IMPROVEMENTS IN LEATHER OR OTHER STIFFENINGS FOR BOOTS AND SHOES
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Bristow Hunt, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's
Inn, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN LEATHER OR OTHER STIFFENINGS FOR BOOTS AND SHOES."
-A communication from abroad by Nathan Johnson Simonds, of
Woburn, County of Middlesex, Massachusetts, in the United States
of America.
ealed the 6th August 1872, and dated the 19th February 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Bristow Hunt at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th February 1872.
I, BRISTOW HUNT, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn, in the County
of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN LEATHER OR OTHER STIFFENINGS FOR BOOTS
AND SHOES," (a communication to me from abroad by Nathan Johnson
Simonds, of Woburn, County of Middlesex, Massachusetts, in the United
States of America), to be as follows :-
This Invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in
leather or other stiffenings for boots and shoes, and consists firstly in

page_text: constructing or forming the counter stiffenings of boots and shoes in a
peculiar manner; and secondly, in a stiffening of leather or other
material moulded either with a base or bend line, or else moulded to the
exact form it is to occupy when incorporated in the boot or shoe.
In the formation of stiffening from thin leather, as heretofore practised,
the several pieces (forming the same) were cut to the desired shape and all
of the same size, and then pasted together, and when dried the desired
bevil edge was produced by "skiving," which latter process consists in
bevilling the edge with a cutting blade held obliquely to the plane of
the stiffening, to effect which a variety of machines have been devised,
none of which however have satisfactorily accomplished the " skiving"
of irregular or semi-elliptic stiffenings; besides the effect of the dried
paste upon the edge of the blade has rendered the process in all cases
slow, imperfect, and expensive.
In order to obviate these defects I proceed as follows:-I cut the back
piece (of whatever desired pattern) of the full size of the stiffening, and
upon this I paste the succeeding pieces (the number thereof being
limited according to the desired thickness of the stiffening and the thin-
ness of the stock), which pieces are regularly diminished in size, and
then a thin cover or face piece of the same size as the back piece is
pasted upon the whole. When this is sufficiently dried the sloping
edges are subjected to the action of rollers, and as the edge of each layer
is easily flattened a true bevil is readily produced, the parallel or
principal faces being rolled between parallel rollers as usual. By this
means a stiffening is produced which has the desired bevil at the edges,
and yet has a continuous surface upon both sides.
When the stiffening is prepared for moulding (in whatever manner)
the first process is to cut away a small portion or notch from about the
centre of the bottom.
In some kinds of stiffening it is necessary to cut several of these
notches to facilitate the moulding. When it is desired only to mould a
bend line the stiffening is placed in a properly constructed die (operated
by suitable means) by which the lower portion thereof is bent inwards
and at about right angles to the upper portion. But when it is desired
to mould the stiffening into the form it will occupy when in the boot or
shoe it is moulded in dies (suitably operated), so that in addition to the
form as above described the upper portion is moulded to a curve corre-

page_text: sponding to the counter of the shoe, the lower portion being thus in the
most suitable position to be attached to the heel of the inner sole, and
the upper portion in a similar position as regards its interposition between
the layers or parts of the boot or shoe counter.
When the stiffening is simply moulded with a bend line it can readily
be curved to any desired form of counter, and for certain classes of work
possesses peculiar advantages, but for general purposes a fully moulded
stiffening is preferred.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Bristow Hunt in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 19th August 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BRISTOW
HUNT, of No. 1, Serle Street, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of February, in the year.
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
fifth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Bristow Hunt, Her special licence
that I, the said Bristow Hunt, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Bristow Hunt, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN LEATHER OR OTHER
STIFFENINGS FOR BOOTS AND SHOES,” (a communication to me from abroad
by Nathan Johnson Simonds, of Woburn, County of Middlesex, Massa-
chusetts, in the United States of America,) upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Bristow Hunt, 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 was to be performed, and
cause the same to be filed in the Great Scal Patent Office within six

page_text: calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Bristow Hunt, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement in writing, and on reference being had to the
accompanying Drawings, that is to say :-
This Invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in
leather or other stiffenings for boots and shoes, and consists firstly in
constructing or forming the counter stiffenings of boots and shoes in a
peculiar manner%3B and secondly, in a stiffening of leather or other
suitable material moulded either with a base or bend line, or else
moulded to the exact form it is to occupy when incorporated in the boot
or shoe, as hereafter more particularly described.
On the accompanying Drawings illustrating the Invention, Figure 1
represents a plan view of the back and interior pieces; Figure 2, a plan
view of the front or face piece; Figure 3, a transverse section of the
stiffening when pasted; Figure 4, a similar section, shewing the effect of
rolling Figure 5, a similar section of a stiffening, as heretofore formed;
Figure 6, a similar section taken through line w -x, Figure 8; Figure 7,
a similar section shewing the bend line moulded; Figure 8, a perspective
view of the stiffening with the bend line moulded; Figure 9, a front and
side perspective view of a fully moulded stiffening; and Figure 10, a
back and side view of the same.
In the formation of stiffenings from thin leather, as heretofore
practised, the several pieces forming the same were cut to the desired
form, and all of the same size, and then pasted together, as shown at
1, 2, 3, 4, Figure 5, and when dried the desired bevil edge was produced
by "skiving," which process consists in bevilling the edge with a cutting
blade held obliquely to the plane of the stiffening, to effect which a
variety of machines have been devised, none of which however have
satisfactorily accomplished the "skiving" of irregular or semi-elliptical
stiffenings, as shown in Figures 1 and 2; besides the effect of the dried
paste upon the edge of the blade has rendered the process in all cases
slow, imperfect, and expensive.
In order to obviate these defects I proceed as follows:-I cut the back
piece a (of whatever desired pattern) of the full size of the stiffening,

page_text: and upon this I paste the succeeding pieces b, c, (the number thereof
being limited according to the desired thickness of the stiffening and
the thinness of the stock,) which pieces are of regularly diminished size,
and then paste a thin cover or face piece d, of the same size as the
back piece upon the whole, see Figure 3. When this is sufficiently dried
the sloping edges are subjected to the action of rollers (see Figure 4) and
as the edge of each layer is easily flattened a true bevil is readily produced,
the parallel or principal faces being rolled between parallel rollers as
usual. By this means a stiffening is produced which has the desired
bevil at the edges and yet has a continuous surface upon both sides.
In Figures 6 and 7, g represents the back of the stiffening; ƒ, the
face; and g', f, two diminished layers or thicknesses interposed between
them, the whole being rolled to a bevil edge as shown.
When the stiffening is prepared for moulding (in whatever manner)
the first process is to cut away a small portion or notch e from about
the centre of the bottom h, see Figures 8 and 9. In some kinds of
stiffening it is however necessary to cut several of these notches to
facilitate the moulding.
When it is desired only to mould a bend line, as shown at i, Figure 8,
the stiffening is placed in a properly constructed die (operated by
suitable means) by which the lower portion k is bent inwards and at about
right angles to the upper portion 1, so that line h is in one plane, and
line m in another. But when it is desired to mould the stiffening into
the form it will occupy when in the boot or shoe it is moulded in dies
(suitably operated) to the form shown in Figures 9 and 10, so that in
addition to the form as above described the upper portion is moulded
to a curve corresponding to the counter of the shoe, the lower portion k
being thus in the most suitable position to be attached to the heel of the
inner sole, and the upper portion in a similar position as regards its
interposition between the layers or parts of the boot or shoe counter.
When the shoe is simply moulded with a bend line, as in Figure 8, it
can be readily curved to any desired form of counter, and for certain
classes of work possesses peculiar advantages, but for general purposes a
fully moulded stiffening is preferred.
66
Having now described the nature and object of the said Invention for
Improvements in Leather or other Stiffenings for Boots and Shoes,"
together with the manner in which the same is to be or may be per-

page_text: formed or carried into practical effect, I would remark in conclusion
that I claim as the Invention communicated to me by the above-named
Nathan Johnson Simonds, the improved manufacture of and peculiar
method of constructing or forming the leather or other counter stiffenings
of boots and shoes, substantially as above described, and as illustrated on
the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Bristow Hunt, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.