AN IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-ARMS AND CARTRIDGES TO BE USED THEREWITH
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Woodward Morse, of Baton Rouge, in the
State of Louisiana, and United States of America, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-ARMS AND CARTRIDGES TO BE USED THEREWITH."
Sealed the 19th November 1858, and dated the 25th May 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Woodward Morse
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th May 1858.
I, GEORGE WOODWARD MORSE, of Baton Rouge, in the State of Louisiana,
and United States of America, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-ARMS AND CARTRIDGES TO BE USED
THEREWITH," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists, first, in arranging and combining a breech-piece
carrying within its body a percussion rod or hammer, with the rear end of the
barrel of the common muzzle-loading fire-arm just in front of the breech pin
thereof, so that when the breech-piece is down in place it is necessarily
secured (by mechanism attached to the hammer or any other moveablo
portion of the lock) before the cartridge can be fired.
It also consists in the application of a lever for detaching the cartridge case
from the barrel after the load has been discharged, which lever is sometimes
operated by hand, and at others automatically by being attached to some
other moving part.
It further consists in the combination and arrangement of the common per-
cussion cap with a permanent metallic cartridge case carrying its own anvil
piece, so that none of the gas produced by the combustion of the powder of
the cartridge can escape, except through the bore of the barrel of the gun, the

page_text: breech joints and priming vent being effectually closed and sealed by the
expansion of the cartridge case, so that no air can escape at these parts of
the gun after the charge is fired until the cartridge case is withdrawn.
There may be several modifications of the form of the cartridge case, as
will be shown in the Drawings accompanying my Final Specification, but the
distinguishing features of all are the same, and as follows:-First, each cart-
ridge, case carries within itself the means of exploding the percussion cap
when struck by the hammer, or in other words, there is an anvil piece within
cach case, against which the cap is driven when it is exploded; second, the
arrangement of the cap in all is such that the breech joints of the gun are
all effectually sealed, so that no escape of gas takes place, except through the
muzzle of the barrel of the gun. thereby giving to the projectile not only the
full force of the explosion of the charge of powder, but also the additional
force of that of the percussion cap.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Woodward Morse in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 25th November 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
WOODWARD MORSE, of Baton Rouge, in the State of Louisiana, and United
States of America, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Woodward Morse, Her special licence that I, the said George
Woodward Morse, and my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said George Woodward Morse, or my executors, administrators, 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
"AN IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-ARMS AND CARTRIDGES TO BE USED THEREWITH," upon,
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Woodward Morse,
or my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my,
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:

page_text: 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 George Woodward Morse, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings,
made a part of this Specification, and to the letters of reference marked
thereon:-
My Invention relates to that class of fire-arms which are loaded at the breech,
and which are adapted to the use of a metallic cartridge case, and consists in
combining and arranging a percussion rod in a movable breech-piece with
a sliding bolt, so that the lock in the act of firing shall both lock the breech
piece and fire the charge; it also consists in the construction and use of the
globular surface on the front end of the movable breech-piece in combination
with the cylindrical cartridge case, for the purpose of more effectually pre-
venting the escape of gas at the joint; it also consists in the construction and
use of the lever, substantially as described, for the purpose of retracting the
cartridge case from the barrel.
It also consists in the construction and use of cartridge cases, substantially
as described, to be used with my improvement in fire-arms, for the purpose of
preventing all escape of gas at the breech joints, and of giving to the pro-
jectile the entire effect not only of the charge of powder in the cartridge, but
of the percussion priming also, whereby I obtain greater range and deeper
penetration for the projectile, with less powder than is generally used with
a gun of the same caliber.
To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my Invention, I will
proceed to describe its construction and operation.
Having taken a common muzzle-loading fire-arm, and cut out a portion of
the upper part of the barrel just in advance of the breech pin, as shown in
the Drawings, in Figs. (1) & (2), I construct the breech-piece as follows:-1
take a piece of solid metal a little shorter than the part of the barrel cut out,
and having attached it to a lever piece, which turns on a pivot through the
breech pin, represented at (S) in the Drawing, Figre (1), I drill an orifico
from the front of this block for the insertion of a percussion rod, and having
fitted the block nicely to the open space left in the barrel in front of the
brecch pin, with a curved surface joint between it and the breechi pin. I
proceed to construct and combine therewith the cap picce (K) and the slido
piece (E). The cap piece (K) is made of steel, with a globular surface in

page_text: front, and a hollow cylinder extending to the rear, which contains the per-
cussion rod (f). This rod passes through a small hole in the cap piece, and
strikes the cap in the cartridge when the gun is fired; it has also a spiral
spring within the cylinder of the cap piece, to prevent its reaching beyond the
globular surface of the cap piece until it is struck by the slide piece, as shown
in Fig. (2). The slide piece (E) works in a dovetail groove prepared for it
in the upper side of the body piece (c), and has a hammer piece (e), which
works in a slot extending from the upper surface of the body piece to the
orifice, where it comes in contact with the head of the percussion rod (f); it
has also a projection or anvil piece (g), which receives the blow of the
hammer of the common lock, and when driven forward by this hammer its
forward end passes under the band piece (M) just before the hammer piece
(c) reaches the percussion rod, and thereby the breech-piece is secured in
place before the piece is fired. (N) is a pin by which the cap picce (K) is
secured in the body piece (c). By reference to Figures (1) & (2) it will be
seen that the breech-piece consists of three essential parts, the body piece (e),
the cap piece (K), and the slide piece (E), the percussion rod being kept
within the cap piece, and forming, as it were, a part thereof. But in Fig (3)
is a modification of the same Invention, in which the orifice for the percussion
rod in the breech-piece is bored from the rear of the body piece, and the
sliding bolt arranged in the breech pin, the percussion rod passing out through
the front end of the breech-piece as in Figs. (1) & (2), and this end being
arranged with a globular surface it performs the same function as that of the
cap piece (E) in Figs. (1) & (2) in closing the breech joints (P); in Figre (3)
is the hammer piece, which is arranged in the center of the stock, turns on
the sanic axis as the thumb piece (D), which cocks the gun, and which
operates a locking bolt (p), which is forced forward into the catch (7), and
secures the breech-piece in place before the piece can be discharged by the
percussion rod. II, O, L, is a crank lever pivoted at o, and, as shown in the
Drawings, is operated by hand for retracting the cartridge case, but it may
also be operated automatically.
Fig. 4 is a view in section of an expansible head of a cartridge case,
shewing the percussion priming therein, and Fig. 5 is an inside view of the
same; Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of the cartridge case with the ex-
pansible head inserted within the rear end of the same; it also shows the
double furcated tige in projection. This tige is formed of wire bent and
soldered at the ends to the internal surface of the case, the one piece being
arranged at right angles with the other, and passing immediately under it, so
as to give it additional stiffness and supp cit, and thus forming the anvil piece

page_text: upon which the percussion priming is exploded. This anvil piece is some-
times made into a cone or nipple, with an orifice like the cone of the common
percussion gun. Fig. 7 is a longitudinal section of the same cartridge case
with a different expansible head piece; Figs. 8 & 9 are views of the head
piece of Fig. 7, Fig. 9 being the end view from the inside of the head piece.
Figures 10 & 11 are longitudinal sections of two other modifications of the
cartridge case, which make use of the same head piece as in Figro (7). In
Fig. (6) the head piece is made of thin metal somewhat in the shape of a
cup, so as to slide into the rear end of the case. In Fig. (7) the head piece
is formed of a perforated disc of rubber, such as used for webbing, belting, &c.,
carrying in its centre a percussion cap, as shewn in Figs. 8 and 9. In
Figs. 10 & 11 it will be seen the cartridge cases are made with an internal
shoulder or rim in the rear end of the cartridge case, which receives portions
of the shock from the explosion of the powder in the cartridge, and causes
the case to recoil upon the end of the breech-piece, while the explosion of the
cap expands the rubber disc, and thus more effectually prevents any escape
of gas between the cartridge caso and the front end of the breech piece.
Figs. 12 & 13 shew another mode of constructing the cartridge case, in
which a disc of hard and elastic metal, with a small orifice, is secured to the
base of the cartridge case.
It will be observed that the front end of the breech-piece is described as
having a globular surface, all the points of which are equally distant from the
center of motion thereof. The advantages of this form of surface in this part
of the construction are as follows:-It closes the cylindrical cavity in the
head of the cartridge case as perfectly as it could be done with a plane joint;
it enables me to use a cartridge case having a metallic head with a small
orifice through which the fire is communicated, such as is shewn in Figs. 12
& 13, and the rubber disk being pressed against this round surface is forced
out against the sides of the case, the more effectually closing the joint.
Having thus described the construction of my improvement in fire-arms,.
its operation is as follows:-Having drawn back the hammer, and raised the
breech-piece to the position shown in Figre (1), I insert a loaded cartridge
case into the barrel in front of the breech-piece, as seen in Fig. (2); the
breech-piece is then shut down, and when the hammer piece (e) is forced
forward against the head of the percussion rod, while the forward end of the
slide piece (E) passes under the band (M), and locks the breech-piece in
position just before the percussion rod fires the charge. When the powder
in the cartridge is fired, the expansible head of the cartridge case closes the
joint perfectly between the breech-piece and the rear end of the barrel, and

page_text: the entire strength of both the charge and the priming is expended on the
projectile. When the modification shewn in Fig. (3) is used, the breech-
piece is locked by the rod (p) engaging the catch (y) of the breech-picco
just before the percussion rod strikes the percussion cap.. The breech piece is
lisengaged by drawing back the thumb-picce (D), then raised by the thumb
and forefinger grasping the front end of the same, and the cartridge case is
retracted by pressing the arm (H) of the detaching lever up towards the
stock. When the modification shewn in Figs. 1 & 2 is used, the slide (E) is
drawn back from under the band (M), and the breech-piece raised into the
position shewn in Fig. (1) by the thumb and forefinger.
Having thus described the construction and operation of my Invention,-
1st, I claim the percussion rod in a movable breech-picco in combination
with the sliding bolt, when arranged so that the lock in the act of firing shall
both make fast the breech-piece and fire the charge.
2nd, I claim the combination and use of the globular surface on the front
end of the movable breech-piece in combination with the end of the cylindrical
cartridge case, for the purpose of more effectually preventing the escape of grils
at the joint.
3rd, I claim the construction and use of the lever when arranged, sub-
stantially as described, for the purpose of retracting the cartridge case.
4th, I claim the tige secured in the cartridge case in the manner described,
for the purpose of exploding the percussion priming within the cartridge
case.
5th, I claim the combination and arrangement of the percussion cap and
perforated disc, as described and shewn in Figs. 8 & 9, for the purpose set
forth, and as a substitute therefor I claim the thin metal cup shown in Figs. 4
& 5, when made to slide and fit into the rear of the cartridge case, as shewn
in Fig. 6.
6th, I claim the construction and use of the internal shoulder in the cart-
ridge case, as shewn in Figs. 10 & 11, for the purpose above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Woodward Morse, have hereunto
set my hand and scal, this Twenty-fourth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
GEORGE WOODWARD MORSE. (L.S.)