IM- PROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES
Year: 1860

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Sootheran and John Carr, both of Pickering, in
the County of York, Agricultural Engineers, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES."
Sealed the 27th March 1861, and dated the 4th October 1860.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Sootheran and John
Carr at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition,
on the 4th October 1860.
We, JOHN SOOTHERAN & JOHN CARR, both of Pickering, in the County of
York, Agricultural Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
Our Invention relates to reaping machines, and consists in forming an
opening in the platform on which the corn or other crops fall while being cut.
This opening is made near the side farthest from the standing corn, so that
the attendant standing or sitting on the frame of the driving gear at the side
of the machine with a rake can rake the deposit of cut corn on the platform
towards him, and so that it falls through the opening before mentioned to the
ground in form and quantity for being tied up into a sheaf; this opening in
the platform may be altogether immediately behind the fingers & cutting
knives, or having part of its breadth in that position, and part extended beyond
the breadth occupied by the finger bar, in order to afford the necessary room
for the deposit of the sheaf without deducting too much from the area of the
platform.

page_text: On the side next the standing crop we place a board in an inclined position,
forming, in fact, a part of the platform on which the cut crop slides, in a
measure, towards the delivery side. We use this inclined board in lieu of the
vertical board usually placed at that side to separate the cut from the standing
crop. We form the platform of reaping machines of a length from front to
rear about equal to the shortest straw of crops, & for longer straw we add
change pieces to the back part according to the length of stalk to be cut, to
afford sufficient area on the platform.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Sootheran and John Carr in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 4th April 1861.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
SOOTHERAN and JOHN CARR, both of Pickering, in the County of York,
Agricultural Engineers, 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 sixty, in the twenty-fourth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the said
John Sootheran & John Carr, Her special licence that we, the said John
Sootheran & John Carr, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as we, the said John Sootheran & John Carr, our executors, adminis-
trators, 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 Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN REAPING MACHINES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said John Sootheran & John
Carr, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our
or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 we, the said John Sootheran & John Carr, do
hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and

page_text: principal object of our Invention; for this purpose we limit the breadth of the
platform 6 to considerably less than the breadth of cut, as clearly seen in plan,
a space c being left between the side of the platform 6 and the framing d of
the machine, through which the cut crop falls when the raker rakes it towards
such opening, and which at each raking may be in sufficient quantity for a
sheaf, or it may be in less quantity than is usually comprised in a sheaf of
wheat. It will be observed in the Drawing that the opening c is entirely
behind the finger bar, which is not absolutely essential, as this opening may be
partly behind the finger bar, and extended to a position occupied by the
framing in Fig. 1, and as represented by dotted lines e, e, e, but in any case the
breadth of the platform is considerably less than the extent or breadth of cut,
whereby to lessen the breadth of the platform in order to lighten the operation
of raking off the crop. The inclined board f in connection with or in lieu of
the vertical board answers the purpose of separating the standing crop from
the cut crop, and forms a surface for the reception of a portion of the latter,
which, as it falls thereon, has a tendency to slide towards the delivery side of
the platform, and therefore lessens the labour in raking it off. Dotted lines g, g,
represent shifting pieces fitted to the back part of the platform to extend it
according to the length of stalk of the crop to be cut.
Having described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, we declare that what we claim as our Invention to be pro-
tected by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is, forming an
opening or space c altogether or in part within the limits of the breadth of
the cut or the finger bar for the delivery of the cut crop from the platform;
also the inclined board f, all as and for the purposes herein-before described.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Sootheran and John Carr, have
hereunto set our hands and seals, this Thirtieth day of March, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one.
JOHN SOOTHERAN. (L.S.)
JOHN CARR.
(L.S.)