1839.] 



THE CIVIL ElVGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOUIINAL. 



231 



It does not apiicar to lis likely that this simple device will obviate the 

 difficulties which have been encountered, to a preater or less degree, in all 

 the numerous machines for breaking hemp, &c., tliat have been con- 

 trived and patented ; not one of whicli lias fully answered the purpose 

 designed. 



For an improvement in the Plaiting Machine for covering Whips; Sey- 

 mour Halliday, Westlield, Hampden county, Massachusetts, April 4. 



Koran improved Draft Box for Steam Engines; Andrew M. Eastwick, 

 city of Philadelphia, April 5. 



For a mode of forming a Spiral Flue for Steam Boilers ; Benjamin J. 

 Miller, city of New York, April 5. 



This tlue is intended for cylindrical, low pressure boilers, and consists of 

 a flat tube running spirally round from end to end of the boiler, between the 

 exterior case and an interior cylinder. The claim is to " the application of 

 one or more spiral flues to steam boilers, as described." 



For an improved Construction of Canal Boats, for conveying the Horses by 

 which they are towed; John H. Long, Lewistown, Miflin county, Pennsyl- 

 vania, April 5. 



" The nature of this invention consists in partitioning off a space about the 

 middle of the boat, on either side, and thus forming a siall, or crib, of suitable 

 length and brealtb to receive the horses; and extending from the deck of the 

 cabin to the bottom of the boat, in which is suspended, from the upper deck, 

 a platform by blocks and tackles, for sustaining the horses, and for lowering 

 them to the bottom of the boat when taken on board, and raised to the gunwale 

 when they are to be removed." 



" What I claim as my invention consists in the before-described construc- 

 tion of the stall, in combination with the suspended platform, in canal boats, 

 for conveying the horses by which they are towed, so as to have one or more 

 of them at rest whilst the others are towing.'' 



For an improvement in Repeating, or Many-chambered, Fire-arms; Henry 

 and Charles Daniels, Chester, Middlesex county, Connecticut, April 5. 



For an improvement in the mode of Printing certain Colours upon Calico 

 or other Fabrics; Bennet Woodcroft, Great Britain, April 5. 



After describing the mode of procedure adopted by the patentee, he says: 

 " Now whereas I do not claim, as my invention, either the printing machine, 

 or the particular construction or material of the dress to be used by the said 

 operatives. But whereas I do claim as my invention the enclosing calico or 

 other fabric intended to be printed, along with the printing apparatus, what- 

 ever it may be, and the material to be printed upon them, in a cham- 

 ber, case, or compartment, filled with an artificial atmosphere, de- 

 prived of, or devoid of free oxygen, such as atmospheric air deprived of its 

 oxygen, as hereinbefore desciibed, or any other suitable artificial atmo- 

 sphere, and there printing the said calico or other fabrics, with a solution of 

 deoxydized indigo when required to produce a blue colour, or with a solution 

 of deo.xydized indigo and other suitable materials as are usually used in com- 

 bination with indigo, when required to produce other colours, and subsequently 

 exposing the said calico and other fabrics, so printed as aforesaid, to the action 

 of the atmospheric air, in order to imbibe the necessary quantity of oxygen 

 therefrom to produce and fix the colours required.'* 



An air-tight room is to be made of sheet-iron, and this is to be furnished 

 with an atmosphere of nitrogen ; this is accomplished by means of a large air- 

 pump, which pumps the water out of the room, passes it through tubes into 

 purifiers filled with a solution of sulpburet of lime, which deprives it of its 

 oxygen, when it passes again into the room through tubes leading from the 

 purifiers; and this operation is continued until no sensible quantity of oxygen 

 remains in it. The entrance into the room is through a tank filled with water, 

 which forms a water lute, by a partition dipping a little way below the surface 

 of the fluid. This serves also to allow fresh air to be forced in by atmospheric 

 pressure, as the volume is decreased by the absorption of the oxygen. The 

 workmen have dresses of India rubber cloth, similar to diving dresses, and 

 air is supplied to them by bellows and tubes, as in diving apparatus. 



For an improvement in the Safety Life Preserver; John J. White, city of 

 Philadelphia, state of Pennsylvania, April 7. 



This life-preserver is to pass round the body in the ordinary manner, but 

 instead of being one continued inflated bag, it is formed into a number of 

 separate bags, connected, by mouth-pieces and valves, with one common 

 tube, by which they are all to be inflated. One of these bags is made so as 

 to constitute a bellows, by means of which the whole may be filled. The 

 claims are to " the above method of forming isolated air chambers, rendered 

 independent of each other by the interposition of valves, so that the loss of 

 air in one will not aft'ect the others, and yet capable of inflation from the same 

 source. Also the mode of inflation by the bellows, as a constituent part of 

 the machine, whether applied to life-preservers or other manufactured articles 

 requiring inflation." 



For an improvement in the Scythe Snath ; Samuel Puffer, Sunderland, 

 Frankhn county, Massachusetts, April 7. 



The claims are to " a revolving bush, or circular plate, for changing the 

 angle of the scythe, for cutting various kinds of grass, or grain, on various 

 kinds of ground; also the detaching one end of the book of the nib from the 

 other, to cause it to embrace the snath more firmly," &c. 



For a Machine for Shearing Cloth ; Reuben Daniels, Woodstock, Windsor 

 county, Vermont, April 7. 



For an Improvement in Carriage Springs ; William Sharp, Buidett, Tomp- 

 kins county, New York, April 7. 



For an Improvement in Coach Lamps ; William Lawrence, Wallingford, 

 New Haven county, Connecticut, April 7. 



For a Mortising Machine ; Francis and Thomas Burdick, city of Brooklyn, 

 New York, April 7. 



The general plan of this mortising machine is that of the larger number of 

 similar instruments ; the particular difference is in the manner of working 

 the slides up and down, which carry the chisels. There are two slides, 

 each of which carries a chisel, and these slides are carried up and down 

 alternately by means of a pinion placed between racks on the inner edges of 

 these slides, which are guided between vertical cheeks. A pendulous lever, 

 or handle, hangs from the shaft of the pinion, and by swinging this back- 

 ward and forward, the motion of the slides and chisels is obtained. A feed 

 hand is also made to operate in notches on the sliding bed piece which 

 supports the timber to be mortised. The claim is to " the double rack or 

 slides, to which the chisels are attached, worked by one pinion in the maimer 

 described." Tlie granting of the patent is prima/'acic evidence that there is 

 novelty in the thing claimed ; we do not perceive, however, in what consists 

 the superiority of this new arrangement of parts, over those of some former 

 mortising machines. 



For a Mortising Machine ; Ira M'Lauglilin, Sunderland, Bennington county, 

 Vermont, April 7. 



The claim under this patent is to "the method of securing the chisel, by 

 which means it can be readily reversed ; and the method of moving the chisel 

 backward and forward." The remark on the foregoing patent may, we think, 

 apply generally to this. 



For a Machine for Paring, Coring, and Dividing Apples; Robert W. 

 Mitchell, Martin's Mill, Richland county, Ohio, April 1 3. 



This, we believe, is the fourth patent obtained for the same purpose ; in 

 that before us the apple is to bo placed on » fork at the end of a shaft, or 

 mandrel, turned by a crank, whilst the paring knife, furnished with a guard, is 

 held in the right hand, and passed from end to end over the apple : this is 

 then pushed towards the shaft, which is furnished with knives that cut it into 

 quarters ; a centre tubular knife removing the core. 



For an improvement in Canal Lock-gates ; Franklin Livingston, Waterford, 

 Saratoga county. New Y'ork, April 13. 



The improvements claimed consist in a particular mode of constructing, or 

 forming, the bearings of the gudgeons of valve, or wicket gates; and the 

 application of a screw, working horizontally, for opening and shutting such 

 gates ; the arrangements of which require, for their illustration, an examination 

 of the drawings. 



For an Apparatus for Extinguishing Sparks in Locomotive Engines; Wm. 

 T. James, city of New York, April 13. 



There are several things in the construction of this apparatus analogous to 

 some others intended for the same purpose. The smoke pipe is surrounded 

 by a second pipe sloping outwards from it, and having a wide, or trumpet 

 mouth, extending somewhat above that of the smoke pipe ; the smoke and 

 sparks from this latter are to escape through lateral, curvilinear openings, by 

 which it is intended to give to the sparks a rotatory motion between the two 

 pipes, and allow them to fall, by their gravity, into the receptacle formed by 

 the junction of the said pipes. There is a cover to the smoke pipe in the form 

 of an inverted cone, which is designed to co-operate with the other parts of the 

 apparatus in producing the desired effect ; likewise a flanch within the upper 

 edge of the outer tube sloping downwards with the same view. 



The claim is to "the combination of the outer tube, the flanch, the conical 

 cover, the openings and spiral flues, in their combination with a smoke pipe, or 

 chimney.'' 



We have not heard the result of the experiments with this apparatus, but are 

 convinced that if it is so constructed as to arrest the sparks, it will, like its 

 predecessors, impede the draught. 



For a M.iehine for Plating Dough, and Cutting Crackers, Cakes, &c.; John 

 M. Neagle, New Haven, Connecticut, April 13. 



For an Apparatus for obtaining a high degree of Velocity on Rail-roads ; 

 Jacob NoUner, city of Washington, April 13. 



This is one of those strange conceits which sometimes insinuate themselves 

 into the minds of intelligent men, although it would be difficult for a looker-on 

 to find the avenue by which it could obtain an entrance ; indeed, it might well 

 be supposed that every avenue leading into such minds would be so well 

 guarded by the watchful sentinel, good common sense, as efi"eclually to repel 

 such interlopers. The plan proposed is neither practical or practicable, nor 

 did the inventor himself really think it so, hut determined to place it upon 

 record, under an impression that it might suggest, or had to, something useful ; 

 " so mote it be."' 



Let a rail-road be made perfectly level and straight, and solid as the ever- 

 lasting bills ; let a car twenty miles long be placed on this, and be drawn by 

 any adequate power ; let another car, say of ten miles in lenj-th, be placed on 

 this first car, at its rear end, and let this also have an adequate independent 

 motive power applied to it. Now let the two cars set off together at the rate 

 of twenty miles an hour; the upper car will, in this case, travel over the 

 ground at the rate of forty miles an hour, twenty being due to the motion of 

 the lower car, and twenty to its own motion. In the model at the patent office 

 there are f mr or five such cars, or move.ihle rail-roads, stratum superstructum. 

 The following is the claim : — 



" What 1 claim is the placing of two or more moveable railways, platforms, 

 or articles capable of progressive motion, one above the other, so that each may 

 bo drawn along by an independent power applied to it, and, like itself, sustdined 



