Improvements in Under-garments.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd June, 1890-Accepted. 6th Sept., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by CHARLES AMBROSE BROWN, of 155, River Street,
Troy, New York, United States of America, Manufacturer and Commission
Merchant.]
Improvements in Under-garments.
I, 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 :-
My invention relates to improvements in undergarments and consists of the novel
construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and subsequently
claimed.
It is well known that undergarments, as heretofore constructed, from plies of knitted
fabric which have rough, harsh surfaces, are uncomfortable to the wearer, while
thick and heavy undergarments, suitable to the cold season, cannot be worn by
sensitive persons; also that the mechanism of knitting machinery tends to force the
shives and other excrescences contained in the yarn to be knitted, and especially
the barsh burs found in all grades of woollen yarns, to the surfaces of the knitted
fabric, a part to one surface and a part to the other surface.
I have ascertained that, by the use of carefully-adjusted machinery and finely-
spun yarn, it is an easy matter as is well known to those skilled in the art of
knitting tubular fabrics on cylinder machines to control the disposition of the burs
and other excrescences, the mechanism which aids in casting off the stitches
forcing approximately all of them to one surface, which, in tubular-knitted fabric, is
the outer surface, the inner surface or the one which lies next to the cylinder being
simooth thus producing a thin, light fabric which has a smooth and soft surface on one
side, agreeable to the most sensitive person, and a rough or bur surface on the other
side, unpleasant to the touch and sight.
By superimposing two plies of such fabric, one upon the other, so as to inclose
and conceal, between them, the rough and harsh surfaces, I am able to produce a
two-ply fabric which will present a soft, smooth and finished surface on both sides,
from which fabric an 'undergarment can be made, in any known manner, that will.
be throughout its entire extent, not only agreeable to both the sight and touch, but
warm without being oppressive, and loose in texture to permit the escape of
exhalations from the body.
The plies will tend to knit together and keep their shape and relative positions like
a single-ply fabric.
I have shown a preferred manner of making an under-shirt, in the drawings,
in which
Fig. 1 is a plan view of a flattened tubular web of fabric, having the burs, shives
and other harsh substances located upon the outer or exterior surface of the web.
Fig. 2 is a plan view of the web folded, by drawing one end over the other, so
as to inclose and conceal the burs and shives between the folded plies.
Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section of such folded plies, taken on the broken
line 3-3, in Fig. 2.
Fig. 4 is a view, in elevation, of a finished shirt.
A represents a flattened tube of knitted fabric, having the outer surface compara-
tively rough and harsh, and the inner surface soft, smooth and approximately free
from harsh excrescences.
In making this tube into an undergarment, one end, A', of the tube, is drawn over
the other end, A', as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, making the walls of the tube double,
or two-ply, inclosing the rough surface between such plies and exposing smooth
surfaces only, both interiorly and exteriorly.

page_text: The undergarment or shirt, B, is then formed from the folded fabric by closing one
end of the flattened tube with a line of stitching, B', cutting out the neck opening
on the dotted line, B2, and the sleeve openings on the dotted lines, B³, securing
the sleeves, B4, about the openings, and turning the shirt inside out, thus forming
a new and useful article of manufacture.
I am aware that undergarments formed of knitted fabric have been reinforced by
doubling the fabric in various parts of the garment, and that gloves have been
knitted double; but such garments were not made double throughout, nor were such
undergarments or gloves made from fabric plies having a rough or bur surface on
one side only, and a smooth surface on the other side, with the rough or bur surfaces
inclosed and concealed between the plies.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion 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
As a new article of manufacture, an undergarment, composed throughout of two
plies of knitted fabric, superimposed, one upon the other, each ply having a smooth
surface approximately free from extraneous matter on one side, and a rough surface
on the other side, the rough surfaces being concealed between such superimposed
plies, substantially as described.
Dated this 3rd day of June 1890.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.