CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN FLAX SPINNING AND FLAX SPINNING MACHINERY, WHICH ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE MANUFACTURE OF OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES
Year: 1845

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, THOMAS
RUSSELL, of Kirkcaldy, in the County of Fife, Iron Founder, and JOHN PETER
junior, of the Kirkland Works, in the same County, Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Sixth day of January, in the Eighth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant us, the said Thomas
Russell, and John Peter, our exors, adiñors, or assigns, Her especial licence,
full power, sole privilege and authority, that we, the said Thomas Russell
and John Peter, our exors, admors, or assigns, or such others as we, the said
Thomas Russell and John Peter, our exors, admors 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, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, our Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN FLAX SPINNING AND
FLAX SPINNING MACHINERY, WHICH ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE MANUFACTURE
OF OTHER FIBROUS SUBSTANCES;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained
a proviso that we, the said Thomas Russell and John Peter, should cause a
particular description of the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, under our hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us, to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of.
Chancery, within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being.
thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
Thomas Russell and John Peter, do hereby declare that the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner it is to be performed, are fully set forth
and described in the present Specification thereof, reference being had to the
Drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say:-
The nature of our said Invention consists in passing the slivers of flax, or
any other fibrous substance intended to be spun, through water, or through
some fluid colouring substance, while they are yet in an untwisted state, and
in the additions to and modifications of the ordinary spinning machinery
requisite for the said purpose; and the manner in which the same is performed
is represented in the said Drawings, and fully explained in the following
description thereof.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a flax spinning frame, adapted to and
embodying our said Invention; Figure 2 is an end elevation thereof; and
Figure 3 a sectional view of the parts to which our Invention has more
especially reference detached from the rest. A (Figure 3) is one of the
retaining rollers; B, one of the drawing rollers; C, is a trough which is filled
with water, or with some fluid coloring substance; S, S, represents the sliver
of flax (or other fibrous substance) which, after it comes from between the
drawing rollers B, is carried under a small roller D, which is partly immersed
in the water or coloring fluid, and then carried upwards over and between two
compressing rollers E, F, which keep the sliver still untwisted, and serve also
to free it from any superfluous moisture which it may have taken up. The
sliver after being wetted or dyed in an untwisted state, is passed to the other
parts of the machine to be spun in the usual way. By subjecting the sliver
to this preliminary wetting, the subsequent process of spinning is facilitated,
and the thread also improved in quality; and when the fluid through which it
is passed is such as also to dye as well as wet the sliver, the thread is pro-
duced at once in a colored state, instead of having to be dyed afterwards
by a separate process, as usual. Other fibrous substances as well as flax
may be prepared for twisting or spinning in the same way, and with more or
less advantage.
And having now described our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, we declare that what we claim is,-
First, the wetting of flax and other fibrous substances while they are yet
in an untwisted state, or in the state of sliver, and in the course of passing
through the spinuing frame or other machine or machinery in order to be
twisted or spun.
Second, the dyeing as well as wetting of flax and other fibrous substances

page_text: while they are yet in an untwisted state, and in the course of their passage
as aforesaid to be twisted or spun.
And, third, the additions to and modifications in the ordinary flax-spinning
frame before described, and the application thereof to other spinning machines
or machinery.
And such our said Invention being, to the best of our knowledge and belief,
entirely new, and never before used within that part of Her Majesty's United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, Her Dominion of
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, we do hereby declare this to
be our Specification of the same, and that we do verily believe this our said
Specification doth comply fully and in all respects, without reserve or disguise,
with the proviso in the said herein-before in part recited Letters Patent con-
tained; wherefore we hereby claim to maintain exclusive right and privilege to
our said Invention.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Russell, on behalf of myself
and the said John Peter, have hereunto set my hand and seal, this
Second day of June, One thousand eight hundred and forty-five.