IMPROVEMENTS IN FABRICS OR MATERIALS DESIGNED FOR PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE PURPOSES, SUCH AS CARPET LININGS, SHEATHING, AND SIMILAR APPLICATIONS, ALSO IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH FABRICS OR MATERIALS TO THE SOLES OF FOOT COVERINGS, AND IN THE METHODS OF MAKING AND PREPARING THE SAID PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE MATERIALS OR FABRICS
Year: 1880

page_text: ETTERS PATENT to John Clayton Mewburn, of 169, Fleet Street, in the
City of London, Patent Agent and Consulting Engineer, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FABRICS OR MATERIALS DESIGNED FOR PROTECTIVE AND
PRESERVATIVE PURPOSES, SUCH AS CARPET LININGS, SHEATHING, AND SIMILAR
APPLICATIONS, ALSO IN THE APPLICATION OF SUCH FABRICS OR MATERIALS
TO THE SOLES OF FOOT COVERINGS, AND IN THE METHODS OF MAKING
AND PREPARING THE SAID PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE MATERIALS OR
FABRICS." A communication from abroad by John Frederick Rodgers, of
Philadelphia, George Shepard Page, of Stanley, New Jersey, and Walter
Wood Adams, of New York City, all in the United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Clayton Mewburn
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 9th October 1880.
JOHN CLAYTON MEWBURN, of 169, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent and Consulting Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN FABRICS OR MATERIALS
DESIGNED FOR PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE PURPOSES, SUCH AS CARPET
LININGS, SHEATHING, AND SIMILAR APPLICATIONS, ALSO IN THE APPLICATION OF
SUCH FABRICS OR MATERIALS TO THE SOLES OF FOOT COVERINGS, AND IN THE
METHODS OF MAKING AND PREPARING THE SAID PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE
MATERIALS OR FABRICS." [A communication from abroad by John Frederick
Rodgers, of Philadelphia, George Shepard Page, of Stanley, New Jersey, and
Walter Wood Adams, of New York City, all in the United States of America.]
In carrying out this Invention I may select as a foundation fabric or material
papers of any thickness, felts, or felted fabrics, and any of the various textile
fabrics. The foundation fabric is chosen with reference to the purposes for which
the treated fabric is ultimately intended. This foundation fabric, whatever it may
be, is dipped in or is in some way covered with a preservative liquid. This
liquid consists of one of the following named substances or materials:-Coal-tar,
creosote, cresol, carbolic acid, creosote oil, naphthaline, anthracene oil, paraffine, and
the product of tar known to the trade as " light oil." Or it may consist of

page_text: combinations of these substances, or of their substantial equivalents. Indeed, for
the preparation of fabrics where water-proofing is an important object, I employ
coal-tar pitch, asphalt, or asphaltic or bituminous cement mixed with crude, light
oil.
After the foundation fabric or sheet has been dipped into or covered with the
preservative liquid or substance, it is passed between rollers or otherwise subjected
to pressure, whereby the preservative substance is pressed into the fibre or substance
of the fabric. It is then passed between heated rollers, or over or under a heated
surface, whereby all of the more volatile substances are vaporized, and the surface
sealed in a measure. Thus a fabric is produced that may be handled with comfort
and rolled into rolls without sticking. In some cases the essential oils, or one
of them, as, winter-green, or myrbane, may be added to the preservative fluid for
the purpose of imparting a fragrance to the treated fabric.
Another feature of this Invention consists in the application of a carbonized
fabric, or a fabric treated substantially as herein described, to the soles of boots,
shoes, and other foot clothing, whereby dampness is kept out, and the feet protected
against excretive and decomposing tendencies. The protective fabric may be used
as a lining, be placed between the soles, or applied in any convenient way.
The preservative and protective fabric may be employed for many purposes, as
for the protection of furs, clothes, carpets, and other goods, and for building,
sheathing, wrapping, and packing. Or it may be employed in any case as a
protection against moths, mildew, vermin, dampness, and other destructive
agencies.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Clayton Mewburn in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
2nd April 1881.
JOHN CLAYTON MEWBURN, of 169, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent and Consulting Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN FABRICS OR MATERIALS
DESIGNED FOR PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE PURPOSES, SUCH AS CARPET
LININGS, SHEATHING, AND SIMILAR APPLICATIONS, ALSO. IN THE APPLICATION OF
SUCH FABRICS OR MATERIALS TO THE SOLES OF FOOT COVERINGS, AND IN THE
METHODS OF MAKING AND PREPARING THE SAID PROTECTIVE AND PRESERVATIVE
MATERIALS OR FABRICS." (A communication from abroad by John Frederick
Rodgers, of Philadelphia, George Shepard Page, of Stanley, New Jersey, and
Walter Wood Adams, of New York City, all in the United States of America.)
The object of this Invention is to produce a fabric or material which may be
employed for various purposes, as for carpet linings, sheathing, roofing, and lining
for walls and ceilings, also for wrapping and packing, to protect clothing, furs, eta,
and for drug and toilet use.
The peculiar efficacy of the fabric or material depends somewhat upon the

page_text: purpose for which it is intended; if for building purposes it is waterproof and
vermin proof; if for wrapping or packing clothing, furs, etc., it will protect the
goods from injury by moths, mildew, vermin, or other destructive influences.
The method usually practiced of saturating coarse fabrics with coal tar is
objectionable for the reason that too much of the bituminous substance enters
into and adheres to them, and the result is that when exposed to high temperatures
the bitumen softens and runs off, damaging everything it touches, not to mention
the unpleasantness arising from handling such materials.
Manufacturers of these coarser kinds of tarred fabric have sought to get all the
bitumen possible into their products to increase their weight, and to further
increase their weight, and prevent the tar from running when exposed to heat, they
have resorted to "stuffing" the fabric with powdered steatite, ground stone, fine
sand, clay, &c., These substances also prevent the fabrics from adhering when
being rolled, and tend to prevent the detection of the surplus of tar.
My method seeks to overcome all of these objectionable features by producing
a fabric that will be light, strong, durable, smooth, devoid of adhesive qualities, and
efficacious, and it consists essentially in saturating felt, paper, cloth, or other
fibrous or textile material, with a liquid composed of one or more of the following
named substances, or their substantial equivalents:-Coal tar, carbolic acid, creosote,
cresol, napthaline, creosote oil, paraffine, anthracene oil, or the product of tar known
as light oil..
The saturated fabric is then passed between rollers or otherwise pressed, to
remove the surplus liquid and force the liquid into the pores or interstices of the
fabric, after which it is passed between heated rolls or exposed to heated surfaces,
so as to thoroughly dry it and drive off the more volatile portions of the saturating
liquid. The heat has also the effect of sealing and smoothing the fabric and giving
it a finish.
For certain purposes, where fine papers are required for writing, wrapping, or
other domestic uses, it is preferred to saturate the paper selected, which is
sometimes as fine as tissue paper, with pure or nearly pure carbolic acid, creosote,
or cresol, and to dry as before described. For coarser papers to be used in baling,
lining, sheathing, etc., I employ by preference crude light oil, creosote oil, napthaline,
or combinations of these, and for the coarser fabrics, such as coarse roll papers,
felt, etc., which are to be rendered both vermin and waterproof, I employ by
preference a mixture of coal-tar pitch, or coal-tar, or asphalt, or asphaltic, or
bituminous, cement, with crude light oil, in about the proportions of one fourth of
the former to three fourths of the latter. I may however use any of the above
named substances or their known equivalents in any proportion or proportions best
suited to the fabric or the result sought. I use however, in all cases where
protection from water or moisture is required, a percentage of pitch remaining from
the distillation of coal tar.
I may, where it is deemed desirable, employ an admixture with the preservative
liquid of one or more of the essential oils, as wintergreen or myrbane, for the
purpose of imparting a fragrance to the fabric.
In saturating fine papers or fabrics, I may employ, when desirable, a composition
of liquid paraffine and carbolic acid in the proportion of five (5) to ten (10) parts of
the former to ninety (90) or ninety five (95) parts of the latter.
I am aware that the finer fabrics and papers have in some instances been treated
with carbolic acid, but in all such cases the treatment has been in the pulp, where
60 large a volume of water is used that in every case the essential oils are washed
away, and the paper thus made has no efficacy as derived from the use of the
carbolic acid; or if any of the acid is left in the paper it would be driven off by the
high degree of heat employed in drying the paper.
By the above method I produce a fabric that has the great advantages of
cleanliness and cheapness, besides possessing antiseptic qualities of the greatest
importance; thus it serves as a preventive of disease as well as a protective against
moisture, vermin, moths, and other destructive agencies.

page_text: For roofing I may join several sheets of the paper or felt referred to, the said
sheets being caused to adhere by interposing between them a coating or layer of
coal-tar pitch or asphalt, or other similar adhesive substance; this produces a
ready roofing material which may be laid by any person, the process of laying
requiring very little skill.
The Invention further consists in the application of antiseptic fabrics, similar to
those above described, to the soles of boots, shoes, etc., to protect the feet against
moisture, to preserve the leather, and to prevent the feet from exhaling disagreeable
odors. In this application of the fabric its antiseptic qualities are taken advantage
of to keep the feet and leather in good condition: the fabric also serves, however,
to prevent the squeaking of the shoe sole in walking, which is also a very desirable
effect resulting from its employment.
In applying the fabric to boots or shoes with thick soles, it is preferred to place
it between the layers of the leather forming the sole and next to the insole, but in
thin soled boots and shoes it may be employed as an insole.
Antiseptic fabrics for this purpose should be waterproof also, but the thickness
or weight of the fabric will depend somewhat upon the class of boots or shoes to
which it is to be applied. For heavy rough boots the fabric may be rough and
thick, but for more delicate foot wear, the lighter and more finished fabrics are
preferred.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention as communicated to me,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
First. The herein described method of producing preservative and protective
fabrics or materials, which consists in treating a foundation fabric of a fibrous or
textile nature with the preservative substances in a liquid form, then pressing the
saturated fabric to remove the surplus and force the liquid into the pores or
interstices, and then heating the fabric thus treated to dry it and finish the surface,
substantially as set forth.
Second. As an improved manufacture, a fibrous or textile fabric or material
treated with the protective and preservative substances as set forth, and then
pressed and subjected to artificial heat, substantially as and for the purposes set
forth.
Third. As a material for roofing, a fabric formed of several sheets of the within
described paper or felt caused to adhere by means of interposed layers or coatings
of some suitable adhesive material, substantially as set forth.
Fourth. The application of a waterproof and antiseptic fabric, similar to that
herein described, to the soles of boots and other foot coverings for the purposes
herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Clayton Mewburn, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this First day of April, One thousand eight hundred and
sighty one
J. C. MEWBURN. (L.S.)