Improvements in and relating to the Collection of Letters, Coin, and other Articles, and Letter Boxes, Bags, and other Receptacles for use therein.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 26th Aug.. 1892-Accepted, 1st Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by EDWARD BAXTER MARSH, of Amity Street,
Amherst, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States of America,
Registrar of Amherst College.]
Improvements in and relating to the Collection of Letters, Coin, and
other Articles, and Letter Boxes, Bags, and other Receptacles
for use therein.
1. HENRY HARRIS LAKE of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents
45 Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:
Mail boxes, such as are now commonly used in the streets and in public buildings
for the reception of letters, are considered objectionable in that the collector is
obliged to handle the letters, that is, he unlocks the box, takes the letters therefrom,
and places them in his bag. This operation not only takes the time of the col-
lector, but exposes the letters to the risk of loss and of being tampered with by a
dishonest collector.
My invention has for its object to provide a mail box which shall obviate these
objections and by means of which, in conjunction with a bag of peculiar construction,
the collector may be enabled to collect the mail from the boxes without handling it
and without incurring the risk of exposing it to a dishonest collector and my
invention consists essentially of a mail box which is provided with a sliding bottom
designed to be used in conjunction with a bag having a sliding top, the bottom of
the box and the top of the bag being adapted to be opened, only when the two are
together, by means of a key which will open both the bottom of the box and the
top of the bag only when they are thus placed together, and the construction being
such that the bag cannot be removed from the box until after the bag and box are
both of them closed and locked.
The box is provided with an opening for the insertion of the letters, which may be
of any well-known form, and may be covered by a hinged flap in the well-known
manner. A receptacle formed by partitioning off the top of the box and having a
hinged cover is provided for the reception of newspapers and the like. l'eep holes
closed by glass are provided in the corners of the box in order that the collector
may look into the inside of the box without opening it, so that in case there are
no letters in the box, he will be saved the time and trouble of opening the box. To
assist in seeing the contents of the box through the peep holes, I paint the inside of
the box with phosphorescent or luminous paint, so that any object in the box will
be plainly visible through the peep holes. The box preferably is made from sheet
steel, and at the bottom guideways are formed inside the box for the reception of
the sliding bottom. At the front of the sliding bottom is a lock having a case
which is secured to the sliding bottom. Secured to the inside of the box, and
projecting over the lock, is a fender which prevents the letters from lodging on the
lock and thus being retained in the box when the bottom is opened. A bar secured
inside the box passes across the lock in such position that the tumblers which are
pivoted within the lock case and which have hooked ends may normally, when the
box is closed, hook over the bar and prevent the bottom of the box from being
drawn out and the box opened. A mail-pouch, consisting of a bag of any suitable
material secured to a top composed of a metal frame of a size corresponding to
the size of the bottom of the box, is intended to be employed by the mail collector
in collecting the letters, etc., contained in the box. The metal frame constituting the
top of the bag is provided at the rear thereof with a hook so that the bag may be

page_text: hooked on to a projection at the rear of the bottom of the box. The frame at the
top of the pouch is formed with ways in a manner similar to the inside of the
box for the reception of a sliding cover, which is provided with a lock, similar in
construction to the lock already referred to for the box, and having a similar
retaining bar corresponding to the retaining bar in the box portion or member of the
lock. At each side of the front of the pouch or bag are upwardly projecting hooked
arms, which, when the bag is raised, stand in such position that when the bottom of the
box is drawn out (in unison with the top of the bag as hereinafter will be made to
appear) it passes under the said hooks, which thus serve to hook the box and the
bag together and make it impossible to separate the bag from the box until the bag
and box are again closed. The bottom of the box and top of the bag are drawn
out together, and as they co
come out they pass under the hooks on the projections.
For the purpose of unlocking the box and bag a key is provided, which has a series
of movable wards which consist merely of small rectangular pieces of metal cach
having a slot lengthwise thereof through which a pin in the head of the key passes.
An opening is provided in the sliding bottom of the box for the reception of the
upper ends of the movable pieces of the key, and a corresponding opening is
provided in the top of the bag for the reception of the other ends of the said wards.
Directly over and under these openings, respectively, are the pivoted tumblers and
fixed wards of the lock members. The tumblers are pivoted to cross-rods set in
the cases of the lock, and the fixed wards are rigidly secured to said cases or are
integral therewith. The fixed wards preferably alternate with the tumblers, and
the latter may be held in their normal locking position by the pressure of springs.
I do not deem these springs necessary in the box portion of the lock, inasmuch as
gravity will hold the tumblers in their normal position, but where the position of
the parts is reversed, as in the bag, springs are desirable. As the tumblers are of
different widths, and as the fixed wards may vary in length, it will be clear that by
increasing the number of tumblers and wards and varying their relative widths
and lengths a large number of combinations may be obtained, and a very secure
lock. A fixed ward in one member of the lock co-operates with a movable piece
or ward of the key to move a tumbler in the other member of the lock so as to
free said tumbler from the retaining bar with which it normally is in contact, and
thus by using a key with as many movable pieces or wards as there are fixed wards
in the box and bag members of the lock the tumblers may be moved to their
unlocking position and the box and bag opened. This arrangement produces a
simple and reliable compound lock which cannot easily get out of order.
The operation is as follows: A mail collector provided with the bag described,
and with a key such as that described, approaches the box, and if upon examination
mail is discovered in the latter he hooks the back of the bag onto the back of the
box, places his key in the opening of the bag lock, and raises the bag until the top
thereof is against the bottom of the box, this movement causing the upper ends of
the key-wards to enter the opening of the box lock, and causing the pivoted
tumblers of the box and bag members of the lock to be moved to their unlocking
position. He then draws the key toward him, sliding out thereby the bottom of the
box and the top of the bag underneath the hooks of the projections on the sides of
the box until he can slide them no farther, when the entire contents of the box will
drop into the bag. He then slides the bottom of the box and the top of the bag
back, closing the box and bag, whereupon the front of the bag will drop, per-
mitting the key to be removed and the back of the bag to be unhooked from the
bottom of the box.
It will be clear that what I have termed the bottom of the box and the top of
the bag are simply sliding covers for closing the openings of the box and bag
respectively, and that their positions at the bottom of the box and top of the bag
are not essential to my invention.
When the mail collector's bag is delivered at the post office, the person
authorized to open it is provided with a key similar to that used by the
collector but having rigid wards which are so set as to open the bag lock, or a

page_text: box lock may be provided set in a board so that by use of the collector's key the
bag may be opened.
It will be obvious that my improvements may be applied to any form of col-
lection box and bag, and that it is not necessarily limited to use in the collection
of mail matter, since, for example, it may be used for collecting coin from
machines provided for the automatic sale and delivery of goods or from similar
receptacles for coins.
Dated this 1st day of December 1891.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to the Collection of Letters, Coin, and
other Articles, and Letter Boxes, Bags, and other Receptacles
for use therein.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent
Agents, 45 Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, 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:—
Mail boxes such as are now commonly used in the streets and in public buildings
for the reception of letters are considered objectionable in that the collector is
obliged to handle the letters, that is, he unlocks the box, takes the letters therefrom
and places them in his bag an operation which not only takes the time of the col-
lector, but exposes the letters to the risk of loss and of being tampered with by a
dishonest collector.
My invention has for its object to provide a mail box which shall obviate these
objections and by means of which, in conjunction with a bag of peculiar con-
struction, the collector may collect the mail from the boxes without handling it and
without incurring the risk of exposing it to a dishonest collector; and it consists
of a mail box of the form and construction hereinafter described and which is
provided with a sliding bottom designed to be used in conjunction with a bag
having a sliding top, the bottom of the box and the top of the bag being adapted
to be opened only when the two are together by means of a key which will open
both the bottom of the box and the top of the bag only when they are together,
and the box being so arranged that the bag cannot be removed therefrom until the
box is closed and locked and so that the bag cannot be removed from the box until
the top of the bag is closed and locked all as hereinafter more fully described and
the novel features of which are pointed out in the claims which are appended hereto
and made a part hereof.
In the drawings I have shown my device in the best form now known to me and
I will describe the same having reference thereto.
In the drawings,
Figure is a front elevation of my improved mail box with the collector's bag
attached and ready for the insertion of the key, the bag being in the position shown
in Figure 2.
Fig. 2 is a central vertical section showing the bag hooked on to the rear edge
of the box and about to be raised into position to open the box and the bag, the key
being shown at the right.
Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section of the lock with the key in place, and
showing both the bag and box portions of the lock.
Fig. 4 is a plan view of the key with the handle broken away.
Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through a portion of the sides of the box showing
a

page_text: Fig. 6 is a top view of the box portion or member of the lock and showing the
retaining bar over which the tumblers hook to lock the box.
at
A is the box which is provided with a covered opening at 6 for the insertion of
the letters. This opening may be of any well known form and may be covered by
a hinged flap in the well known manner. A receptacle C formed by partitioning off
the top of the box and having a hinged cover B is provided for the reception of
newspapers and the like. Peep holes e closed by glass are provided in the corners
of the box in order that the collector may look into the inside of the box without
opening it, so that in case there are no letters in the box he will be saved the time
and trouble of opening the box. To assist in seeing the contents of the box
through the peep holes I paint the inside of the box with phosphorescent or
luminous paint, so that any object in the box will be plainly visible. through the
peep holes. The box is preferably made from sheet steel, and at the bottom on the
sides and back the metal is bent as shown at fto form a groove or recess inside
the box for the reception of the sliding bottom g. At the front of the sliding
bottom is a lock having a case which is secured to the sliding bottom J. Secured
to the side of the box and projecting over the lock is a fender which prevents the
letters from lodging on the lock and thus being retained in the box when the bottom
is opened. A bar of the shape shown Fig. 6, is secured inside the box and
passes across the lock in such position that the tumblers which are pivoted within
the lock case as shown and which have hooked ends, may normally when the box is
closed hook over the bar and so prevent the bottom of the box from being drawn out
and the box opened. The top of the mail pouch is shown at M and consists of a bag of
any suitable material firmly secured to a top which consists of a metal frame of a size
corresponding to the size of the bottom of the box, said frame being provided at the rear
with a hook a, see Fig. 2, so that the bag may be hooked on to the projection
the rear of the bottom of the box. The frame at the top of the pouch M is
grooved in a manner similar to the inside of the box for the reception of a sliding
cover and this cover is provided with a lock as shown at r similar in construction
to the lock already described for the box, and having a similar retaining bar a²
corresponding to the retaining bar k, in the box portion or member of the lock. At
either side of the front of the pouch or bag are two upwardly-projecting hooked
arms which, when the bar is raised stand in such position that when the bottom
of the box is drawn out (in unison with the top of the bag as hereinafter will
appear) it passes under the said hooks which thus serve to lock the box and bag
together and make it impossible to separate the bag from the box until the bag
and the box are again closed. The bottom of the box and the top of the bag are
drawn out together and as they come out pass under the hooks on the projections q.
For the purpose of unlocking the box and the bag a key a¹ is provided which has
a series of movable wards which consist merely of small rectangular pieces of
metal having a slot lengthwise thereof through which a pin e' in the head of the
key (see Fig. 4) passes. An opening d¹ is provided in that part of the sliding
bottom g which forms a part of the lock case for the reception of the upper ends
of the movable pieces of the key and a corresponding opening el is provided in
the top p of the bag for the reception of the other ends of the pieces. Directly
over and under these openings respectively are the pivoted tumblers and the fixed
wards of the lock members. The tumblers are pivoted to cross rods g¹ set in the
cases of the lock and the fixed wards are rigidly secured to said cases or integral
preferably alternate with the tumblers and the
tumblers may be held in their normal locking position by the pressure of springs,
as shown at ', Fig. 2. I do not deem these springs necessary in the box portion
of the lock as gravity will hold the tumblers in their normal position, but where
the position of the lock is reversed as in the bag, springs are desirable. As the
tumblers are of different widths and as the fixed wards may vary in length, it will be
clear that by increasing the number of tumblers and wards and varying their relative
widths and lengths a large number of combinations may be obtained and a very secure
lock produced. A fixed ward in one member of the lock co-operates with a
therewith. The fixed wards
も

page_text: movable piece of the key to move the tumbler in the other member of the lock
so as to free said tumbler from the retaining bar with which it is normally in
contact, and thus by using a key with as many movable pieces as there are fixed
wards in both members of the lock, the tumblers may be moved to their unlocking
position and the box and bag opened. By this arrangement a simple and reliable
compound lock is obtained which cannot easily get out of order.
The operation of the device is as follows:
The mail collector provided with the bag M and with a key approaches the box
and if, upon examination, mail is discovered in the box he hooks the back of the
bag onto the back of the box, places his key in the opening e of the bag lock,
raises the bag until the top of the bag is against the bottom of the box when the
upper ends of the key wards will be in the opening of the box lock and the
pivoted tumblers of both members of the lock, that is, of the box lock and of
the bag lock, will be moved into their unlocking position. He then draws the key
towards him, sliding out the bottom of the box and the top of the bag underneath
the hooks of the projections until he can slide them out no further, when the
entire contents of the box will drop into his bag. He then slides the bottom of
the box and the top of the bag back, closing the box and the bag, when the front
of the bag will drop, allowing him to remove the key and to unhook the back of
the bag freeing it from the box.
It will be clear that what I have termed the bottom of the box and the top
of the bag are simply sliding covers for closing the openings to the box and bag
respectively and that their positions at the bottom and top are not essential to my
invention.
When the mail collector's bag is delivered at the post office the party
authorized to open it is provided with a key similar to the key shown but having
rigid wards, so set as to open the bag lock, or a box lock may be provided
set in a board so that by the use of the collector's key the bag might be opened.
It will also be obvious that my improvement may be applied to any form of
collection-box and bag and it is not necessarily limited to the collection of mail
matter, for example, it may be used for collecting coin from machines such as are
commonly known as nickel-in-the-slot machines, or for collecting coins which are
deposited in boxes in horse cars and the like.
my
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent I declare that what I claim is:-
1. The combination of a mail-box having a sliding bottom and a locking device
for holding the same closed, and a bag having a sliding top and a locking device for
holding the same closed, with a key to co-operate with both of the said locking
devices, each of the locking devices acting through the key to unlock the other
thereof, substantially as described.
2. The combination with a mail box having a sliding bottom, of a bag having
means, as the hook for securing the bag to the box, and having hooked pro-
jections under which the sliding bottom of the box passes when drawn out
after the application of the mouth of the bag to the box, whereby the bag cannot
be detached from the box while the bottom of the box is drawn out, substantially
as described.
3. The combination of a mail-box having a sliding bottom and a locking device
for holding the same closed, with a bag having a sliding top and a locking device
for holding the same closed, a key to co-operate with both of the said locking
devices, each of the locking devices acting through the key to unlock the other
thereof, and means, as the hooks fg, whereby the bag may be secured to the box
and held thereto until the bottom of the box and the top of the bag have been
closed, substantially as described.
4. The combination with a mail-box having a sliding bottom, a bag having a
sliding top, and a compound locking device comprising two parts or members, each

page_text: member thereof having a series of fixed wards and a series of tumblers, of a key
co-operating with such locking device, the fixed wards of one member being opposed
to the tumblers of the other member and serving through the interposed key to
position the latter tumblers to unlock the sliding bottom and top aforesaid,
substantially as described.
5. The combination with a mail-box having a sliding bottom and a bag having a
sliding top, of a locking device therefor comprising two members, one secured to the
box and the other secured to the bag, each of said members comprising a series of fixed
wards and of movable tumblers, the fixed wards in one member co-operating to
position the tumblers in the other member when the box or bag is unlocked, and a
key having a number of pieces movable relatively to each other, each of said
movable pieces being adapted to co-operate with a fixed ward to position a tumbler
when the lock is to be unlocked, substantially as shown and described.
6. A mail-box provided with one or more peep-holes, and having its interior
covered with a layer or coating of luminous material, for the purposes and
substantially as shown and described.
Dated this 26th day of August 1892.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
40, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.