page_text: Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR BLOWING BUBBLES FROM SOAP-
SUDS OR OTHER LIQUIDS TO AMUSE CHILDREN, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, SUCH AS
PERFUMING THE ATMOSPHERE OF APARTMENTS," a communication from Joseph
Antoine Emile Chazelles, of Bruxelles, in the Kingdom of Belgium, upon the
condition. (amongst others) that I; the said William Edward Newton, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly 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 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, Edward Newton, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to,
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the.
following statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):
This Invention consists of a vase or other suitable vessel of any desired
form and material and which is capable of containing liquids. This vessel
has an opening at top which is closed by a plug or stopper of metal or other
suitable material, having a cup at its upper part, and at its lower part a screw
to which is adapted a small cylinder of cork, to obtain a hermetically closed.
joint. The plug or stopper is perforated throughout its length, as is also the
screw, which terminates in a small tube reaching to nearly the bottom of the
vessel. The stopper, which may be fixed to the vessel in any other manner,
carries also at one side a small tube projecting a short distance outside, one
end of which communicates with the perforated centre of the stopper and the
other terminates in the form of a cone or button upon which is fixed a tube
of caoutchouc, and which has at its other end a mouth-piece of bone or other.
suitable substance.
.
The following is the mode of using this apparatus:-It is to be, first, three.
parts filled with soap solution, and then the stopper must be screwed in. It.
is then taken hold of by the left hand and the mouth-piece of the india-rubber.
tube taken between the lips, the opening in the cup is then to be stopped with.
the forefinger of the right. hand and the india-rubber tube slightly blown
through, which renders the air in the vessel more dense; then on removing
the finger from the aperture the air inside will force a small quantity of liquid
up into the cup, then on blowing gently through the tube, which is still held
between the lips, a. bubble will be produced which. may. be detached by a
slight movenient of the hand, or by slightly jerking up the apparatus the

page_text: liquid necessary for the formation of the bubble may be thrown up into the
cup. Instead of sending the bubbles through the air by blowing or by
agitating the air beneath them, they may be thrown up and down several times
without breaking by means of an instrument or "racket" specially constructed
for the purpose and covered with flannel or some other woollen fabric, or
any other starched or gummed fabric. The vessel may also have a second
opening at its upper part provided with a short projecting tube to which is
adapted a small cap or cover of india-rubber which is to be pressed with the
finger in order to compress the air inside the vessel, and which furnishes
another means of forcing up the necessary quantity of liquid into the cup
before blowing a bubble. Various gums, glycerine, or other analogous
substances may be added to the soap solution in order to render the bubbles
more durable and to obtain them of larger size. By adding a perfume to the
solution perfumed bubbles will be produced, and which, on bursting, will
diffuse the perfume throughout the atmosphere of the apartment.
In the accompanying Drawing Figures 1, 2, and 3, represent various views
of one of these apparatus (which the Inventor calls bubble blowers). Fig. 1
is an elevation, Fig. 2 a vertical section, and Fig. 3 a plan view.
A is the vessel for containing the liquid; B is the cup attached to the
perforated screw stopper C and pipe D; E is a cylinder of cork or vulcanized
india-rubber, into which the screw stopper C is screwed; F is a short tube
projecting from the upper part of the vessel, and which tapers inwards in
order more firmly to hold the india-rubber tube G, which is slipped on to it,
and to the other extremity of which is adapted the mouth-piece H; J. is an
ornamental ring or collar on the neck I of the vessel.
Fig. 4 represents in vertical section another arrangement of bubble blower
in which the neck I of the vessel, instead of being outside, projects inside it:
It has also another opening K at top from which a short tube projects having.
flanges for the purpose of holding (without other fastening) the small india-
rubber cap L, shewn in top and underneath views at Figures 5 and 6. This
cap must be strongly stretched in order to close the opening K hermetically.
In order to blow bubbles with this apparatus it should be taken in the left
hand and the extremity F of the tube G held between the lips, the forefinger
of the same hand being pressed upon the cap L. The air inside the vessel
will be compressed and a portion of the solution will rise into the cup B.
Then blow gently and the bubble will be produced, when it may be blown
harder in order to increase its size.
Fig. 7 shews in vertical section another construction of bubble blower
without any inner tube D. In order to obtain a bubble with this apparatus

page_text: the hole pierced in the centre of the cup B is closed with the finger and the
apparatus is turned upside down, the india-rubber tube G (not shewn in this
Figure) being held up above; this tube is now applied to the mouth and the
apparatus is turned back again, at the same time blowing gently. The finger
is then removed from the cup B and the bubble will be seen to be formed.
With this apparatus the liquid flows out on its being turned upside down, and
in order to provide against this it may be enclosed in a case O having a
cover S, and which is provided with a pad or stopper T of caoutchouc or other
suitable material which is pressed down on the cup by means of a coiled
spring R, R. This cover may be adjusted either by a bayonet joint or a
male and female screw.
Fig. 8 represents a racket for catching the bubbles and throwing them up
in the air. It consists of a ring m of iron wire or other material fixed to a
wooden handle N, and in the centre of this ring a round piece of flannel U is
stretched by means of woollen threads V, V¹, V".
This apparatus admits of many modifications, for example, the mouth or
neck of the vessel A being modified, as shewn at Fig. 7, allows of the stopper
C and pipe D being done away with; the stopper C may also be soldered to
the vessel or screwed on to a collar. A bellows or blower, either single or
double-acting, may also be applied to the apparatus and might form the cover
of a box containing an expansive india-rubber vessel, into which the air drawn
from the atmosphere would enter and be supplied from thence to the tube G.
The bubble blower and air-supply apparatus might be mounted upon a kind
of stand so as to form a single apparatus.
.
By adapting to the bubble blowers balloons or other apparatus containing
illuminating gas or hydrogen, bubbles might be obtained which would rise in
the air and which might be set fire to; or the bubbles might be filled with a
gas which should ignite spontaneously on coming in contact with the air.
The bubble blower, instead of one cup only, might be provided with several,
so as to blow several bubbles at once, and these cups might be formed and
grouped so as to resemble flowers or other ornamental forms. These bubble
blowers may also be enclosed in cases of various ornamental forms and made
of various materials. They may also be made in the form of antique or
modern vases, fruits, flowers, statuettes, or other ornamental forms, and
painted so as to resemble the natural objects, or covered with ornamental
devices or designs.
Having thus described the nature of this Invention, and explained the
manner of carrying the same into effect, as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, I desire it to be understood that I do not confine

page_text: myself to the forms or arrangements of parts above shewn and described, as
they may, as above stated, be variously modified without departing from the
nature and object of the Invention, but that which I consider to be new and
desire to claim as the Invention secured to me under the above in part recited
Letters Patent, is,―
Firstly, forming a single apparatus of the vessel and the pipe hitherto
employed separately for the purpose of blowing soap bubbles.
Secondly, the addition to these two parts, hitherto employed separately, of
a second tube or pipe surmounted outside by a cup, and dipping at its other
end into the liquid contained in a vessel for the purpose of supplying, when
desired, to the cup outside the quantity of liquid required for each bubble.
Thirdly, I claim the different forms and combinations of parts above shewn
and described or any mere modification thereof.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Fifth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)