IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF WOOL FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF WOOLLEN AND OTHER STUFFS, (AND IN THE PROCESS OF OBTAINING THE MATERIALS TO BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE
Year: 1840

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BERNARD
AUBE, of Coleman Street Buildings, in the City of London, Gentleman, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Seventh day of May, in the third year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Bernard
Aube, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said Bernard Aube, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said Bernard Aube, my exors, adññiors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the
term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PREPARATION OF WOOL FOR
THE MANUFACTURE OF WOOLLEN AND OTHER STUFFS, (AND IN THE PROCESS OF
OBTAINING THE MATERIALS TO BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Bernard Aube, shall cause a
particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court
of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, 1, the sam
Bernard Aube, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof (that is to say):
In preparing wool for the manufacture of woollen and other stuffs, it is well
known that large quantities of oil is used to facilitate the working of the wool
in the preparatory processes through which it passes, and the descriptions of
oil used are expensive. Now the objects of my Invention are to use oleic acid,
which is comparatively a cheap article of manufacture, possessing properties
peculiarly adapted to the preparatory processes through which wool passes, and
also by washing wool containing oleic acid in an alkaline solution, there will
be a saponaceous product obtained applicable to the fulling of woollen cloth,
which I prefer to oleic acid, following the ordinary processes by which the
oleic acid would be washed away in like manner to what is generally the case
when washing and pressing out the oils used, and as heretofore practised. I
would here remark, that oleic acid is a fluid well known, and is the fluid pro-
duct or acid obtained from fatty matters when the two acids composing fatty
matters are separated, and such separation is now largely practised by persons
engaged in the manufacture of what are called stearine candles; and the various
processes for separating the acids are well known, and form no part of my
Invention; and oleic acid may be purchased in large quantities, particularly
from manufacturers of stearine candles. And in carrying out my Invention,
in place of using oils, I use such fatty acid called oleic or tallow oil, and using
the same intimately with the wool in a similar manner to that usually resorted to
when employing the oils now used; and the workman will judge by the working
of the wool whether he has applied sufficient oleic acid or not, in the same
manner as he now judges whether he has applied sufficient oil by the manner
in which the wool under operation works, because it is well known that different
wools require different quantities of oil, and therefore no exact quantities can
be given, and different workmen use more or less oil in working the same
descriptions of wool. All that will therefore be necessary to state is, that in
using oleic acid for the oils now employed, the workman will judge by the free-
dom with which he can work the wool with, and will use more or less of the
oleic acid. When 'removing the oleic acid from the wool or fabrics made
therefrom, it may be accomplished by the same means as heretofore practised
when the oils now employed have been used, but I prefer that the water used
should have an alkali dissolved therein, so as to convert the oleic acid into a
saponaceous product, which will be found particularly useful for fulling woollen
cloths in place of soap. And for this purpose I dissolve about one half by

page_text: weight of soda of commerce (which is the alkali I prefer, but I do not confine
myself to that alkali) of the weight of the oleic acid known to have been used
in preparing the quantity of wool which is now to be treated, and such quantity
of alkali is to be dissolved in a quantity of water about twice the weight of the
wool to be cleansed. Although I ani thus particular in giving quantities, I do
not confine myself thereto, as they may be varied, but the quantities stated
are those which I have used. By thus using an alkaline solution as the mate-
rial for washing out the oleic acid from the wool, in addition to getting rid of
the oleic acid, I also, as above stated, obtain a product very suitable for
fulling woollen cloths.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, I would have it under-
stood that what I claim is,-
First, the mode of preparing wool by the use of oleic acid in such pro-
cesses; and,
Secondly, I claim the mode of preparing wool by the use of oleic acid,
where combined with the removing it therefrom by means of an alkaline pro-
cess, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Bernard Aube, have hereunto set my
hand and scal, this Sixth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty.
BD AUBE. (L.S.)
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Sixth day of November, in