IMPROVED APPARATUS .FOR DISTRIBUTING ARTIFICIAL MANURES, OR SOWING OR DISTRIBUTING CORN OR SEEDS
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Wheaton, of Exeter, in the County of
Devon, Merchant, and Henry Besley, of Tiverton, in the same
County, Farmer, for the Invention of "IMPROVED APPARATUS .FOR
DISTRIBUTING ARTIFICIAL MANURES, OR SOWING OR DISTRIBUTING CORN
OR SEEDS."
Sealed the 15th September 1871, and dated the 17th March 1871.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Wheaton and
Henry Besley at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 17th March 1871.
WC, WILLIAM WHEATON, of Exeter, in the County of Devon,
Merchant, and HENRY BESLEY, of Tiverton, in the same County,
Farmer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "Iм-
PROVED APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING ARTIFICIAL MANURES, OR SOWING OR
DISTRIBUTING CORN OR SEEDS," to be as follows:-
The object of our Invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive
machine or apparatus which may be used by one man for the purpose of
distributing artificial manure over the surface of the ground, and which

page_text: may also be employed for sowing or distributing corn or seeds, instead of
the present system of broadcast sowing.
Our improved apparatus consists principally of a long narrow trough
of any convenient length, (say, from ten to twelve fect,) in which the
pulverized manure or the corn or sced is placed. This trough is made in
the shape of a hopper, that is, broad or wide at the top and narrow at
the bottom, where à long narrow slit or opening is made to allow the
manure or corn to pass from the long trough into a long narrow box
below. In the bottom of this box, extending in a line from end to end,
are made a series of long narrow slits or perforations, through which the
manure or corn is allowed to pass and drop on the ground. To these
slits is adapted a slide or slides, which being capable of adjustment will
control the quantity of manure or corn which passes through. This
apparatus with its accessories is mounted on a barrow or truck, so that
it may be drawn over the surface of the ground. The apparatus may be
temporarily secured on this barrow in any convenient manner, and may
be detached therefrom when out of usc. On the axle of the running
wheels is mounted a bevil toothed wheel, which drives a bevil pinion on
the end of a short shaft provided at its opposite end with a crank, which
being connected with the long perforated manure or seed box will com-
municate to it a reciprocating motion, which will shake the contents of
the box in regulated quantities through the perforations or slits in the
bottom, and allow it to fall on the ground as the barrow is drawn or
driven over the surface.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Wheaton and Henry Besley in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 16th September 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
WHEATON, of Exeter, in the County of Devon, Merchant, and HENRY
BESLEY, of Tiverton, in the said County, Farmer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventeenth day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand-eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said William Wheaton and Henry Besley,

page_text: Her special licence that we, the said William Wheaton and Henry
Besley, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
we, the said William Wheaton and Henry Besley, our exccutors, admi-
nistrators, 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 "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR
DISTRIBUTING ARTIFICIAL Manures, or Sewing or DISTRIBUTING CORN OR SEEDS,”
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said William Wheaton
and Henry Besley, our exccutors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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 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 William Wheaton, on behalf of
myself and of the said Henry Besley, do hereby declare the nature of
our 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 Drawing hereunto annexed, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):
The object of our Invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive
machine or apparatus which may be used by one man for the purpose of
distributing artificial manures over the surface of the ground, and which
may also be employed for sowing or distributing corn or seeds, instead of
the present system of broadcast sowing.
Our improved apparatus is shewn in the accompanying Drawings, in
which Fig. 1 Sheet I. is an elevation of the apparatus mounted on a
hand barrow; Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section of the same; and
Fig. 3 is a plan view.
The apparatus consists principally of a long narrow trough a, a, of
any convenient length, (say, from ten to twelve feet,) in which the
pulverized manure or the corn or seed is placed. This trough is made
in the shape of a hopper, as shewn at Fig. 2, that is, it is broad or
wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, where a long narrow slit or
opening a¹, Fig. 2, is made, to allow the manure or corn to pass from
the long trough a into a long narrow box & below. In the bottom of

page_text: this box b, extending in a line from end to end, are made a series of
long narrow slits or perforations b', through which the manure or corn is
allowed to pass and drop on the ground. To these slits b' is adapted a
slide or slides c, c, which being capable of adjustment will control the
quantity of manure or corn which passes through. This apparatus with
its accessories is mounted on a barrow or truck d, d, so that it may be
drawn or propelled over the surface of the ground. The apparatus may
be temporarily secured on this barrow by screw bolts e, e, as shown at
Fig. 2, or in any other convenient manner, so that it may be detached
therefrom when out of usc. On the axle of the running wheel f, or
fixed on the side of this wheel is a bevil toothed wheel g, which drives a
bevil pinion on the end of a short shaft 7', provided at its opposite end
with a crank i, which being connected by means of the bent rod j,
Figures 1 and 3, with the long perforated manure or seed box / below
the hopper, will communicate to the seed box a reciprocating motion,
which will shake the contents of the box 6 in regulated quantitics.
through the perforations or slits in the bottom, and allow it to fall on
the ground as the barrow is drawn or driven over the surface. The.
apparatus being mounted on a single-wheel hand barrow may be pushed
forward by a man, who by means of the handles will drive it forward,
but, if desired, shafts may be adapted to the barrow, so that it may be
drawn forward by a pony or horse. This arrangement is shewn in the
several Figures in Sheet II., which morcover represent a modification
of the arrangement just described.
Fig. 4, Sheet II., is a sectional elevation of the rear end of the
machine, Fig. 5 a plan view, and Fig. 6 a transverse vertical section
of a modification of our apparatus mounted on a horse truck or barrow,
the distributor and hopper being so arranged that they will always
remain in a horizontal position, whatever may be the profile or contour
of the ground over which the apparatus is drawn. In these Figures
d, d, d, is a rectangular frame mounted on two running wheels f, f
The hopper or trough a and the long narrow box 6 instead of being
fixed on or secured to the frame d are connected to a long T-piece or
frame k, k, k¹, k¹, which consists of two horizontal arms k, k, shown by
dots in Figures 4 and 5, and two pendant weighted arms ¹, k¹. The
T frame k with the hopper and long box thercon is supported on the
_end_of_a_central_cross_bar_,_which extends from back to front of
the frame d. The T frame is capable of rocking on the cross bar 1,

page_text: and therefore the pendant weighted arms will always keep it in a
horizontal position, whatever may be the position of the running wheels.
A reciprocating shogging motion on the T frame k is communicated to
the hopper a and long box 6 by means of the connecting rod j, which is
jointed to a crank pin on the back of the bevil pinion h, which gears
into and is driven by the bevil toothed wheel y fixed on the side of one
of the running wheels f. The whole apparatus is drawn over the surface
of the ground by a horse or pony harnessed to the shafts m, m.
Having now described our Invention, and having explained the
manner of carrying the same into effect, we claim as the Invention
secured to us by Letters Patent as aforesaid, the general arrangement,
construction, and combination of parts herein shewn and described, and
constituting an apparatus for distributing artificial manures, or sowing
or distributing corn or seeds.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Wheaton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Fifteenth day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
W. WHEATON. (L.S.)