IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HOEING LAND
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Priest and William Woolnough, the younger,
Drill and Horse-hoe Makers, of Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HOEING LAND."
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HOEING LAND."
Sealed the 13th October 1864, and dated the 16th April 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Priest and William
Woolnough at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 16th April 1864.
We, ALFRED PRIEST and WILLIAM WOOLNOUGH, the younger, Drill and
Horse-hoe Makers, of Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HOEING
LAND," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in lever horse-hoes, whereby
the hoes or cutting blades may be better adapted to penetrate and hoe the
ground when in a hard state, and as by the proposed improvements it is
arranged that an equal amount of pressure or leverage should be brought to
bear on each lever and hoe, a more uniform depth of hoeing may be obtained
than heretofore.
Part of the improvements detailed in former Patents, (No. 1900, dated
14 August 1856, and No. 1735, dated 9 July 1861,) obtained by us for
improvements in horse-hoes are embraced in this, but still further to accom-

page_text: plish the objects above stated, a combination of the improvements herein
specified has from practical experience been found necessary.
It consists in
providing two horizontal bars for the hoe levers to be mounted on, these bars
are suspended at their ends from two friction rollers, which resting on lateral
iron tramways, have liberty to move sideways to admit of the hoes being
guided between the rows of planks. These tramways are fixed to iron
standards, which pass through the side frames of the implement, and are
acted on by lever handles to move them up or down, so that while either end
of the horizontal bars may be raised or lowered as required, adjusting the
hoes to the surface of the ground, the rollers from which they are suspended,
at whatever inclination the two bars or hoes may be, always move laterally on
horizontal plains. The two horizontal bars are placed one on each side
of a roller running on the surfaces of the tramways referred to, and are kept
apart by an iron stay carrying a third friction roller, which works horizontally
between the other two, and sustains the resistance of the hoes when working
in the land. The hoe levers are all made of equal length, and mounted
alternately on the two horizontal bars, so that all the hoes being equidistant
from the joints on which they work, an equal amount of pressure is brought
to bear upon them, so that however hard or uneven the ground may be, the
hoes are thus made to cut a regular and uniform depth, at the same time
allowing ample space for weeds or stones to pass between them.
"
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the 'Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alfred Priest and William Woolnough in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 15th October 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ALFRED
PRIEST and WILLIAM WOOLNOUGH, the younger, Drill and Horse-hoe Makers,
of Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of Iler
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Alfred Priest and William Woolnough, the younger, Her special
licence that we, the said Alfred Priest and William Woolnough, the younger,
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Alfred
Priest and William Woolnough, the younger, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree, with, and no others, from time to time

page_text: and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and
lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR HOEING LAND," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said Alfred Priest and William
Woolnough, the younger, our executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should parti-
cularly 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
O filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Alfred Priest and William Woolnough,
the younger, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
5 ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object improvements in lever horse-hoes, whereby
the hoes or cutting blades may be better adapted to penetrate and hos the
ground when in a hard state, and as by the proposed improvements it is
arranged that an equal amount of leverage or pressure should be brought to
bear on each lever and hoe, a more uniform depth of hoeing may be obtained
than heretofore.
Part of the improvements detailed in former Patents obtained by us for
improvements in horse-hoes, and dated the Fourteenth day of August, One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, and the Ninth day of July One thou-
sand eight hundred and sixty-one, are embraced in this, but still further
perfectly to accomplish the objects above stated, a combination of the im-
provements herein specified has from practical experience be found necessary..
The present Invention consists of providing two horizontal bars for the
hoe levers to be mounted on. These bars are suspended at each end from
two friction rollers, which resting on iron tramways have liberty to move
laterally or sideways, to admit of the hoes or cutting blades being guided
between the rows of plants. These tramways are fixed to iron standards,
which pass through the side frames of the implement, and are acted on by
lever handles, so that while either end of the horizontal bars may be raised or
lowered as required, adjusting the hoes to the surface of the ground, the
rollers from which they are suspended, at whatever inclination the two bars
and hoes may be, always move laterally on horizontal plains. The two
horizontal bars are kept asunder by an iron stay at each end, which stays
carry a third friction roller working horizontally between the other two, so as

page_text: to sustain the resistance of the levers and hoes when working.in the land.
The hoe levers are all made of equal length, and mounted alternately on the
two horizontal bars, so that all the hoes have an equal pressure on them, and
are thus made to cut the ground a regular and uniform depth, at the same
time allowing plenty of space for weeds or stones to pass between them.
And in order that our Invention may be fully understood and carried
readily into effect we will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto
annexed.
And in order that our Invention may be juny understood and carried
readily into effect we will proceed to describe the Drawings hereunto
annexed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shews a back elevation of the horse-hoe; Figure 2 a plan, and
Figure 3 a side view of same.
A, A, Fig. 2, are the two horizontal bars upon which the hoe levers are
mounted; B, B, Fig. 1, are turned iron rollers, from which the horizontal bars
A, A, are suspended; C, C, are iron tramways having level surfaces for the
rollers B, B, to travel on; D, D, are standards fixed to the tramways C, C,
and pass through the side frames of the implement. These standards may
be raised or lowered by means of the lever handles E, E, and retained in the
position required by the palls F, F. The two horizontal bars A, A, are kept
asunder by an iron stay G at each end, as shewn Figure 3. Upon the stays
G, turned friction rollers H are mounted, which move horizontally between
the flanges of the tramway boxes C, C, to allow the two bars A, A, being
moved freely from side to side; I, I, are the hoe levers, and K, K, the
cutting blades, or hoes and stems, the levers I, I, having weights on their ends,
which may be varied according to the pressure necessary to cause the hoes to
penetrate the ground. It will thus be seen that as the levers I, I, are
secured alternately to the two horizontal bars A, A, which bars are placed
the same distance apart as the cutting hoes K, K, that the pressure or
leverage upon the front hoes is the same as on those placed behind, thus
ensuring the ground being cut a regular and uniform depth, and causing the
hoes to penetrate the ground when in a bard or dry state with greater
facility than when the hoe levers are all mounted on bar or fulcrum. And
as the standards D, D, are capable of being moved up or down in the
frame, at either side, independently of the other, the horizontal bars a, a, may
readily be adjusted to the surface of the ground, the rollers upon which they
are suspended at all tiines moving horizontally.
What we now claim is the combination of the double bars A, A, with the
adjustable standards D, D, whereby it is arranged that at whatever inclination
the horizontal bars A, A, may be placed, by raising or lowering the standards

page_text: D, D, they may always move laterally on the iron tramways C, C, by means
of rollers, as herein described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Alfred Priest and William Woolnough,
the younger, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Thirtieth
day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hun-
dred and sixty-four.
ALFRED PRIEST...
(L.S.)
WILLIAM WOOLNOUGH, THE YOUNGER. (L.S.)
Witness to the Signatures of
Alfred Priest and William
Woolnough, the younger,
THOMAS KNIGHT,
Kingston-on-Thames.