1824.] 
there is not any investigation whatever 
takes place, prior to the granting of a 
patent, the title of which may, as we 
have seen above, be so general as to 
leave the crown ‘officers altogether in 
the dark, as to the nature and extent 
of the invention and intended claims of 
the patentee; and even in the cases 
where his title may shew, to all compe- 
tent persons, the pretended invention 
to be perfectly old and in daily practice, 
or of little or of no value, or even use- 
less, absurd, or demonstrably impossible 
(perpetual motion, and power-gaining 
schemes to wit), no objection is ever 
started on these grounds to the issuing 
of a patent; and for this plain reason, 
that the patent bears on the face of it, 
that “it is entirely at the hazard of the 
patentee whether his said invention 
(referring to the title) is mew, or will 
ave the desired success,’ words which 
cover even its absolute impossibility ! 
To Witttam Hasse, of Saxrthorpe, in 
Norfolk, for a new method of con- 
structing Mills or Machinery, chiefly 
applicable to Prison Discipline, 11th 
September 1823. 
The patentee purposes here ‘to effect 
three distinct objects; the principal of 
which we shall first mention, viz. the 
rendering of prisoners’ labour on the 
tread-wheel efficient and profitable, in 
the working of manufactories situated 
withoutside, and even at a distance 
from their prison; for this. purpose, 
the tread-wheel is to actuate pumps (or 
hand winch-machines might do the same 
thing) for forcing water into an air ves- 
sel; the compressed air in the upper 
part of which vessel is, acting by its 
elasticity, to be at the same time 
the means of equalizing the action of 
the prison machinery, and also of forc- 
ing the water through pipes to the 
sites of ‘manufactories, there to pass 
through and set in motion any of the 
rotary engines now known or in use, 
for the benefit of the manufacturer, pay- 
ing a yearly rent for the power thus sup- 
plied to him. 
Thesecond object is, to provide means 
for exercising the hands’ and arms of 
the prisoners as well as their legs, in 
giving greater effect to the tread-wheel ; 
in place of the fixed hand-rail usually 
employed to hold by, Mr. Hase pro- 
vides a reel, or set of slowly revolving 
rails, the upper ones of which are to be 
adapted to the height of the men, and 
the front ones for boys, in pulling, all 
Patents for Mechanical and Chemical Inventions. 
245 
of them, at these rails, to support them- 
selves, and ease part of their weight 
from their legs and feet. The axis 
upon which this reel is to revolve, being 
.furnished with a ratchet and pall, ma- 
nageable by the prisoners, so that they 
can fix the reel from revolving, when- 
ever, for a change, they may wish to 
exert all their labour on the stepping- 
wheel, as heretofore has been the case ; 
the reel is to be connected with the 
tread-wheel, either by an endless band 
or chain, or by gear-work. 
The third object of the patentee re- 
gards improved discipline, and the sav- 
ing of attendance where tread-wheels 
are used. The buildings, inclosing the 
prison machinery, should be so con- 
structed, that the prisoners can, if ne- 
cessary, be made to work separately, or 
in small parties of six or eight persons, 
in distinct compartments, separated by 
such partitions as will prevent conver- 
sation between the different parties on 
the wheel, and yet, as far as possible, 
admit the free air to them, all through 
open gratings in the front parts of such 
partitions. In order to save ‘some of 
the attendance of an overseer, Mr. Hase 
proposes to suspend the whole of the 
floor within the grated partitions above- 
mentioned, on levers, upon the prin- 
ciple of the weighing-machine, or of an 
ordinary scale-beam, so that the floor 
may descend a small space, whenever a 
greater number of prisoners are off the 
wheel than are by the prison’ regula- 
tions intended: such descent of the 
floor, to move an index placed in the 
governor’s room, or else ring a bell, or 
give some other signal, of the insubor- 
dination which has occurred. 
It would undoubtedly be of great 
utility, if means were adopted for ren- 
dering prison labour conducive to the 
benefit of the “ fair trader,” as the 
patentee expresses himself, but who, 
on the contrary, has too often suffered 
ruinous competition, from the sale of 
articles in his trade, manufactured with- 
in prison walls. The method here pro- 
posed, of conveying the power gene- 
rated within a prison, for use outside of 
it, at a distance, might on some occa- 
sions be useful; but to this, asa principle, 
Mr. Hase can lay no claim, on account 
of an expired patent for this very ob- 
ject; granted to'the late Mr. Bramah, 
who proposed to erect the’most power- 
ful steam-engines to force water through 
pipes for actuating machinery in any 
part of London! Nor does it ap- 
pear, 
