IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OR PREPARATION OF INK AND PAPER TO ADAPT THEM FOR COPYING PURPOSES: IN PRESERVING FOOD., SKINS, AND HIDES: IN RENDERING LINT, VESICATORY PAPER. AND TEXTILE FABRICS ABSORBENT: AND IN TREATING MORTAR, CEMENT. AND OTHER MATTERS, IN ORDER TO KEEP THEM IN A DAMP STATE
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Michael Henry, of 84, Fleet Street, in the City of
"
London, Patent Agent, for the. Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OR PREPARATION OF INK AND PAPER TO ADAPT THEM FOR
COPYING PURPOSES: IN PRESERVING FOOD., SKINS, AND HIDES: IN RENDERING
LINT, VESICATORY PAPER. AND TEXTILE FABRICS ABSORBENT: AND IN
TREATING MORTAR, CEMENT. AND OTHER MATTERS, IN ORDER TO KEEP THEM
IN A DAMP STATE."-A communication from Messieurs Vasseurs and
Houbigant.
Sealed the 1st November 1858, and dated the 21st May 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Michael Henry at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
21st May 1858.
I, MICHAEL HENRY, of S4, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OR PREPARATION OF INK AND PAPER, TO ADAPT THEM FOR
COPYING PURPOSES: IN PRESERVING FOOD. SKINS. AND HIDES; IN RENDERING LINT,
VESICATORY PAPER. AND TEXTILE FABRICS ABSORBENT; AND IN TREATING MORTAR,
CEMENT, AND OTHER MATTERS, IN ORDER TO KEEP THEM IN A DAMP STATE," com-
municated to me by Messieurs Vasseurs and Houbigant, foreigners residing
abroad, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates principally to applications of glycerine to various
[Price 8d.]

page_text: useful purposes, in which its properties of absorbing and retaining atmospheric
humidity may be turned to account. By preparing either ink or paper with
glycerine, writings may be copied without the pressing or damping now
adopted for the purpose. Paper may be prepared by introducing glycerine
into the pulp, or by damping it, when manufactured, with glycerine. It may
be kept invariably damp by impregnating with glycerine diluted in 4 or 5
times its quantity of water, or the ink may be combined or prepared with
glycerine.
A good ink may be produced by mixing 6 parts glycerine with two parts
crystallized sugar (or sugar of milk or honey), and sufficient water to melt 1
the sugar, combined with a like quantity of common ink.
Another ink, preserving pens from rust, may be manufactured of decoction
of logwood, sugar, gum arabic, and glycerine, with potassa, flour of sulphur,
and water, and parings of tanned skins, preferring to take,―
5 parts decoction of logwood, at 8°,
3
21
sugar,
2
coloring with 100
وو
5
39
gum,
glycerine,
water,
"
2
"
potassa,
3
"
Hour of sulphur ;
melt; add 10 parts tanned skin parings, boil to dryness, remove from fire,
add 200 parts water, express and filter. I do not confine myself to the
above proportions, and other matters than those stated may be mixed with
the glycerine.
The combined action of the glycerine on the paper, and certain chemicals,
as prussiate of potassa, turnsol, prussian blue, &c., produce coloring effects.
Thus, in the first case, ink containing iron in excess will produce blue writing;
in the second, ink coutaining acetate of iron will produce red; and alkaline
ink, green; and in the third, alkaline ink will produce white.
It is proposed to employ glycerine instead of common salt for preserving
skins and hides, also for preserving food.
2
2
3
Cement, paste, mortar, and other matters, where desirable, may be com-
bined with glycerine to retain them in a damp condition. Vesicatory or
blister paper, lint. and textile fabrics may be rendered absorbent by pre- 3
paring or treating them with glycerine.
The unsized paper used for copying writings will be rendere. more
effective by glazing, "pressing," or "satining" it.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Michael Henry in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
19th November 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MICHAEL
HENRY, of 4, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent Agent, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent bearing date the Twenty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and graut unto me, the
said Michael Henry, Her especial licence that I, the said Michael Henry, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, and such others as I, the said Michael
Henry, my executors, administrators, 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, excrcise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OR PREPARATION OF INK AND PAPER, TO ADAPT THEM FOR COPYING PUR
POSES IN PRESERVING FOOD, SKINS, AND HIDES; IN RENDERING LINT, VESICATORY
PAPER, AND TEXTILE FABRICS ABSORBENT; AND IN TREATING MORTAR, CEMENT
AND OTHER MATTERS, IN ORDER TO KEEP THEM IN A DAMP STATE," communication
from Vasseurs and Houbigant, foreigners residing abroad upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Michael Heury, my executors or admini-
strators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly 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 l'atent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Michael Henry do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, as communicated to me, that is to say:-
Glycerine has the peculiar property of absorbing and retaining atmospheric
moisture or humidity; and this Invention, firstly, relates to certain means of
applying the said property of glycerine for obtaining copies of letters and
other writings. For this purpose glycerine may be employed for treating or
preparing either the ink with which or the paper on which the writing is to
be effected, whereby the damping of the copying paper and application of

page_text: mechanical pressure, as now generally practised, may be dispensed with.
Glycerine. diluted with four or five times its weight of water, imparts to paper
impregnated therewith the peculiarity of retaining a permanently damp con-
dition, so that in taking copies of letters, &c., written on paper so prepared,
pressure and damping of the copying paper will not be required. The writing
paper may be prepared either by introducing glycerine into the pulp of which
it is to be manufactured, or by damping it therewith after it has been made up
into books or otherwise. Or ink may be prepared or combined with glycerine,
and writings effected with ink so treated will remain for a long period in a
sufficiently damp state, so that, in like manner,in taking copies or impressions
therefrom, the damping of the copying paper and application of pressure will
be dispensed with. By these means copies or impressions may be readily
taken from writings effected on any description of paper with ink prepared
with glycerine, or on paper prepared with glycerine, whatever the description
of ink.
6
A good ink may be produced by mixing parts of glycerine with 2 parts
crystallized sugar, adding sufficient pure water to melt the sugar (or sugar
of milk or honey may be used instead of crystallized sugar.) The liquid
should be mixed with a like quantity of common ink.
An alkaline copying ink, preserving the pen from oxydation, may be manu-
Decoction of logwood, 8 degrees
Sugar
Guin arabic
Glycerine
5 parts
3
2
5
""
adding, as a coloring solution, till a violet hue (couleur pensée) is obtained,
Water
Common potassa
Flowers of sulphur
- 100 parts
او
- 20
- 3 32
The whole is melted in a (cast iron) vessel, and 10 parts tanned skin parings
or cuttings added, then boiled to dryness, stirring well to keep it from burning;
and after taking it off the fire, 200 parts water are added, and the whole is
expressed and filtered.
The action of the glycerine on the paper, combined with that of a chemical
agent, such as prussiate of potassa, turusol dye, prussian blue, &c., will, owing
to the damp condition of the paper, produce certain coloring effects. Thus,
in the first instance, if the ink contain irou in excess, dark blue writing
characters will be produced on the paper; in the second instance, if the
deliquescent ink has acetate of iron in excess, the writing will be red, while

page_text: an alkaline ink will produce green; in the third instance, with an alkaline
deliquescent ink, the characters will be white. Such effects of chemical
reaction may be extensively varied.
According to the next part of this Invention, glycerine may be employed
instead of common salt for preserving untanned skins and hides, especially
when intended forexportation, and therefore requiring rapid means of applying
a preserving agent; and glycerine may also be applied for the purpose of
preserving food. According to these improvements also, paste, cement, mortar,
mastic, and other matters, especially when intended for daily use, may be
treated with glycerine in order to keep them in a suitably damp condition;
this treatment will also have the effect of preserving them from frost. And
vesicatory or blister paper, lint, and textile fabrics, particularly cloths, rags,
and bandages, indented for medical, surgical, or therapeutical purposes, may be
treated with glycerine, in order to render them absorbent and consequently
better adapted for the desired object.
Unsized paper, as generally used for the purpose of taking copies of writings,
will be rendered more effective by previously glazing, pressing, or satining it.
This pressing, glazing, &c. may be applied on any sort of copying paper,
whether containing salts or not.
In explaining how to carry the first part of the Invention into effect, it
should be observed, that all the inks of commerce are not equally adapted for
the production of copying ink, according to and for the purposes of this In-
vention; but copying inks, properly so called, are the best suited for the
purpose, especially the black inks of two English chemists, viz., Mr. Almonds
and Mr. Robertson (3, Maiden Lane); next come violet-black inks and
those of other colors. The following formulae or recipes are suggested as
examples of durable and permanent inks :-
Recipe, No. 1.
3 parts, by weight, white glycerine;
3
""
10
رو
"
"
purified white honey, best quality;
violet-black, or other colored ink;
mix up well, and leave the mixture to settle two or three days before using.
Recipe, No. 2.
.
4 parts, by weight, white glycerine;
www.ad whith hon bastality.

page_text: deterioration of the ink; stir up well and leave to settle for two or three days
before using. If it should be found, in taking copies from inks according to
recipe No. 1, that thicker characters are produced than those of the original,
the proportions of glycerine and honey may be respectively reduced to two
parts each, or another quarter by weight of one part powdered gum arabic
may be added.
The following mode is recommended for purifying honey before employing it
in inanufacturing these improved inks:-Dissolve 2 parts powdered magnesia
in 16 parts by weight pure water, and add it to 100 parts by weight of good
honey; heat the whole in a water bath (that is to say, in a vessel which is to
be placed in a second vessel containing water, a mode known in France as the
bain Marie), but do not allow it to boil, skim carefully. The honey so
purified should be kept in closely stoppered jars. The copying paper should
not be too thin nor too highly glazed, as in the former case it would not absorb
all the ink, and in the latter would hardly absorb any, and would cause the
characters to appear jagged or spluttered. The writing paper should not be
too porous so as not to absorb the ink. Two copies of one letter or writing
may be readily taken; but when one copy only is required, it is of importance
after taking it and before folding the original, &c., to apply a blotter consisting
of about three sheets of unsized paper firmly cemented by pressure in the hot
pressing or glazing process; this is a very useful precaution; the blotter is a
good absorbent, and may serve for hundreds of pages. If the ink produce
pale or indistinct copies, all that need be done is to increase its coloring
ingredient by a fourth. Honey is preferred to any other saccharine matter,
in manufacturing these improved inks.
I do not restrict myself to the exact proportions of ingredients set forth, nor
indeed to the precise ingredients stated as applicable for employment in com-
bination with glycerine.
Having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-
First, the application of glycerine to the purpose of obtaining copies of
writings by preparing either the ink or the paper with glycerine, whatever be
the means employed for preparing the same therewith.
Second, the application of glycerine as described for the purpose of preserving
food, skius, and hides; for keeping cement, mastic, mortar, paste, and other
matters in a damp condition; and for rendering vesicatory paper, lint, and
textile fabrics absorbeut.
Third, the various means herein-before described for preparing ink and
paper for enabling copies or impressions to be taken.

page_text: Fourth, the mode of rendering copying paper better adapted for the taking
of copies or impressions by glazing, pressing, or satining it.
Fifth, the preparation of hygrometric ink and paper, by means of glycerine
for the purpose of enabling copies or impressions to be taken without
mechanical pressure.
In witness whereof, I, the said Michael Henry have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of November, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-eight.
0 Witness,
CHAS. H. ANGMEAD.
M. HENRY. (L.S.)