IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING CERTAIN GREASY MATTERS, AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CANDLES
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Fergusson Wilson, of Belmont, Vaux-
hall, in the County of Surrey, Managing Director of Price's
Patent Candle Company, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
TREATING CERTAIN GREASY MATTERS, AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
CANDLES."
Sealed the 27th May 1853, and dated the 1st April 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Fergusson
Wilson at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 1st April 1853.
I, GEORGE FERGUSSON WILSON, of Belmont, Vauxhall, in the County
of Surrey, Managing Director of Price's Patent Candle Company, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
TREATING CERTAIN GREASY MATTERS, AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
CANDLES," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of exposing strong offensively smelling greasy
matters to a high temperature with the air excluded, and in causing
the bad smell, as it comes over, to be subjected to the action of chlorine

page_text: or other highly disinfecting agent; and in treating beeswax, or a
mixture of hard fat acid and beeswax, with compounds of chlorine and
oxygen, preferring to employ that disengaged from chlorate of potash
by treating it with sulphuric acid; and in the application of the above
products to the manufacture of candles.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Fergusson Wilson, in the Great Seal
Patent Office, on the 1st October 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
GEORGE FERGUSSON WILSON, of Belmont, Vauxhall, in the County of
Surrey, Managing Director of Price's Patent Candle Company, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the First day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the sixteenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said George Fergusson Wilson, Her special
licence that I, the said George Fergusson Wilson, my executors, ad-
ministrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George Fer-
gusson Wilson, 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 law-
fully 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 TREATING CERTAIN GREASY MATTERS,
AND IN THE MANUFACTURE OF CANDLES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said George Fergusson Wilson, by an instrument in
writing under my hand and seal, 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 George Fergusson Wilson, do

page_text: +
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):
My Invention consists of exposing strong offensively smelling greasy
matters to a high temperature with the air excluded, and in causing
the bad smell, as it comes over, to be subjected to the action of chlorine
or other highly disinfecting agent; and in treating beeswax, or a
mixture of hard fat acid and beeswax, with compounds of chlorine and
oxygen, preferring to employ that disengaged from chlorate of potash
by treating it with sulphuric acid; and in the application of the above
products to the manufacture of candles.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention-I will. proceed
to describe the manner of performing, the same. I prefer to employ
highly heated steam as the means of heating the fatty matters, as by
such means the requisite heat for melting the greasy matters is obtained,
and at the same time the atmosphere is thereby excluded, and I allow
the heated steam so used to flow off from the melted greasy matters
which will be found to carry with it the offensive smells given off by the
greasy matters when heated; and in order to prevent the escape of the
offensive smells into the atmosphere I cause the steam to flow off
through a pipe or passage up or along which chlorine in the gaseous
state is allowed to flow.
I would, however, remark, that although I prefer to employ chlorine,
other disinfecting matter may be used in a like manner.
In treating
beeswax, or a mixture of beeswax and a hard fat acid, with a compound
of chlorine and oxygen, I prefer to employ that disengaged by the use
of chlorate of potash acted on by sulphuric acid; for which purpose I
take at the rate, say, of a ton of yellow beeswax, and melt and boil it
up with free steam for about half an hour. It is then allowed to stand
a short time, and is then decanted into another vessel provided with a
steam pipe to emit free steam; about twenty pounds of chlorate of
potash is added, and the steam turned on; eighty pounds of sulphuric
acid, diluted with like weight of water, is then gradually added. The
matters are allowed to stand for a short time, and are then decanted into
another vessel, and again boiled up with free steam, and treated with a

page_text: like quantity of diluted sulphuric acid. The beeswax is then decanted
into a receiver, and is ready for use. The beeswax may, before under-
going these processes, be combined and boiled up with a hard fat acid,
and then treated as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Fergusson Wilson, have
'hereunto set my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of September,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-
three
GEO. F. WILSON. (L.S.)
Witness, JNO. ALCOCK.