IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Edmond Green, of 13, Blandford Street,
Portman Square, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, and
John Green, of Windermere Cottage, Winchmore Hill, in the
said County, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."
Sealed the 6th June 1871, and dated the 9th January 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Edmond
Green and John Green at the Office of the Commissioners of.
Patents, with their Petition, on the 9th January 1871.
We, CHARLES EDMOND GREEN, of 13; Blandford Street, Portman
Square, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, and JOHN GREEN, of
Windermere Cottage, Winchmore Hill, in the said County, Gentleman,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in breech-loading
fire-arms.

page_text: We provide at the breech end of the barrel a chamber of a trough-
like form open at the top and furnished with a cover. The chamber
receives within it a plug which is capable of sliding longitudinally.
When the plug is in its forward position it enters and closes the breech
end of the bore of the piece; when it is drawn back it leaves a space
for the withdrawal of the case of the cartridge last fired (which is
effected by a hook-like extractor on the plug) and for the insertion of
a fresh cartridge. The plug passes through the back of the trough-like
chamber, and is held and guided by it. The plug (except as herein-
after stated) is formed with the cover of a piece or is rigidly fixed to
it and a striker passes down obliquely through the cover to the centre
of the face of the plug. When the piece is fired the striker receives
the blow of the hammer of the lock and transmits it to the priming in
the base of the cartridge. A centre portion of the plug is detached from
the other portions, and from the cover it is mounted on an axis passing
concentrically through the hinder portion of the plug. This axis ter-
minates in a handle by which it can be turned partly round. The
moveable part of the plug has a projection on one side and when the
plug is closing the breech it is secured by the projection entering a
notch formed for it in the side of the chamber. To open the breech
the plug is first liberated by turning the moveable part of the plug by
means of the handle, so as to lift the projection out of the notch and
then drawing back the plug. There is a groove in the plug which
receives a stud. to prevent the plug from escaping entirely from the
chamber in opening the breech. In order that the piece may not be
discharged at any time except when the plug is securely locked in its
position closing the breech there is a pin in connection with the trigger
and also a hole in the plug and in the axis passing through it. When
the breech is properly closed and locked these holes correspond with the
pin. At other times the trigger is bolted, for it cannot move sufficiently
to discharge the piece except when the pin attached to it can enter the
holes provided for it.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Charles Edmond Green and John Green in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 8th July 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, CHARLES
EDMOND GREEN, of, 13, Blandford Street, Portman Square, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, and JOHN GREEN, of Windermere
Cottage, Winchmore Hill, in the said County, Gentleman, send
greeting.
'
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of January, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the
thirty-fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and. grant unto us; the said Charles Edmond Green and
John Green, Her special license that we, the said Charles Edmond
Green and John Green, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as we, the said Charles Edmond Green and John Green,
our 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 "IMPROVEMENTS
IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," upon the condition (amongst others) that
we, the said Charles Edmond Green and John Green, our executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under our or their hands
and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us or them, 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 Charles Edmond Green, on behalf
of myself and the said John Green, 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 thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in breech-loading
fire-arms. We provide at the breech end of the barrel a chamber

page_text: The
of a trough-like form open at the top and furnished with a cover.
chamber receives within it a plug which is capable of sliding longi-
tudinally. When the plug is in its forward position it enters and closes
the breech end of the bore of the piece, when it is drawn back it leaves
a space for the withdrawal of the case of the cartridge last fired (which
is effected by a hook like extractor on the plug) and for the insertion
of a fresh cartridge. The plug passes through the back of the trough
like chamber and is held and guided by it. The plug (except as herein-
after stated) is formed of a piece with the cover or is rigidly fixed to
it and a striker passes down obliquely through the cover to the centre
of the face of the plug. When the piece is fired the striker receives
the blow of the hammer of the lock and transmits it to the priming
in the base of the cartridge. A hinder portion of the plug is detached
from the other portion and from the cover, it passes through a ring
at the back of the cover in which it is able to turn. The moveable
part of the plug terminates in a handle by which it can be turned partly
round, and it has a projection on one side and when the plug is closing
the breech it is secured by the projection entering a notch formed for
it in the side of the chamber. To open the breech the plug is first.
liberated by turning the moveable part of the plug by means of the.
handle so as to lift the projection out of the notch, and then the plug
is drawn back. There is a groove in the plug which receives a stud
to prevent the plug from escaping entirely from the chamber in opening
the breech. In order that the piece may not be discharged at any time
except when the plug is securely locked in its position closing the
breech, the stud which limits the motion of the plug is in connection:
with the trigger and there is also a hole formed in the plug. When
the breech is properly closed and locked, this hole corresponds with
the stud, at other times the trigger is bolted, for it cannot move suffi-
ciently to discharge the piece except when the stud attached to it can
enter the hole provided for it.
In order that our said Invention may be most fully understood and

page_text: bur Invention. The breech is represented open ready to receive a
cartridge.
·
a, a, is a trough-like chamber which is screwed on to the breech end
of the barrel; it is shown separately by the Figures 2. b, c, is a plug
in two parts capable of sliding in the chamber a, to the part 6 of the
plug, the fore end of which enters and closes the bore of the piece, the
cover d is fixed, these parts are' shewn separately at Figures 3. The
part c of the plug, with its handle c', is shewn separately at Figures 4,
it passes through a ring d¹ at the back of the cover in which it can
turn, but it is retained and prevented from drawing back out of the
ring by a pin d* entering a groove c². At the fore end of this part
of the plug is a spindle c³, it enters a hole formed for it in the part b;
c' is a projection or lump on the part c of the plug, and when the breech
is closed the handle c¹ is turned down and the projection or lump enters
the notch a' in the side of the chamber a. The notch a¹ need not pass
through the side of the chamber but may be only a recess in the inside
thereof, the projection c* being shorter then than the Drawing shews,
additional strength is in this way obtained. When the plug is drawn
back to open the breech the motion is limited by a pin connected with
the trigger and projecting up through the hole a² into the groove c³,
and the same pin prevents the discharge of the piece if the breech is
not securely closed, as the trigger can only be drawn back so as to
lift the sear when the hole c is over the pin and ready to receive it.
When it is desired to draw the plug b, c, entirely out of the trough a,
it can be done when the trigger is pushed forward so as to overcome
a trigger spring which sustains the pin. The extractor e is a spring
hook which catches over the flange of the cartridge, its stem is fitted
into a passage bored in the cover d and is secured by the screw d².
When the breech is closed the nose of the extractor enters the recess
a², formed for it in the chamber a immediately over the bore; a³ is a
stud in the bottom of the chamber a to check the cartridge case as
it is rapidly drawn out of the bore in opening the breech, it causes the
case to be jerked upwards out of the chamber a; b¹ is a groove in the-
part to accommodate the stud a³.
Figure 5 is a section of the striker f, which receives the blow of the
hammer of the lock, and transmits it to the priming of the cartridge.
It passes obliquely down to the centre of the face of the plug and it
enters the cavity within it, where a collar fl on the striker comes in

page_text: contact with an incline c' on the spindle c³, and when the handle c¹ is
turned to open the breech this incline acts to draw back the striker and
it also prevents the striker protruding from the face of the plug whilst
it is pushed home, but for this there might be risk of the premature dis-
charge of the cartridge when the plug is driven forcibly to its place.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention and the manner
of performing the same we would have it understood that we claim
the construction of breech-loading fire-arms substantially as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Edmond Green, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Seventh day of July, in the
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
year