CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CONSTRUCTING GAM- BADOES OR MUD BOOTS, AND ATTACHING SPURS THERETO, AND PART OF WHICH SAID IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO OTHER BOOTS
Year: 1823

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD-
GREEN, of Lisle Street, in the Parish of Saint Anne, in the County of
Middlesex, Saddlers' Ironmonger, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth did, by
His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of His United Kingdom, bearing
date at Westminster, the Thirteenth day of November, in the fourth year of
His reign, give and grant unto me, the said Richard Green, his exors,
admors, and assigns, His especial licence, full power, sole privilege, and
authority, that I, the said Richard Green, my exors, admors, and assigns
during the term of years therein mentioned, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-
upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CONSTRUCTING GAM-
BADOES OR MUD BOOTS, AND ATTACHING SPURS THERETO, AND PART OF WHICH SAID
IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO OTHER BOOTS;" in which said Letters
Patent there is contained a proviso, that if I, the said Richard Green, shall
not particularly describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, and cause the same to be inrolled in His Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately
after the said of the said Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent,
and all liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby granted, shall utterly
cease, determine, and become void, as in and by the same, relation being
thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Richard Green, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in & by the Drawing hereunto annexed, and the following
description thereof (that is to say) :-
•
My said improvements in the construction of gambadoes or mud boots con-
sist in making the stirrups of them entirely open on one side, and, for the sake
of strength, of steel instead of iron, and also in affixing to them by a turning
joint an iron moveable plate, to receive the foot of the rider, and which may
either be extended to the heel, and connected with a concealed spring and
strap, to allow of a due play or motion of the foot, and also to yield, so as to
prevent the hanging of the foot in the stirrup in case of accident. In order,
however, to explain fully this part of my Invention, I shall refer to the
Drawing, which, as aforesaid, accompanies this Specification, and in which
Drawing Figure 1 represents a gambado or mud boot. A, A, the leather
part of it, made as usual, except that the hinder part of it, B, is made about two
inches deeper, to allow the play of the iron plate, and prevent the entrance of
wet or mud; C is the eye of the steel stirrup for the stirrup leather to enter
as usual; D, the iron plate, covered with leather, as well as the whole of the
stirrup, excepting the eye. In order, however, to shew the particular con-
struction of these parts, I shall refer to Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5, in all of which,
as well as the other Figures, the same letters of reference indicate the similar
parts. E, Fig. 2, is the rounded part of the bottom of the stirrup, on which
the plate D swings or plays by means of the tube or socket F, made across it
to receive the rounded part E, and the plate is prevented from coming off that
part of the stirrup by the screwed nut G, which is affixed upon a screw H,
made upon the end of the part G to receive it. These parts are afterwards
covered with leather as usual, and as shown in Fig. 1. To the fore part of
the plate D a leather slipper I, Fig. 1, is fitted as usual, and to the hinder
part of it a leather guard J may or may not be added at pleasure. K, in
Fig. 1, shews by dotted lines the situation of the concealed spring, the con-
struction of which with its strap and metal casing is shewn in Figs. 6, 7, 8,
and 9. L, Fig. 6, is the spring made of steel wire hardened and tempered;
M, the leather strap, which is passed through it, and prevented from being
drawn out again by means of the leather loop N, Fig. 6, which is firmly
stitched upon the end of the strap M. O, Fig. 7, is the metal casing for the
spring L, having at its lower part a wire ring or loop P, Figs. 8 and 9, affixed
to permit the strap M to pass through, and prevent the spring L from coming
out that way. The upper part of the metal casing O is closed by a piece of

page_text: leather or other proper material being put into it, and the whole is wrapped in
oiled silk, oiled linen, &c., in order to prevent the entrance of wet or damp to
corrode the spring previous to placing or securing them within the double leather
or leathers forming the gambado. Occasionally, however, I shorten the plate D,
as shewn in Fig. 10 at Q, and affix a leather sole R to the heel of the
gam-
bado, which in that case requires to be made an inch longer than in the
former one described, to allow of the play of the foot, and sometimes affix or
continue the sole leather R to the clipper I. In Fig. 10 is also shewn another
method of fixing the plate D to the stirrup C, which is by forming the lower
part of the stirrup E sufficiently strong, to support the plate D, which has then
affixed to it a cross bar S, shewn in Fig. 11, and having a pivot hole T at one
end of it, and a pivot U at the other end, which plays or acts in a hole V,
made in the stirrup C, Fig. 12, to receive it. The opposite side of the bottom of
the stirrup C has also a screwed hole W made in it to receive the screw X;
Fig. 18, and which has a pivot Y made at its end to enter the hole T in the
bar S, and thus to secure it, and allow it to play as necessary. Fig. 14
represents the shortened plate D and its bar S, just described.
Having thus specified my said improvements in, the construction of gambadoes,
I shall now proceed to describe my method of attaching spurs thereto. Z, Z,
in Figs. 1 and 10, shew the sockets of the spurs, which are represented sepa-
rately at Z, in Figs. 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19. In Fig. 15 the spur a is shewn
as being placed in the socket Z, and as having thrust down a helical spring b,
made of steel wire hardened and tempered, together with a plug c, and as
having lodged a catch d, made upon a steel spring e, which is affixed to the
neck of the spur a, underneath a ledge made in the top of the socket Z to
receive and retain it. The top of the spring c has a sliding cap g affixed to it,
by pushing which inwardly or towards the gambado the catch d quits its hold,
and the helical spring 6 throws out the spur a, and the plug c immediately fills
up the hole in the socket Z, and, as shewn in Fig. 18, its notch h on the side
of it, acting in a similar manner with the catch d upon the spring e of the spur
a, lodges underneath the ledge f upon the top of the socket Z, and is thereby
prevented from coming out of the socket. Figs. 20, 21, and 22, represent
the spur a as taken out of the socket Z; and Figs. 23 and 24 represent the
plug c. The manner of constructing the socket Z is shewn in Figs. 15, 16,
17. 18, and 19, three of its four sides, and the bottom and ledge f, being made
entire, and the fourth side rivetted to them as shewn in Figs. 15 and 18, i, i, &c.
being the rivets, and which are received into holes J, J, &c. made in the
fourth side to receive them, and as shewn in Fig. 19.
With respect to any said improvements applicable to other boots, they con-

page_text: Fig. 25 is a
Fig. 26 is a
sist in employing the helical spring 6 and the plug c in the sockets for the
spurs, usually termed box spurs, and thus to close the holes in the said sockets
without using the ordinary plugs employed for that purpose.
representation of part of a boot, with a box spur affixed to it.
section of part of the heel of the boot, with the spur and socket affixed in it,
and Fig. 27 is a view of the underside of the sole of the boot, with the socket
shewn by dotted lines, and the spur in the socket.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Green, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and twenty-four.