IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES, JARS, OR VESSELS FOR HOLDING BLACKING, AND IN CERTAIN APPURTENANCES THEREOF, PART OF THE INVENTION BEING APPLICABLE TO STOPPERS FOR BOTTLES USED FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Francis Mordan, of Goswell Road, in the County of
Middlesex, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES,
JARS, OR VESSELS FOR HOLDING BLACKING, AND IN CERTAIN APPURTENANCES
THEREOF, PART OF THE INVENTION BEING APPLICABLE TO STOPPERS FOR BOTTLES
USED FOR OTHER PURPOSES."
Sealed the 28th December 1860, and dated the 12th July 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Francis Mordan at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 12th
July 1860.
I, FRANCIS MORDAN, of Goswell Road, in the County of Middlesex, Manu-
facturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN BOTTLES, JARS, OR VESSELS FOR HOLDING BLACKING, AND IN CERTAIN APPUR-
TENANCES THEREOP, PART OF THE INVENTION BEING APPLICABLE TO STOPPERS FOR
BOTTLES USED FOR OTHER PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
I form the exterior surface of the bottle, jar, or vessel with arrangements to
receive and retain a plunger or instrument for taking up and supplying the
blacking, and consisting of a shank or stem which terminates in a pad or a
suitable taking-up piece or appliance, and is threaded at top to screw into the
stopper; the shank may be telescopic. I insert into the bottle, jar, or vessel
a stopper, having a ring or other contrivance by which it may be lifted with-
out the aid of a corkscrew, and this may be done by inserting the shank of the
plunging or dipping instrument.
My improved stopper has a ring at top with a threaded shank entering a

page_text: socket, preferably of wood, inserted into the cork or material of the stopper,
and contrived to receive at its lower end the top of the plunging or taking-up
instrument when desirable.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Francis Mordan in the-Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th
January 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FRANCIS
MORDAN, of Goswell Road, in the County of Middlesex, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Francis Mordan, Her special licence, that I, the said Francis Mordan, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Francis
Mordan, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTTLES, JARS,
OR VESSELS FOR HOLDING BLACKING, AND IN CERTAIN APPURTENANCES THEREOF,
PART OF THE INVENTION BEING APPLICABLE TO STOPPERS FOR BOTTLES USED FOR
OTHER PURPOSES," upon the condition (amongst others), that I, the said
Francis Mordan, 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 Francis Mordan, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the letters
and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
My Invention relates to improvements in bottles, jars, or vessels for holding
blacking, and in certain appurtenances thereof, part of the Invention being

page_text: also applicable to stoppers for bottles used for other purposes. I form the
exterior surface of the bottle, jar, or vessel with arrangements to receive and
retain a plunger or instrument for taking up and supplying the blacking, such
plunger or instrument consisting of a shank or stem, which terminates in a pad
piece or appliance for taking up the blacking, and is threaded at top to screw
into the stopper; this shank may be telescopic. I insert into the bottle, jar,
or vessel a stopper, having a ring or other contrivance by which it may be
lifted without the aid of a corkscrew; this may be effected by inserting or
passing through the ring or equivalent the sbank of the plunging, dipping, or
taking up instrument.
My improved stopper has a ring at top with a threaded shank entering a
socket, preferably of wood, inserted into the cork or material of the stopper,
and contrived to receive at its lower end the top of the plunging or taking-up
instrument, when desirable.
I now proceed, with reference to the accompanying Drawings, to describe
the best mode known to me of carrying my Invention into effect.
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a blacking bottle, constructed according to
my improvements, having stopper and plunging instrument complete, the latter
outside; Figure 2 is a vertical section with the plunger inside; Figure 3, an
elevation of the plunger or taking-up instrument. A is the bottle or jar for
holding the blacking. I preferably construct it of stoneware, but other mate-
rials might be used. a is an orifice formed in a projection, moulded in a piece
with the bottle, and a¹ is a step or socket formed in another projection also so
moulded; this orifice and step are intended for holding an instrument B,
which I call the plunger, dipping, or taking-up instrument, and which is
intended for plunging into the blacking and taking up a supply thereof for
applying it on the boot or other surface to be blacked. This instrument is a
considerable improvement on the old inconvenient mode of forcing a stick
through the cork for the purpose. This plunger or instrument consists of two
parts: a shank 6 and a pad c; the shank may conveniently be of iron, though
other materials may be used, and the pad c may consist of a piece of felt in the
shape of a short cylinder, as shown, though I do not restrict myself thereto; it
is attached firmly to the shank. At the top, that is, the end opposite the pad,
the shank is threaded for a short distance from the extremity, as shown at b'.
When the bottle is sent out for sale the instrument B is most conveniently
inserted through the eye a and rested on the step a', the threaded top l' being
い
downward, as shewn in Figure 1; but when the bottle is in domestic use, it
will be found convenient to remove the instrument B from the outside of the
bottle and screw it into the stopper, as shown in Figure 2.
E is the stopper;

page_text: fis a socket inserted into the cork or material of which the bung or stopper is
principally composed, and extending from the upper to the lower surface
thereof; it consists of a tubular piece, preferably of wood, though other mate-
rials might be used; e is a ring fitted to the top of the stopper for convenience
of removing and replacing it, having a shank or stem e', which is screw-
threaded, and is inserted into the upper part of the socket f; the threaded end
6. of the shank 6 of the instrument B is inserted into the lower end of the
socket; the socket has a flange or lip f' at bottom bearing against the under
surface of the cork or bung to keep the socket. in place; the inside surface of
the socket may be threaded at its upper and lower portions, as shewn in the
Drawing, to receive the shanks and b, thereby retaining the same more
firmly; but when the socket f is composed of soft wood or of sufficiently soft
material, these internal threads need not be tapped beforehand, but may be
produced by screwing in the ring shank e¹ at one end and the part b¹ of the
plunger shank 6 at the other.
This improved arrangement of stopper may be applied to other purposes
than to blacking bottles; i.e., to the stoppering of bottles, jars, or vessels for
containing materials other than blacking.
I do not confine myself to the particular mode of retaining the instrument B
by the eye a and step a', as other arrangements may be applied to the external
surface of the bottle or jar for that purpose; also, instead of the particular pad
or taking-up piece shown at c, other forms of appliances may be attached to
the shank 6 for taking up and applying the blacking. The stopper may be
raised without a corkscrew by inserting the plunger shank b into the ring a,
causing it to act as a lever and lift the cork or stopper out of the bottle (first
of course breaking the wax when employed as an additional protection over the
cork);
the stem of the ring being screwed into a socket instead of just thrust
into the cork, allows of this with less danger than heretofore of pulling the ring
completely out; other appliances than a ring may be used at the top of the
stopper suitable as agents for lifting it, but a ring is preferred.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same may be performed, I declare that what I claim is,-
First, in respect of the improved bottle, jar, or vessel for holding blacking,
herein-before described, I claim the combination therewith or application
thereto of the plunger, or dipping or taking-up instrument described; the
combination therewith or application thereto of the improved stopper described;
and the forming or constructing of arrangements for receiving and retaining
the plunger, dipping or taking-up instrument, on the external surface of such
bottle. iar. or vessel.

page_text: Secondly, in respect of the plunger, dipping or taking-up instrument, I
claim the arrangement and combination of parts of which the same consists, as
herein-before described.
Thirdly, in respect of the improved stopper described I claim the employ-
ment or application of the internal socket.
And, lastly, I claim the combination of the improved stopper with the
plunger or taking-up instrument.
In witness whereof, I, the said Francis Mordan, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Tenth day of January, in the year of our
Lord Oue thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
Witness,
M. HENRY, Patent Agent,
84, Fleet Street,
London.
FRANCIS MORDAN. (L.S.)