Improvements in the Manufacture of Hats and Bonnets of Straw or the like.
Year: 1896

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION..
Improvements in the Manufacture of Hats and Bonnets of Straw
or the like.
We, GASTON LAROUSSE and EUGÈNE MERMILLIOD, of 58 Chaussée d'Antin
Paris, in the Republic of France, Hat and Bonnet Manufacturers, do hereby
declare the nature of our invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object to avoid the objection to the use in the
manufacture of hats and bonnets made of straw or the like. of gelatine gum or
paste or the like, which owing to its absorbing moisture from the atmosphere
causes the hats or bonnets to lose their shape. The chief remedy employed
hitherto has been to increase the density of the preparations, this however gives
too much stiffness to the forms or shapes and constitutes another objection.
"Imitation" straw hats and bonnets as made hitherto suffer still more from the
effects of moisture or damp as they not only lose their shape but the damp
actually causes the disintegration of the article.
It is therefore important to render hats and bonnėts impervious to or unaffected
by moisture and with this object and according to our invention we make use of
alum which we apply over the hat or bonnet or to the materials used in making
them.
For example, the hat or bonnet may be painted with a weak solution of alum, or
the paste or composition may be made with alum water. Or in place of alum
alone we may combine for the same object both alum and tannin.
The stiffness or inflexibility which the alum would otherwise impart is overcome
and pliancy secured without loss of strength by adding glycerine.
Dated this 3rd day of February 1896.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Hats and Bonnets of Straw
or the like.
We, GASTON LAROUSSE and EUGÈNE MERMILLIOD of 58 Chaussée d'Antin,
Paris in the Republic of France, Hat and Bonnet Manufacturers, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
This invention has for its object to avoid the objection to the use, in the
manufacture of hats and bonnets made of straw or the like, of gelatine gum or
paste or the like which owing to its absorbing moisture from the atmosphere
causes the hats or bonnets to lose their shape. The chief remedy employed

page_text: hitherto has been to increase the density of the preparations, this however gives
too much stiffness to the forms or shapes and constitutes another objection.
"Imitation" straw hats and bonnets as made hitherto suffer still more from the
effects of moisture or damp as they not only lose their shape but the damp actually
causes the disintegration of the article.
It is therefore important to render such hats and bonnets impervious to or
unaffected by moisture and with this object and according to our invention we
make use of alum which we apply over the hat or bonnet or to the materials used
in making them.
For example the hat or bonnet may be painted with a weak solution of alum
or the paste or composition may be made with alum water. Or in place of alum
alone we may combine for the same object both alum and tannin.
The stiffness or inflexibility which the alum would otherwise impart is over-
come and pliancy secured without loss of strength, by adding glycerine. We
preferably use the aforesaid ingredients in or about the following proportions but
we do not limit ourselves to the amounts stated:-
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.