A TUT An Ammo Dan ThiZING COPIES OF WRITINGINE OR APPARATUS
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Robert English, Seal Engraver and General
Die Sinker, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, for the Inven-
A TUT
An Ammo Dan ThiZING COPIES OF WRITING"
Sealed the 30th March 1860, and dated the 4th October 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Robert English
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 4th October 1859.
I, SAMUEL ROBERT ENGLISH, Seal Engraver and General Die Sinker, of
Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, do hereby declare the nature of my
said Invention for "A MACHINE OR APPARATUS FOR TAKING COPIES OF WRITING,"
to be as follows (that is to say) :-
My Invention consists of a cylinder of any suitable material and length,
according to the size of the letters required to be copied, secured to a base
or stand, and on the one side where the cylinder and stand is united I fix a
piece of leather or other suitable material the length of the cylinder, and wide
enough to wrap around the exposed surface of the cylinder, the loose end
being fitted and secured to a strong spindle, the ends of which extend beyond
the ends of the leather or other fabric, for the purpose of being passed over
two open eyes or hooks, and by turning the spindle around with a suitable
handle the leather or other material is wound upon the. spindle, and con-
sequently strained tight over the surface of the cylinder. And the manner in

page_text: which I proceed to copy a letter will be thus understood:-By freeing the
spindle, the leather will become loose, and may be easily thrown back; and
upon the cylinder I place a suitable piece of prepared paper, such as is
generally used in coppying presses, so prepared that it will resist moisture
and on this I lay a piece of thin suitable paper for receiving the copy, and
over this the letter or document intended to be copied, and by bringing over
the leather, and placing the ends of the spindle in the eyes or hooks, a slight
effort applied to the handle to turn it will. be sufficient to so strain the leather
over the surface of the paper containing the writing as to transfer it to the
sheet below, which should be slightly damped to facilitate the operation.
In general I prefer to bind up a suitable quantity of copying paper into a
book of a size suitable to my apparatus, and by fastening this book in any
suitable portable way to the cylinder it may be used in the ordinary way in
which such books are used with the common copying presses, namely, by
placing the waterproof or prepared paper before described beneath a sheet
of paper on which the copy is intended to be taken. The leather on the
outside may be printed or impressed with any suitable ornament or device,
or covered with any suitable fabric or covering that may be desired. And
in this description I have used the word cylinder, but it must be evident
that a piece of iron or other suitable metal bent arround to about two-thirds
of a circle, and with the edges turned outward, for the purpose of securing it
to the base, will answer the same purpose as the cylinder first described, the
centre part being fitted up with ends or drawers, or otherwise, as may be
desired; and the stand also may be of wood, papier-machie, or cast or
sheet iron raised in the desired form, japanned, and finished in any suitable
way.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Samuel Robert English in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 4th April 1860.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, SAMUEL
ROBERT ENGLISH, Seal Engraver and. General Die Sinker, of Birmingham, in
the County of Warwick, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me

page_text: the said Samuel Robert English, Her special license that I, the said Samuel
Robert English, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Samuel Robert English, my executors, administrators, or
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 Chanuel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "A MACHINE OR APPARATUS POR TAKING COPIES OF WRITING,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Samuel Robert English,
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 Samuel Robert English, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement (that is to say):-
The manner hitherto practiced of taking copies of letters or other manu-
script writing has been to lay the letter or other manuscript matter in a
book composed of thin transparent paper, taking care first to lay a piece of
waterproof millboard or other suitable material underneath the letter to be
copied; and next to damp, in any suitable way, the leaf of the book on which
the copy is to be taken, and which damped leaf is to be laid on the written
matter to be copied, and over the damped leaf another waterproof millboard
or suitable material is placed. In this condition the book is placed betweer
two flat metallic plates, the top one being pressed down by means of a
powerful lever handle or a screw, and which apparatus are common and
generally used, and known as copying presses. And my improvements in no
way differ from the ordinary mode, as far as regards the book, the damping
of the leaf, and the manner of placing the manuscript into the book for the
purpose of copying, but is entirely confined to the apparatus for exerting the
necessary amount of pressure for the written matter to be transferred to
the leaf or leaves of the book between which it may have been placed.
And my Invention consists in the use of a large fixed cylinder, which may
be made of any suitable material, and of any suitable length or circumference,
according to the size of the sheets of manuscript matter desired to be copied,
varying the size according to requirement; as, for instance, the cylinder may
be made of a length and diameter suitable either for note, post, or foolscap

page_text: paper, and larger, if required. This cylinder is fitted to a convenient stand
having a piece of strong leather or other suitable material secured to it on
the back side; and to the front end of this leather or other wrapper I secure
a metallic or other suitable spindle, and which spindle is applied and removed
at pleasure in a way that admits of its being turned around by means of a
suitable fixed or portable handle, thereby winding the wrapper around its
periphery, and straining it around the circumference of the cylinder, in which
position the spindle may be retained in any suitable way. With the apparatus
thus arrange: I copy letters or other writing in the following way:-The
book for receiving the copies, with the writing to be copied placed in, (in
the manner herein-before described, or otherwise, at the will or-pleasure of
the user,) may be secured by its back binding to the back of the cylinder;
or be placed around the cylinder when required for taking a copy of the
writing desired, and thus prepared the wrapper has only to be placed over it,
and strained tight by being wound around the spindle as before described,
when a fac-simile of the writing will be transferred to the leaf of the book in
contact with it. And, although I have described the body of my apparatus
as being a cylinder, it is not by any means essential that it should be so, as
a curved wood body or roller will be found of equal efficiency, but, by pre-
ference, I propose making the body cylindrical or tubular, using thin sheet
iron for the purpose (for the sake of strength and lightness), and so forming
the ends as not only to give a finish and strength to the cylinder, but also to
form the open or other suitable bearings for the spindle to work in; and to
the lower sides of such ends a wood or other stand may be secured; by this
means I obtain equal efficiency, with great simplicity of action, lightness, and
economy, taking from it the rude appearance of a powerful machine, but on
the contrary, its elegance and neat appearance makes it as much in place
on the writing table of a lady as in the office of a merchant; and for the
foreign traveller, tourist, or commercial agent its advantages are of the highest
importance, as by converting the cylinder into a case, or for receiving a
drawer, and making the stand also in such a way that a drawer may be
fitted to it for holding ink, paper, and other writing requirements, the
whole may be secured to an outer leather or other case, that when open shall
form a pad for writing on, and when closed shall perfectly envelope the
apparatus, and which leather covering may be secured with a lock, thus not
only combining a desk and the requisites for writing with a simple and efficient
means of taking and keeping copies of correspondence or letters, and keeping
such copies private and secure from unpriviledged inspection; but as my
Invention will be better understood by referring to the Drawings hereunto

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 represents a top view of my improved letter copying apparatus fitted
up with a stout leather case or outer covering, and with a drawer in the stand
or base part, and Fig. 2 an end view of the same, the drawer being partially
drawn out, and the leather covering extended for writing. The proportions of
the drawing may be that necessary for ordinary note-size paper.
A is a strong
piece of leather or other suitable material, embossed or otherwise, secured in
any suitable way to the lower side of the cylinder B, B, and strained over it
with the book for receiving the copies laying between the under side of the
wrapper A and the cylinder B, as will be hereafter seen. C, C, is a spindle
having a tapered square formed on it at one end for passing through a square
hole in the ratchet wheel D, which ratchet wheel works through the end
support E, also hereafter to be referred to, the other end of the spindle being
passed under a hook or open bearing formed in the end piece F. G, G, is a
drawer partly extended for the purpose of showing the ink pot H, which may
be fitted to its interior with a screw or other stopper. I, I, I, I, represents a
stout piece of leather, with a strong (thicening up) welt secured on each edge,
and J, J, is a piece of hard wood, or other suitable material, secured to the
leather for carrying the staple of the lock as at K, and to this part a metallic
clip may be fastened marked L, L, for pressing down and holding the writing
pad M, M, M, M, and we will now suppose that the letter lying on the
pad requires to be copied, by applying the thumb or finger to the top end of
the pall O, the spindle will be free, and will readily turn in the direction of
the arrow, allowing the end of the spindle C' to drop down, when the spindle
may be drawn out from the ratchet wheel D, and with the covering A it may
be turned to the back of the cylinder, when the book for receiving the copies,
and described as lying underneath the wrapper around the cylinder, may be
opened, a page moistened, and the letter laid in, with the millboards, &c., as
before described, and commonly used when taking copies of letters with the
ordinary screw or lever copying press, and the book being replaced or left in
position, the wrapper A may be again laid over it, and the spindle C placed in
the position as here represented, when by means of the handle N, which may
be portable or permanently fixed, and of any suitable shape, the spindle C
must be turned in the contrary direction to the arrow shown on the ratchet
wheel D, which will have the effect of straining the wrapper A tightly over
the book and cylinder, and which will be found without inconvenient extion.

page_text: to cause a sufficient amount of uniform pressure as to cause the writing on the
letter in the book to be transmitted to the leaf of the book in contact with it,
and the letter may now be removed by applying the finger and thumb to the
top of the pall so as to free the ratchet, as before described, by allowing the
covering A to relax, when the spindle may be freed from its bearing in the
end F, and drawn from the ratchet wheel D, and the letter being removed the
spindle may be again replaced, the ink pot secured, and the drawer G pushed
back into its place, when the leather covering I may be brought over the
cylinder until the staple of the lock marked K is placed in the corresponding
cavity of the lock marked P, principally shown in dotted lines, where it may
be secured in the ordinary way by the key Q, and when so placed the strap R
will be in a corresponding position with the buckle S, that when united they
will cross the end of the apparatus through the dotted line T, T, straining
the outer leather covering tighter around the cylinder and forming a handle
by which it may be easily carried, the corresponding strap and buckle U and V
performing the same office at the other end, and when so wrapped up the
thick welt on the edge of the leather flap will overlap the circular part of the
ends, thereby protecting them from injury, but which welt in Figure Two is
represented broken off from W to W, for the convenience of showing the pad
secured under the metal clip L, but the welt from W to X shows how it is
intended to overlap the ends of the apparatus. Y, Y, is a piece of wood that
may be secured at the bottom, if desired, for forming a base and preventing
undue wear on the outer leather wrapper at that part; and, if desired, leather
plates may be formed of or secured to the outer covering I, I, in such a way
that they may lap up over the ends, and be confined in that position by
the straps and buckles before referred to, thus enveloping the apparatus
entirely in a leather case, but which case is not necessary when the apparatus
is required to be used in office or stationary positions; and Fig. 3 represents
the reverse or opposite end of the apparatus as exhibited at Figure Two,
without any outer leather covering or appendage; and in this view the shape
of the end is exhibited for passing in and holding the end of the spindle C';
and Z, Z, represents the front of a drawer, which I purpose fitting in the
interior of the cylinder, and extending its whole depth, and which drawer may
be fitted up in any convenient way; and A', A', is a handle by which the drawer
may be pulled in or out. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of Figure Two,
as taken through the dotted lines D¹, D¹, of the latter Figure without
the outer leather covering, and in this view the book for receiving
the copies is shown in section marked B', B', as well as the interior of
the drawer J', secured to the front Z, and all the other parts that are

page_text: shown are marked with the same letters as in Figure One and Two.
Fig. 5 represents a transverse section of Figure One as taken through the
dotted lines E¹, with the outer leather covering broken off at F', and in this
view I have represented the drawer marked G in Figure One partly out, for
the purpose of better defining it with the tin or thin sheet iron stand or base,
into which it is fitted. And for the better supporting the curved tin piece on
which the cylinder B, B, rests, I have represented a piece of wood marked
G, G', and within the cylinder the piece of wood or other suitable material
marked H', which parts are held together by the screw and nut I'. The
drawer J' is not perfectly circular, as its bottom rests on the part H', and the
sides extend up to K', and midway in the drawer longitudinal angle supports
are soldered or secured, marked L, on which a tray may rest, marked M', M',
and which tray may be drawn out from the back of the drawer when required
to obtain access to the bottom part of the drawer J'. The spindle C is
represented as made of a piece of stout tube, with a slot on its top side for
receiving the wrapper A, A, which is sewed or secured to a wire and passed
into the slot from the end of the spindle marked C³, which I purpose afterward
to be closed over with a suitable end or cap, and brazed or soldered in, or by
a cap tapped and screwed, as hereafter to be referred to. _ The corresponding
parts that are seen in this Figure are also marked with the same letters with
which they are distinguished in the other views. To prevent the book shifting
from its position at the time the wrapper A is being strained around it, two or
more sharp steel points may be applied radially to the cylinder at N¹ for
entering the book B' at or near the part where it is bound or stitched together,
or any other convenient place may be adopted to effect the same object, if
necessary.
Fig. 6 represents a longitudinal detached view of the spindle C with as
much of the wrapper A necessary for explaining its position (with the
spindle C). The ratchet wheel D, in Figure 2, is here represented in section,
marked with the same letter, shouldered and held in its place in the end
piece E, by the nut or screw P¹, which is also shown in section, and as I have
represented and described the spindle C in Figure Five as being a tube, and
the fabric A passed in through a longitudinal slot, it may be convenient, for
the purpose of forming a finish at the end marked C¹, to tap or otherwise fix
on a cap, and which cap is exhibited in dotted lines, with a projecting shoulder
to press against the inside of the end piece F, in which it works while in use;
this covers over the otherwise exposed part of the slot and the end of the tube,
and makes a neat finish of this part.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the best way I know

page_text: of of carrying the same into effect, I wish it understood that I do not purpose
confining myself to the general details as herein exhibited, as the whole may
be considerably modified without departing from the character of my Inven-
tion; as, for instance, it is not essential that the part B should be of a
continuous circular form, as it may be curved out at the bottom, so as to from a
stand, and this same remark applies whether this part be made solid or hollow;
nor do I purpose confining myself to the using of the cylinder or roller in a
horizontal position, as it may be made with a suitable base so as to stand in a
vertical position, with guides or bearings for the spindle to work in, in the
same way or other like equivalent arrangements as herein exhibited, and the
apparatus so placed will be as efficient (if so prepared) for the purpose of
copying letters as when worked horizontally; but what I claim and wish
protected by these my in part recited Letters Patent is, the general arrange-
ment or apparatus for copying letters or other manuscript matter, as herein
described and exhibited, without reference to material, size, or mode of
arranging, fitting, or placing the same for work.
In witness whereof, I, the said Samuel Robert English, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Second day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty.
SAMUEL ROBERT ENGLISH. (L.S.)
Witness,
ISAAC B. SAVAGE,
Clerk to James S. Cockings, Patent Agent,
Birmingham.