NEW-INVENTED AND MOST USEFULL IMPROVEMENT IN THE COMMON ELECTRICAL MACHINE (WHICH I CALL THE INSULATED MEDICAL ELECTRICAL MACHINE), BY INSULATING THE WHOLE IN A PARTICULAR MANNER, AND CONSTRUCTING THE CONDUCTORS SO THAT EITHER SHOCKS OR SPARKS MAY BE RECEIVED FROM THEM
Year: 1782

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
NAIRNE, of the Parish of Saint Michael's, Cornhill, in the City of London,
Optician, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third, by His
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Fifth day of February, in the twenty-second year of His
reign, did give and grant unto me, that I, the said Edward Nairne, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, and every of them, by myself
and themselves, or by my and their deputy or deputies, servants or agents, or
such others as I, the said Edward Nairne, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with and no others, from time to time and
at all times hereafter during the terms of years therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within that part of His
Kingdom of Great Britain called England, His Dominion of Wales, and
Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my "NEW-INVENTED AND MOST USEFULL
IMPROVEMENT IN THE COMMON ELECTRICAL MACHINE (WHICH I CALL THE INSULATED
MEDICAL ELECTRICAL MACHINE), BY INSULATING THE WHOLE IN A PARTICULAR
MANNER, AND CONSTRUCTING THE CONDUCTORS SO THAT EITHER SHOCKS OR SPARKS
MAY BE RECEIVED FROM THEM," in such manner as to me, the said Edward
Nairne, my executors, administrators, or assigns, or any of them, should in

page_text: their discretion seem meet; and that I, the said Edward Nairne, should and
lawfully might have and enjoy the whole profit, benefit, commodity, and
advantage from time to time coming, growing, and arising, by reason of the
said Invention, for and during the term of years therein mentioned, to have,
hold, exercise, and enjoy the said licence, powers, priviledges, and advantages,
therein-before granted unto me, the said Edward Nairne, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, for and during and unto the full end and term of
fourteen years from the date of the said Letters Patent next and immediately
ensuing and fully to be compleat and ended, according to the Statute in such
case made and provided; in which said Letters Patent there is contained a
proviso obliging me, the said Edward Nairne, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and scal, to 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 His Majesty's High Court of Chancery, within four calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent, as in
in and by the same (relation being thereunto had) may more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Edward Nairne, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention
and the manner in which it is performed is as follows, videlicet:-
This electrical machine may be composed of any substance that can be
made electrical, and the excited parts of any form, as cylinder, globe, plates, or
any other figure; the form to be excited is mounted with non-conducting
substances, or else the part with which it is put in motion is of a non-
conducting substance; it is likewise supported immediately on non-conducting
substances. It is excited by rubbing against silk, on which the amalgama is put,
part of which silk reaches nearly to the points which receives the electricity
from the excited part. The conductor or conductors which either give to or
receive the electrical fire from the excited part, is composed of a coated clec-
trical jar or jars or any other substance than can receive a charge of clectricity
or a conducting substance connected with them; by which means any person
may receive electricity from or give electricity to the conductors, and likewise
may receive electrical shocks from the said conductor or conductors. There
is likewise to this electrical machine a tube or tubes, rod or rods, with one or
more joints, or a ball and socket, or balls and sockets, of any substance that
will conduct electricity; those, when electric sparks are to be drawn from
or given to any particular part, are to be connected with either of the
conductors, and, by means of the joints or balls and sockets fixed to them, may
be directed to that part. Also electrical sparks can be drawn from and

page_text: received into different parts of the body at the same instant of time, so that
double the number of electric sparks can be received and given in any
determinate time than can be by any other electrical inachine of the same
size as they are now made, and that whether the person is or is not insu-
lated. This is done by bringing the parts within the striking distance of
two balls, one of which is connected with one conductor, and the other with
the other conductor, by means of the tubes with the balls and sockets; or if
the person chuse to insulate himself, then he may receive or give very strong
and pungent sparks to or from any particular part of himself, by approaching
the part to any conducting substance connected with the earth, he being at
the same time connected with one of the conductors, or he may keep himself
in a condensed or exhausted state of electricity as long as he pleases by
insulating himself, and being at the same time connected with one of the
conductors; or he may, by changing his natural electricity as long as he pleases
by being insulated, and at the same time connected with each conductor.
Also electrical sparks may be received or given, or shocks may be received
alternately or several together of each, and the change from shocks to
sparks made almost instantly; this is done by taking hold of the conducting
substance that is connected with one side of the charged electric (which in
this case has a small quantity of coated surface) and bringing the part so near
as to receive or give sparks to or from the other side or what is connected
with it; but if shocks are required, then nothing more is to be done than to
increase that distance a little. Also a much greater number of electric shocks
may be made to pass thro' any part of the body at the same time, than has
hitherto, I believe, been done by any other machine. This is effected by
using small glass tubes or an electric, with a very small quantity of coated
surface, and by making the part thro' which the shock is to sent a portion of
that electric circuit. In all these cases the person himself may excite the
electric, and perform these various operations without any assistance from
another if he chuses it.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Nairne, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twentieth day of May, in the twenty-second year
of the reign of our said Sovereign Lord George the Third, by the grace
of God King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, and in the year
of our Lord One thousand seven hundred and eighty-two.
EDWARD NAIRNE. (L.s.)

page_text: BE IT REMEMBRED, that on the same Twentieth-fourth day of May, in
the year above mentioned, the aforesaid Edward Nairne came before our said
Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form above
written. & also the Specification aforesd was stampt according to the tenor
of the Statute made in the sixth year of the reign of Their late Majesties
King William and Queen Mary of England, and so forth.