A PORTABLE LIFE BOAT
Year: 1825

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JONAS
BATEMAN, of Upper Street, Islington, in the County of Middlesex, Fruiterer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twenty-sixth day of February, in the sixth year of His
reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Jonas Bateman, His especial licence that I, the said Jonas Bateman, my
exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Jonas Bateman, my
exors, admors, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term 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 "A PORTABLE
LIFE BOAT;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso obliging
me, the said Jonas Bateman, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and
seal, particularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to
be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within two calendar
months next and immediately 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);

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Jonas Bateman, do hereby describe the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner of performing the same, reference being had to the Figures or
Drawings annexed (that is to say):-
Fig. 1st is a representation of the boat in its complete state upon a scale of
about 2 inches to a foot. A, A, are two compact bodies composed of flat
pieces of cork about four feet three inches in length, 7 inches in width,
and 7 inches in depth, inclosed in canvass. B, B, are pieces of board about
half inch thick, sufficiently large to completely cover the surface of the cork A,
one of which pieces is required to be placed above and another under each of
the bodies of cork A, so that four of these pieces of board is required, through
which boards and cork it will perhaps be necessary, if the cork is in small
pieces, to perforate holes for the purpose of admitting wooden pegs to prevent
the cork from shifting. C, C, C, are metal plates about 1 inches wide,
inch thick, twelve of which plates will be required, four of them to be
7 inches long, with a round hole inch from each end to admit the screw
end of bolts inch thick, four other of the twelve plates to be branched off
from about the midlength, so that the arms of one end will be about four
inches apart, having holes to admit the head ends of ths bolts; the four
remaining plates to be branched off as the four preceding ones, two of them
being 6 inches long, and the other two 7 inches long, the two shorter ones
to have holes inch from each angle to admit the head ends of ths bolts, and
the two longer ones to have holes opposite the holes in the two shorter ones to
admit the screw ends of the said ths bolts, the whole of the twelve plates to
have holes to admit screws to attach them to the boards B. D, D, D, are the
bolts before alluded to, eighteen of which will be required, six of the eighteen
to be of the common kind, ths thick, to screw up to about 9 inches in length,
four of the eighteen to have a shoulder about 1 inch below the head to rest
on four of the plates C, and a strong head at the extreme end for a purpose
to be hereafter described; these four to screw up to about nine inches
below the shoulder as the first-named six common bolts. Four other of
the eighteen bolts are to have shoulders and strong heads similar to the
last-described four, but to screw up to about inch below the shoulder
instead of nine inches. The remaining four of the eighteen bolts to have
shoulders to rest in the plates C, as before, about 1 inch from the end, also
to screw up to nine inches below such shoulder; but instead of having a strong
head, to be made round above the shoulder, a little tapering, having a eye cut
to admit a spring key as near the end as strength will permit, for a purpose to
be hereafter also described. E, E, are two pieces of strong board, about 18

page_text: inches long and five inches wide, and one inch thick, having two grooves cut
lengthways' nearly the whole length thereof, and being covered on-one side
with a metal plate about th inch thick, of the same pattern as the board E,
which'grooves are intended for the ends of the 8-shouldered bolts' D before
described to work in the plate, resting on the heads of the said 8-bolts, and at
each end of each groove is a spring catch, which so soon as the bolts pass
acts across the groove, and prevents, the bolts from shifting. The boards E
thus prepared act in the double capacity of keeping the bodies of cork A
sufficiently apart to permit the persons using the boat to get between them,
and also as seats. F is a board of similar substance as the boards E, about
28 inches long, having two holes about 5 inches from each end secured by
metal plates, to let the ends of the four bolts D, having the eyes for the spring
keys pass through, which board F, having also a strong ring nutted through
the board upon a slight plateor collar to suspend the boat when wanted for use,
which board F thus prepared acts conjointly with the boards. E to strengthen
the whole. G are the spring keys to keep down the board. F, H, is a metal
bar or rod, about inch thick and 14 inches long, with a hole at each end and
also one in a notch in the centre to affix a small chain. I is the chain, which
is to be sufficiently long to suspend the bar or rod H, about twenty inches below
the bottom of the bodies of cork: A, the chains at each end of the bar H,
has a screw and nut to go through one of the plates C, and the chain affixed
to the centre of the bar or rod H has also a screw and nut at each end to go
through the seats E, which bar or rod H and chain I'thus prepared will act as
ballast, and will enable the persons in the seats to preserve their position and
press their feet against if they should use oars, which oars may be made upon
the common principle, only proportionally small and light: K are the places,
made of metal, for the oars to work in, which drop into holes made for that
purpose through the plates C and the board F. L, L, are two grooves cut in
the sides of the bodies of cork A, about four inches in length, and one inch into
the cork, and the upper boards B for a case to contain the provisions or other
articles, which case must be made for the purpose. M is a spring hook hooked
into the ring on the board F with a cord attached, whereby the boat is to be
suspended when required for use.
Fig. 2 is a representation of the boat in its compact state for stowing away,
upon the same scale as Fig. 1st; and when it is necessary to prepare it for use
there will be nothing to do but to unlash the cord and pull the two bodies of
cork to the extremity of the grooves in the boards or scats E, and then drop
the case containing provisions, &c. into the grooves made in the cork for the
purpose, which done the board F is dropped on to the ends of the bolts with

page_text: the eyes, and key it down, which done it may be launched in any situation
without any particular care being necessary, and it will lay alongside any vessel
in the heaviest sea. Its weight being so little and its strength so great, it is
presumed to be almost impossible that it should strike against any body with
sufficient force to discompose it to any material extent. The persons intending
to use it may then descend by means of the cord by which it is lashed, and
when properly seated may let go the spring hook at pleasure.
I do not claim as my Invention the mode of making the plates, boats,
springs, keys, or any other part or parts of the boat, separately considered,
which may be made or done by any known and usual method; but I claim as
my Invention the combination of the several articles above described, so as to
be adapted to the purpose of giving complete security from drowning to two or
more persons in cases of shipwreck.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jonas Bateman, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand nicht hundred and twenty five
JONAS (L.s.) BATEMAN.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eighteenth day of April, in
the year of our Lord 1825, the aforesaid Jonas Bateman came before our
said Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stampt according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord One
www.w
Inrolled the Nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twenty-five.