IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BONNETS, COLLARS, CAPES, CAPS, SHAWLS, CLOAKS, COATS, GAITERS, SCARFS, STOCKINGS, GLOVES, AND MITTS
Year: 1844

page_text: I NEDENI
BEDELLS, of Leicester, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Twenty-fourth day of February, in the seventh year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs. and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Caleb Bedells, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Caleb Bedells, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Caleb Bedells, my exors, adiňors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the termi
of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BONNETS, COLLARS, CAPES,
CAPS, SHAWLS, CLOAKS, COATS, GAITERS, SCARFS, STOCKINGS, GLOVES, AND MITTS;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Caleb
Bedells, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in Her said
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and imme-
diately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by
the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Caleb Bedells, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and
ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had
to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked
thereon (that is to say):-
In the manufacture of bonnets, collars, capes, caps, shawls, cloaks, coats,
gaiters, scarfs, stockings, gloves, and mitts, elastic bands, frills, and other
elastic and ornamental fabrics are used, and will be more extensively used by
making fabrics suitable thereto of a more elegant kind. And
my Invention
has for its objects,―
First, the making a peculiar fabric in stocking or knitting frames suitable in
the making of stockings and elastic bands for stockings, gloves, and other parts
of dresses requiring elastic bands.
Secondly, the making of a peculiar elastic fabric in lace machines, applicable
in the making of mitts and gloves, and also for bands, and other parts of the
garments herein mentioned, where elastic fabrics of an elegant kind are
required.
Thirdly, the making of a peculiar elastic fabric in warp machines, applicable.
in the manufacture of mitts, shawls, bonnets, and other of the articles of dress
herein mentioned, where such descriptions of fabric may be employed.
Fourthly, the making of a peculiar plaited fabric made in shuttle looms,
applicable in the making of bonnets, collars, capes, caps, cloaks, coats, gaiters,
and scarfs.
And, fifthly, in a peculiar application of elastic fabrics in the manufacture of
gloves.
And in order that the Invention may be fully understood and readily
carried into effect I will proceed to describe the means pursued by me; and,
First, of elastic fabrics made in knitting or stocking machines. This part of
the Invention has for its object the making of knit fabrics, by employing threads
or strands of india-rubber covered by braiding or twisting, as is well understood,
and causing such covered india-rubber threads or strands to be looped into
a fabric by the working of stocking or knitting machinery, and this may be
done for making pieces of fabric to be cut into bands or pieces to be applied
to or let into parts of the articles herein mentioned; and when for elastic bands
of stockings, gloves, mitts, or gaiters, the best means of applying this part of
my Invention is to cause such covered strands of india-rubber to be looped on
the needles of the machine to such an extent as to produce a band, and then
go on making the other fabric with cotton or other yarn. In some cases
elastic stockings are desired, in which case I cause the whole stocking to be
produced by looping covered strands of india-rubber into a suitable-shaped

page_text: fabric for a stocking, which when made up will be found to make valuable
substitutes for the present manufacture of laced stockings, and these looped
fabrics may be cut up into bands, straps, and other parts of the articles of
dress above mentioned where elasticity is desired to be obtained, care being
observed to bind the cut edges of such fabrics to prevent the same coming
unlooped; this fabric so manufactured is to be rendered elastic by means of
heat, as is well understood when making other fabrics containing india-rubber.
The second part of my Invention is the making of a peculiar elastic fabric
in twist lace machines, and consists in making twist lace fabrics wherein every
or every other warp thread of the fabric is an india-rubber thread covered or
uncovered. In making this fabric, I place in the lace machine a warp wholly
composed of india-rubber strands covered or uncovered, or else every other
warp thread of india-rubber with every other warp thread used therewith is
of cotton, silk, or other spun yarn, and I cause the bobbin threads of cotton,
silk, or other yarn to be worked therewith in the ordinary manner, so as to
produce lace fabrics according to any of the ordinary descriptions; the difference
of the fabric being simply that every or every other of the warp threads will
be an india-rubber thread, and the consequence will be, that when the fabric
so made is rendered elastic by heat, as is well understood, the fabrics so made
will run up and offer the appearance of a corded fabric of a peculiar character,
which will be found very useful in making mitts, and also elastic bands, and
other elastic parts of many of the articles herein mentioned. I would remark
that it is not new to introduce strands of india-rubber in the making of lace
fabrics, various lace fabrics having been made in lace with india-rubber warp
threads under my former Patent; but in those cases, where meshes of lace were
produced, according to my said former Patent, such a quantity of lace was
made between neighbouring warp threads, that when the warp threads were
contracted by heat the lace plaited up and formed plaits; the peculiarity of
the present Invention is, therefore, the having an india-rubber thread to form
the pillar or pillars of every mesh of which a fabric is produced.
I will now describe the third part of my Iuvention, which relates to the
making of a peculiar clastic fabric in warp machines, applicable in making
several of the articles herein mentioned, and parts of other of the articles
hercin mentioned.
The peculiar character of this part of the Invention consists in forming a
fabric consisting of looped cords in parallel lines or distances apart, laced
or combined together with yarns or threads passing and linking with alternate
neighbouring cords, and each cord is to contain a strand of india-rubber
covered or uncovered, which is worked into the fabric in the now-clastic state

page_text: as it is made, and elasticity is obtained thereto by heat after the fabric is made.
The nature of warp machinery being well known, and also the mode of
working of such machinery, it will not be necessary to enter into any descrip-
tion thereof. The looped cords containing india-rubber are to be made at
intervals apart of a quarter of an inch and upwards, and by means of a suitable
guide bar yarns or threads are caused alternately to link in every two neigh-
bouring cords, and by this means any desired width of fabric may be obtained,
which when the india-rubber is elasticated will be suitable for shawls, scarfs,
mitts, and other of the articles or parts of those articles, according to the
judgment of persons engaged in such manufactures. The Drawings show a
cut of wheels suitable for making this fabric; the cut, however, may be varied.
I would remark, that I am aware that india-rubber strands have before becn
introduced longitudinally in warp
fabrics; I do not therefore claim the same.
generally, but only when the fabric produced consists of cords laced together
by yarns, as above described.
I will now describe the fourth part of my Invention, which relates to a mode
of making elastic plaited fabrics in shuttle looms. And this part of the Inven-
tion consists in using strands of india-rubber covered by braiding or otherwise,
as is well understood; and supposing a loom to be in a condition to weave any
description of silk, velvet, or other fabric, open, plain, or ornamental, a warp
or strands of covered india-rubber is to be applied so as to be capable of
being brought up and fastened into the fabric when desired, the strands of
india-rubber being in a non-elastic state, and elasticity is to be obtained thereto
by heat, as is well understood, when the fabric is made. Thus, supposing a
silk, or other fabric were desired to be made and plaited up at every quarter of
an inch, or other determined quantity, the weaver would go on weaving the
fabric in the ordinary manner, the warp threads of india-rubber not being
worked into the fabric for a quarter of an inch or other length. The india-
rubber threads would then be brought up and tied into the fabric, the weaver
would again go on weaving in the ordinary manner till another quarter of an
inch or other determined quantity was woven, when he would again bring up
the india-rubber warp threads and tie them into the fabric by the weft, in this
manner he would weave the fabric; the india-rubber warp threads being about
an inch or less apart, the consequence would be, that when the fabric was taken
out of the loom the india-rubber warp threads would be of equal length with
the fabric, and the fabric would be smooth and unplaited; but on rendering
the india-rubber elastic those warp threads would contract, as is shown at A,
Fig. 1, in the Drawing, and in contracting would plait up the woven fabric, the
india-rubber standing across from plait to plait. This plaiting of the fabric

page_text: may be only at one or both edges, in which case the other part of the fabric
must have india-rubber threads for warp in order that the fabric may run up
to a like extent, the plaited parts having no india-rubber in the warp of which
the fabric is composed, and only india-rubber strands attached and worked in
at intervals, as above described. This description of fabric will be found highly
useful in various parts of the articles herein mentioned, according to the taste
and judgment of the person making the same.
The fifth part of my Invention relates to a peculiar application of elastic
fabrics (produced by the introduction of strands of india-rubber into the fabric
in the course of weaving, as is well understood,) to gloves, by which means that
part of the glove which embraces the hand and wrist may be made of elastic
fabric, and at the same time the fingers of the glove may be made of fabric
without india-rubber threads or strands introduced therein. Figure 2 shows a
glove made according to this part of the Invention, when it will be seen that the
part a, forming the hand of the glove is made of an elastic india-rubber fabric,
while the fingers b are made of a fabric not having india-rubber threads intro-
duced therein. The part a of the glove of elastic india-rubber fabric having
been made to the desired shape, may be placed upon the needles of a stocking
or warp frame, and have the fingers formed thereto in the usual manner of
making the fingers of gloves in stocking or warp machinery. At the same
time I do not confine myself to the above or any other particular mode of
applying the part a, as the fingers may be stitched to the part constituting the
hand, or the fabric may be woven in spaces of sufficient width to form the part
for the hand with india-rubber threads introduced therein, between which spaces
the fabric may be woven of sufficient width to form the fingers of the glove
without india-rubber threads introduced therein. The fabric thus produced may
then be cut to the desired shape for making up into gloves, as is well understood,
and I am aware that narrow bands of india-rubber fabric have been before
applied to the wrists of gloves, I do not, therefore, claim that application of
india-rubber fabric to the wrists of gloves except when the part which embraces
the hand is also formed of elastic india-rubber fabric.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I would have it understood that what I claim is,-
First, on the making and applying the elastic fabrics in stocking or knitting
made machines as herein described.
Secondly, I claim the making and applying the elastic fabric made in twist
lace machinery as herein described.
Thirdly, I claim the making and applying the elastic fabrics made in warp
machines as herein described.

page_text: This Drawing represents a cut of wheels for producing an elastic Fabric in Warp
Machins according to the third part of the invention
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