IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY 26 PAPER FOR CHEQUES AND OTHER DOCUMENTS OF VALUE
Year: 1884

page_text: I, FRANCIS NOWLAN, of 17, Soho Square, in the County of Middlesex, Artist,
do hereby declare the nature of my said invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY
26
PAPER FOR CHEQUES AND OTHER DOCUMENTS OF VALUE," to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to improvements in the production of safety paper for
cheques, bills and other documents of value, which improvements consist in
modifications of a process invented by me in the year 1881.
My said original process was based on the principle of printing the necessary
lettering and ground on face of cheque or other form, partly in permanent, and
partly in alterable pigments, (or one of these), and cementing over the whole a sheet
of transparent covering paper.
This process, while affording absolute protection against alteration, was found in
practice to offer certain disadvantages among which may be mentionned: 1 rstly―The
hazy aspect of the printed matter seen through the thin covering paper; 2ndly—
Insufficient penetration of the writing ink into the substance of the cheque through
the said covering paper and its cementing medium; 3rdly-Induration of the tell
tale pigment lines or other device by their direct contact with the cement, and
consequently decrease in the rapidity and extent of their blurring action in
presence of the altering liquid. These and other minor defects inherent to my
original process are obviated by the means hereinafter described which may be
applied to any of the "Chemical" papers now in use. It has been proved that
such chemically prepared papers afford in themselves no adequate security against
alteration, but when used in combination with my present improvements, they
become absolutely unfalsifiable.
In the execution of my said improvements, I proceed as follows, operating as
example on one of the known "Chemical cheque " forms.
Along the back of such a cheque form, and in a position corresponding with the
sum space in front, I rule or otherwise deposit a series of lines (or other device) in
any suitable pigment having a soluble vehicle, say for instance finely ground carbon
or Indian red mixed to the required consistency in an aqueous mucilage.
The ruling or other apparatus employed for applying such lines must be capable
of depositing on the paper such a quantity of pigment as will insure visible flowing
Pine R71

page_text: when exposed to the ink-destroying liquids applied to the writing on face of the
cheque. Simple surface printing or ruling would not carry sufficient pigment to
produce this effect with certainty.
Over the back of the cheque thus erased, I cement a thin sheet of waterproof
paper, the adhesive employed for this purpose being so distributed by blocks, rollers
or otherwise as to avoid contact with the pigment lines. In other words, the
plain surfaces only will be joined together, leaving uncemented the parts corre-
sponding to the pigment lines which, adhering only by their own mucilage,
constitute a series of reservoirs or ducts into which the liquid used for altering the
writing on face of the cheque must necessarily percolate and accumulate in contact
with said lines, its escape being barred by the waterproof.paper backing.
As a precaution against separation of the superposed papers, the compound sheet
may be embossed on any required portion of its surface, say for instance round its
borders.
Any liquid applied to face of a cheque prepared as above, for the purpose of
removing the writing thereon, must first, while destroying this writing, give rise to
visible reaction on the chemicals contained in the paper.
To eliminate the traces of this reaction, a prolonged application of appropriate
liquids becomes necessary and before such liquids can possibly produce their
specific effect, they penetrate into and collect in the above mentionned duct spaces
from whence, as already stated, their escape is barred by the impervious paper
backing. Once there, they commence and combine to exercise a solvent action on
the pigment lines which, being thus broken up, produce a constantly increasing
blur between the superposed sheets beyond reach of reinoval by any chemical or
other means.
Dated this eighth der of Merch 1901

page_text: I, FRANCIS NOWLAN, of 17, Soho Square, in the County of Middlesex, Artist,
do hereby declare the nature of my said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY
PAPER FOR CHEQUES AND OTHER DOCUMENTS OF VALUE," and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :—
My Invention relates to improvements in the production of safety paper for
cheques, bills and other. documents of value, which improvements consist in
modifications of a process invented by me in the year 1881.
My said original process was based on the principle of printing the necessary
lettering and ground on face of cheque or other form, partly in permanent, and
partly in alterable pigments, (or one of these), and cementing over the whole a
sheet of transparent covering paper.
This process, while affording absolute protection against alteration, was found in
practice to offer certain disadvantages among which may be mentionned: 1 rstly-The
hazy aspect of the printed matter seen through the thin covering paper;
2ndly Insufficient penetration of the writing ink into the substance of the cheque
through the said covering paper and its cementing medium; 3rdly-Induration of
the tell-tale pigment lines or other device by their direct contact with the cement,
and consequently decrease in the rapidity and extent of their blurring action in
presence of the altering liquid. These and other minor dofects inherent to my
original process are obviated by the means bereinafter described which may be
applied to any of the Chemical" papers now in use. It has been proved that
such chemically prepared papers afford in themselves no adequate security against
alteration, but when used in combination with my present improvements, they
become absolutely unfalsifiable.
1
In the accompanying drawings, illustrative of my invention, in the several
figures of which the same parts are similarly designated, Figure 1. is a face view of
a cheque; Fig. 2. a back view of the same; and Fig. 3. a conventional enlarged
cross-section in the plane of line x. x., Fig. 2.
In the execution of my said improvements I proceed as follows, operating, as
example, on one of the known "chemical cheque "forms. Along the back of such
a cheque form, and in a position corresponding with the sum-space a. in front,
I rule or otherwise deposit a series of lines (or other device, b.) in any suitable
indelible pigment having a soluble vehicle-say, for instance, finely-ground carbon
or Indian red mixed to the required consistency in an aqueous mucilage.
The ruling or other apparatus employed for applying such lines must be capable
of depositing on the paper such a quantity of pigment as will insure visible flowing
when exposed to the ink-destroying liquids applied to writing on the face of the
cheque. Simple surface printing or ruling would not carry sufficient pigment to
produce this effect with certainty. Over the back of the cheque thus treated
I cement a thin sheet of waterproof paper c., the adhesive e., Fig. 3., employed for
this purpose being so distributed by blocks, rollers, or otherwise as to avoid contact
with the pigment-lines. In other words, the plain surfaces only will be joined
together, leaving uncemented the parts corresponding to the pigment-lines, which,
adhering only by their own mucilage, constitute a series of reservoirs or ducts, into
which the liquid used for altering the writing on face of the cheque must necessarily
percolate and accumulate in contact with said lines, its escape being barred by the
waterproof paper backing. As a precaution against separation of the superposed
papers, the compound sheet may be embossed over any required portions of its
surface say, for instance, round its borders or at its corners, as at d.

page_text: Any liquid applied to face of a cheque prepared as above for the purpose of
removing the writing thereon must first, while destroying this writing, give rise to
visible reaction on the chemicals contained in the paper.
To eliminate the traces of this reaction, a prolonged application of appropriate
liquids becomes necessary, and before such liquids can possibly produce their
specific effect they penetrate into and collect in the above-mentioned duct-spaces,
from whence, as already stated, their escape is barred by the impervious paper
backing. Once there, they commence and continue to exercise a solvent action on
the pigment lines, which, being thus broken up, produce a constantly-increasing
blur between the superposed sheets, beyond reach of removal by any chemical or
other means.
I am aware that inks of different nature are commonly employed for printing the
ground and lettering of so called "safety cheques" but these as hitherto applied have
invariably proved inefficient for the reason (amongst others) that no surface
printing or ruling, whatever may be the number of different inks employed, can
have sufficient body to produce a blurring irremovable by careful manipulation.
It will be understood that the nature and mode of application of the pigments
and of the waterproof backing, together with the general details of manufacture of
my safety paper may be varied in practice according to requirements without
deviating from the principle or main features of my improvements as herein set
forth.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
An improved safety-paper for cheques and other documents of value, composed
as follows: first, of an upper sheet of ordinary chemical paper bearing on the
required portions of its under-side thickly-charged lines or other devices of
unalterable pigment in a soluble vehicle, and, secondly, in combination therewith,
a backing of thin waterproof paper so cemented as to leave free from cement the
parts thereof corresponding with the pigment-lines, the object and effect of such
partial cementing being to provide a series of collecting ducts for the liquid used
for removing writing from face of the document, the whole substantially as and for
the purposes herein set forth.
nated this twentieth day of November 1884.