AN IMPROVID CONSTRUCTION OF RAILWAY
Year: 1866

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Gedge
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
17th September 1866.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of
Ne. 11, Wellington Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Patent
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVID
CONSTRUCTION OF RAILWAY," (a communication to me from abroad by Francois
Guillet, of Coteau, near Roanne, France, Machinist,) to be as follows:-
This Invention is based upon a principle as simple as it is indisputable,
which is that if the rails of railways rest upon an elastic body, the friction
of the wheels on the rails will be more gentle than if the rail rested upon
[Price 8d.]

page_text: It
a hard. body, and that all jolts and shocks will be rendered impossible.
has been sought to attain this result by placing beneath the chairs in some
instances pasteboard, in others india-rubber materials essentially corruptible,
and which could give a result of but very limited duration, for which reason
wooden sleepers were adopted, which not bearing equally upon the entire
breadth of the way have a certain elasticity and suffer a certain compression
under the weight of the locomotives and trains, but notwithstanding this
property of the wood the contact is still so hard that in travelling by railway
a counterblow is received from every sleeper passed over, and principally at
the rail joints, the result being a general concussion very hurtful to the
rolling stock, and which making itself felt on the permanent way impairs by
degrees embankments, slopes, bridges, and tunnels. To obviate these defects
the Inventor does away with the sleepers and rests his rails on steel springs
coiled spiraly and placed on each side of the way at about one yard from
each other. These springs, the power of which is proportioned to the load
they are to bear, are enclosed in a cast-iron box (say three in each box), the
top part of which is uplifted by the springs and forming but one piece with
the chair rises and descends (according to the load) around the lower part of
the box; the ballast is also suppressed. To prevent any lateral displacement
of the rails they are united by an iron rod fitted on each side of the way to
the chair which carries the rail by an iron pin, which permits a certain play
between the tie rod and the chair, and renders any rupture impossible. It
will be at once seen that by this method all desirable case and elasticity may
be given to the railway, which is of immense importance to the comfort of
the traveller, and it need not be feared that the depression of the way which
will take place on the passage of the locomotives will produce a loss of
power, because the rails being well fished at the joints this depression will be
spread over a great distance and the difference of level be scarcely perceptible
under the passage of the wheels. A few experiments will suffice to indicate
in a precise manner the degree of resistance and at the same time of elasticity
which should be given to the springs.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Gedge in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 15th March 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD GEDGE, of the Firm of John Gedge and Son, of Number 11, Wellington
Street, Strand, in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria. by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventeenth day of September, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six. in the
year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Edward Gedge, Her special licence that I. the said
William Edward Gedge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Edward Gedge, 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 Inven-
tion for "AN IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION OF RAILWAY," (a communication to me
from abroad by Francois Guillet, of Coteau. near Roanne. France, Machinist,)
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Edward Gedge,
my executors or administrators. by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascér-
tain 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 Gedge, do hereby declare
he 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:-
This Invention is based upon a principle as simple as it is indisputable.
which is that if the rails of railways rest upon an elastic body the friction of
the wheels on the rails will be more gentle than if the rails rested upon a
hard body, and that all jolts and shocks will be rendered impossible. It has
been sought to attain this result by placing beneath the chairs in some
instances pasteboard. in others india-rubber materials essentially corruptible,
and which could give a result of but very limited duration; for the same
reason also wooden sleepers have been adopted, which not bearing equally.

page_text: upon the entire breadth of the way have a certain elasticity and suffer a
certain compression under the weight of the locomotives and trains; but
notwithstanding this property of the wood the contact is still so hard that in
travelling by railway a counter blow is received from every sleeper passed
over, and principally at the rail joints, the result being a general concussion
very hurtful to the rolling stock, and which making itself felt on the
permanent way impairs by degrees embankments, slopes, bridges, and tunnels.
To obviate these defects the Inventor does away with the sleepers, and rests
his rails on steel springs coiled spirally or helically, and placed on each side of
the way at about one yard from each other; these springs, the power of
which is proportioned to the load they are to bear, are enclosed in a cast-iron
box (say three in each box), the top part of which is uplifted by the springs,
and forming but one piece with the chair rises and descends around the
lower part of the box according to the load brought upon it; the ballast is
also suppressed. To prevent any lateral displacement of the rails they are
united by an iron rod fitted on each side of the way to the chair which carries
the rail by an iron pin, which permits a certain play between the tie rod and
the chair and renders any rupture impossible. It will be at once seen that by
this method all desirable ease and elasticity may be given to the railway,
which is of immense importance to the comfort of the traveller, and it need
not be feared that the depression of the way which will take place on the
passage of the locomotives will produce a loss of power, because the rails
being well fitted at the joints this depression will be spread over a great
distance and the difference of level be scarcely perceptible under the passage
of the wheels. A few experiments will suffice to indicate in a precise manner
the degree of resistance, and at the same time of elasticity which should be
given to the springs; from this greater elasticity very considerable advantages
must result. The friction of the wheels on. the rails being more gentle the
material will remain intact, and trains may travel at a much greater speed.
The general concussion or vibration will be less, and the road keep much
longer in repair, no jolts are to be feared or the accidents arising from the
sleepers, either when in consequence of reiterated vibrations the ballast
escapes and leaves a hollow space beneath the sleeper, or when one sheeper
less perfectly prepared rots sooner than the adjoining one and gives way under
the pressure of the train; and, lastly, it will no longer be needful to renew
the sleepers at a great expense every 7 or 8 years.
On the accompanying Sheet of Drawing, forming part of this my Specifica-
tion, Figure 1 is a plan view of part of a railway constructed according to this
Invention Figure 2, longitudinal elevation of same; Figure 3, end eleva-

page_text: tion; Figure 4, elevation in section at A, B; Figure 5 shewing arrangement
of springs in box; Figure 5, section at C. D. Figure 4; Figure 6, elevation
seen from the side D of Figure 4; and, Figure 7, under side of box lid
detached. E, rail; F, box; G, G, G, springs in box; H, J, lid overlapping
and sliding on body of box, forming also rail chair and resting on the
springs G, G, G; K, tie rods crossing the way from chair to chair;
O, wedge.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Gedge, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of March, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
W. E. GEDGE. (L.S.)