AN IMPROVED METHOD OF TREATING GENISTA OR BROOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CANVAS, ROPES, MATS, PAPER, AND OTHER SIMILAR MATERIALS OR FABRICS.
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Desiderio Mannini, of Florence, in the Kingdom
of Italy, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED METHOD
OF TREATING GENISTA OR BROOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CANVAS, ROPES,
MATS, PAPER, AND OTHER SIMILAR MATERIALS OR FABRICS.
44
"J
ALQUILL
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his. Petition,
on the 28th April 1873.
•
I, DESIDERIO MANNINI, of Florence, in the Kingdom of Italy,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"AN IMPROVED METHOD OF TREATING GENISTA OR BROOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE
OF CANVAS ROPES, MATS, PAPER, AND OTHER SIMILAR MATERIALS OR FABRICS," to
be as follows, that is to sav :—
.
I, DESIDERIO MANNINI, of Florence, in the Kingdom of Italy,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"AN IMPROVED METHOD OF TREATING GENISTA OR BROOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE
OF CANVAS ROPES, MATS, PAPER, AND OTHER SIMILAR MATERIALS OR FABRICS," to
be as follows, that is to sav :—
.

page_text: ligneous parts and whereby the former or fibrous parts of the plant are
rendered applicable for all the uses to which flax is now applied, such as
the manufacture of cloth, paper, and other fabrics; and the ligneous
parts of such plant are adapted for the uses to which hemp and other
like fibrous materials are now applied, such as the manufacture of ropes, &
cordage, twinc, matting, and other fabrics.
To carry out this process I prepare a suitable lye or reagent for
dissolving the gluten holding together the fibrous and ligneous parts of
the plant. I have found to answer well a lye formed by mixing together
about two hundred and twenty pounds of salt of soda with about seventy-
seven pounds of lime, or by preference lime white.
To prepare the lye I take the above-named proportion of lime or
white and leave it to ferment, adding thereto a sufficient quantity of
water to reduce it almost to powder; I then cover it with the salt of soda,
leaving the whole to settle for about ten minutes, and after mixing it
thoroughly I leave it to rest for about ten minutes. The whole is then
placed in a suitable vessel having a wooden bottom; water is introduced
into this vessel and after passing over the said substances is drawn off
through a tap and poured into another vessel, thus forming the lye or
reagent for decomposing the gluten.
I have found that a lye marking four degrees of Baumé's arcometer
gives good results.
The broom to be treated is tied in bundles and placed in a vessel or
boiler into which the lye is introduced and raised to ebullition and so
kept from three to four hours according as the plant is more or less
green. The lye is then drawn off and replaced by cold water by which
the material is cooled, and it is then removed from the boiler and placed
in troughs filled with water, by preference running water, to bleach it.
The material is then beaten so as to more thoroughly separate the
fibrous from the ligneous part, which may be detached by the hands..

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,.
filed by the said Desiderio Mannini in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 22nd October 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, DESIDERIO
MANNINI, of Florence, in the Kingdom of Italy, Civil Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the thirty-sixth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Desiderio Mannini, Her special licence, that I,
the said Desiderio Mannini, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Desiderio Mannini, my executors, ad-
ministrators, 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 "AN IMPROVED METHOD OF
TREATING GENISTA OR BROOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CANVAS, ROPES, MATS,
PAPER, AND OTHER SIMILAR MATERIALS OR FIBRES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Desiderio Mannini, 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 Desiderio Mannini, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, that is to say :-
This Invention consists in a process for separating the soft fibrous
parts of the skin of the plant genista or broom from the inner and
ligneous parts, and whereby the former or fibrous parts of the skin are
rendered applicable for all the uses to which flax and hemp and other
Kiko fibrous materials are now annlied, such as the manufacture of cloth

page_text: and other woven fabrics, and paper, and the latter or ligneous parts of
such plant are adapted for many of the uses to which hemp and other
like fibrous materials are now applied, such as the manufacture of ropes,
cordage and twine, or for matting bags for oil pressing, and other
analogous articles.
To carry out this process, I prepare a suitable lye or reagent for dis-
solving the gluten holding together the fibrous and ligneous parts of the
plant. I have found to answer well a lye formed by mixing together
about two hundred and twenty pounds of salt of soda with about seventy-
seven pounds of lime, or by preference lime white.
To prepare the lye I take the above-named proportions of lime or
lime white and leave it to ferment, adding thereto a sufficient quantity
of water to reduce it almost to powder, I then cover it with the salt of
soda, leaving the whole to settle for about ten minutes, and after mixing
it thoroughly 'I leave it to rest for about ten minutes; the whole is
then placed in a suitable vessel having a wooden bottom; water is
introduced into this vessel and after passing over the said substances is
drawn off through a tap and poured into another vessel, thus forming
the lye or reagent for decomposing the gluten.
I have found that a lye marking four degrees of Baumé's areometer
gives good results.
The broom to be treated is tied in bundles and placed in a vessel or
boiler into which the lye is introduced and raised to ebullition, and so
kept from three to four hours according as the plant is more or less green,
but a longer ebullition is required to obtain a very fine fibre. The lye
is then drawn off and replaced by cold water by which the material is
cooled, and it is then removed from the boiler and placed in troughs
filled with water, by preference running water, to bleach it. The
material is then beaten so as to more thoroughly separate the fibrous
from the ligneous part, which latter may then be untwisted easily by the
hands.
The fibre thus obtained from the skin of the plant is then ready to be
combed and may be, spun into yarn or thread suitable for the manu-
facture of cloth of all qualities according to the degree of fineness of
the fibre.
The ligneous part is collected and tied up in bundles ready to be
manufactured into cables, ropes, or pack thread, for bags for oil pressing,

page_text: for mats, or as stuffing for chairs, according to the quality or degree of
fineness of the fibre.
Having thus described my Invention and the manner of performing
the same, I wish it to be understood, that I do not confine myself to
the precise proportions herein laid down; but what I claim is the
improved process for treating genista or broom substantially in the
manner and for the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Desiderio Mannini, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of October, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three.