Jax. 



16^5] 



• KNOWLEDGE 



19 



(!?iii- InbrntoiG' ^Column. 



So great U the numler of inventions ncir pntcnfed that inanygO'd 

 things are eonrparatiicly lost in (he ci-ci(<?. A succinct account, 

 there/ore, by an Exjrert, of all inventions of really popular interest 

 and utility must be advantageous both to the public and the 

 lnx-entor,enabling persons to hear of i nventions already desiderated 

 by ihem, and thus acting reciprocally as a stimulant on supply 

 and demand. 



PERRY'S AUTOMATIC SPUING LETTER-CASE. 



A REAtLY good lotter-case is a most important convenience to 

 overy business man. Messrs. Perry A Co., of IS, Holborn Viaduct, 

 E.C., have recently brought oat what is known as their automatic 

 Sprinjr Letter-case, wherein tlie papers are secured by the agency 

 of steel springs fixed in the back of the case, the springs being of 

 unusual strength and durability, and capable of withstanding the 

 wear and tear of years of constant hard usage. This invention, too, 

 seems well suited for holding the various printed forms used in an 

 utfice, such as price-lists, circulars, consignment notes, Ac; two 

 inches thick of these can be inserted instantly, and taken out as 

 required with the utmost facility. 



THE "EXPANSILE" MUSIC-FOLIO LOCK AND CLIP. 



Maxt among us have occasion to carry music-folios and docu- 

 ments generally, and in such cases a good substitute for, say, the 

 india-rubber bands is much wanted. This requisite appears to bo 

 furnished by what arc known as the " expansile" lock and " pnc- 

 sidium " clips, designed by Mr. F. E. Taylor, of 115, Newhall-street, 

 Birmingham, to entirely supersede the old-fashioued a])|)liances at 

 present in use, and the music cover fitted with this lock and clips 

 will be appreciated by all who examine it. The interior of the case 

 is fitted with two of these clips, which hold the music very con- 

 veniently, and cannot be broken unless ijiade of bad metal. The 

 "expansile" lock, as indicated by its name, expands according to 

 the thickness of the documents which it has to secure. It is used 

 to lock up the case. The "expansile " is manufactured in brass or 

 nickel, and forms an ornamental addition to any article whereon it 

 is placed. If used on a carrier with flap, or in conjunction with 

 the new patent lock (" the expansile ") on a carrier without flap, 

 no elastic whatever is required, either inside or out, a circumstance 

 unparalleled in the manufacture of these articles. The "pra;- 

 fidium " clips can also be made to expand. 



NEW ENSILAGE CUTTER. 



The great advance now made in the Silo system is getting to be 

 noticeable all over the country, and agriculturists in general appear 

 fully aware of the advantages to be derived from the production 

 of ensilage, which formed so conspicuous a feature of the late 

 Cattle Show. In connection with this subject mention may be 

 made here of Messrs. Richmond & Chandler's New Ensilage Cutter, 

 which may be described as being a powerful cutting machine, fitted 

 with an open rising cover to prevent choking. It has three strong 

 knives on the fly-wheel, and the rise and fall of top roller is regu- 

 lated by two spiral springs in place of weight and lever. It has 

 especial safeguards to prevent accident to the attendant by an 

 instantaneous stop-motion that can be worked by either hand or 

 foot ; also a reverse motion that would be immediately put into 

 action in the event of the man's safety being endangered. The 

 hopper is fitted with an endless web that delivers the material in 

 regular quantity to the feed rollers. The fly-wheel is protected by 

 a wooden cover that prevents the cut stuff flying about and clogging 

 the gearing. The apparatus for delivering the cut ensilage into 

 the silo consists of a revolving web working at the bottom of a 

 trough underneath the machine, and upon which the cut material 

 falls ; this rapidly delivers it to an elevator worked by chain gear- 

 ing, which in its turn conveys it into the Silo. The whole machine 

 is very portable, being fitted with wheels and shafts for facility of 

 transit. 



THE IMPERIAL BROUGHAM HANSOM. 



Cabbiage construction has of late years greatly exercised the 

 ingenuity of inventors. One of the examples of this fact is found 

 in Messrs J. Marston & Co.'s Patent Imperial Brougham Hansom, 

 which may be shortly de.scribed as a very convenient business 

 carriage, capable of being used open or closed, and as an evidence 

 of its merits may be cited the fact that it has won a first prize in 

 all competitions. The doors are so constructed as to open inwards 

 or outwards; they can also be used half open when for a single 

 journey or emergency ; with a movable scat it will carry the third 

 or fourth passenger ; the windows on the sides and back fall down ; 

 the doors open inwards, quite out of the way, leaving the whole of 



the front, side, and back entirely open or closeil at will, and with- 

 out the least trouble or change. In appearance and stylo it is a 

 perfect single brougham, without a boot, but with an entire unob- 

 structed view all round. It is lighter than the ordinary hansom, 

 possesses all the comforts of a brougham and an open or closed 

 ciu'riage combined. It can be adapted to :ill seasons ; \\ itliout 

 leaving the seat, it may be opened or closed as much as the weather 

 requires, and can bo driven from the inside. The lamps light the 

 inside as well as the out. Illustrated descriptions of this carringi' 

 may be obtained from Messrs. J. Marslon & Co., 21, Bradford- 

 street, Birmingham. 



C.M'T.MX (.;0M)F1!.\P'S I'.XTENT N()Slvli.\(i. 

 Till-: ]iresent is decidedly a humane age, espet-ially as r(^gards the 

 lower animals. Most persons must at times have reniarkvMl on the 

 great waste of grain and fodder duo to the defective make of nose- 

 bags, whence too many horses suffer semi-starvation at times. The 

 object of Captain Goldfrap'a patent is to remedy this defect, and 

 this object is fully attained by a simple arrangement which allows 

 the animal to lower and raise his head easily in the bag without 

 obstruction. There is no necessity for him to chuck up the bag, 

 and finding this ho discontinues doing so. The use of the new 

 nose-bag will prevent, many accidents which now happen through 

 the removal of the bridle. It cannot slide ofp the neck, and the 

 horse can eat the ^vhole of liis food without any alteration of the 

 strap. The fittings will, it is claimed, last out many bags, and the 

 bags themselves, which never touch the ground, will last con- 

 siderably longer for that reason. All lovers of horses should do 

 their best to bring these excellent bags into universal use. The 

 dep6t for these bags is 17a, Great George-street, 'Westmingter. 



OUT-DOOR COOKING. 

 In these days of much sudden locomotion, of rapid transfer from 

 the comfort of " the shady side of Pall Mall " to tlio ruggedness of 

 tlie Soudan, or the arid waste, maybe, of an Asiatic steppe, appli- 

 ances for effective open-air cookery are simply invaluable to many. 

 In view of tliis fact, Messrs. Adams & Son, of .57, Haymarket, 

 are now manufacturing a patented invention of Captain J. C. 

 Baxter, of the Royal Engineers, designed for outdoor or jungle 

 cooking. The apparatus consists of two or more annular kettles — 

 i.e., kettles having a tube through their centre. When these kettles 

 are placed one upon the other, the combination of the tubes forms a 

 flue or chimney in which any description of fuel, such as gras?, cow 

 or camel's dung, or even damp wood, is by the induced draught 

 caused to burn freel}-, and with such results as to heating power, 

 that 27J gallons of water aro brought to the boil in ten minutes ; 

 while in twenty-five minutes rations for 70 soldiers can be made 

 ready with the expenditure of only 8 lb. of common firewood. These 

 kettles are made in sets of sizes and numbers to sitit all classes of 

 travellers, and pack one within the other when out of use in so 

 portable a fashion that one capable of cooking for a detachment of 

 70 soldiers can be carried by a single man. 



THE "FRANCHISE" GRATE. 



The ingenuity of inventors seems really inexhaustible in con- 

 nection with grates. The latest example of this appears to be a 

 new patented invention known as Jaffray's "Franchise" Grate, 

 which is said to effect an extraordinary economy in fuel. The 

 interior is composed of fire-bricks, carefully fitted together, with a 

 back-plate of cast iron. All these aro loosely placed, and can be 

 removed by hand, so that the flue can be readily cleaned with an 

 ordinary hand-brush. The quantity of fire-brick in the construction 

 is so large as to present a heating surface of about 1,000 superficial 

 inches in a grate of ordinary size. As the fire-brick, when made 

 red hot , is itself a medium for the diffusion of heat, only half the 

 quantity of coal to that used in an ordinary grate is roijuired, and 

 the fire-basket, therefore, is made verj- small. This constitutes one 

 only of the advantages of the grate on the score of economy; the 

 essence of the invention lies in its also burning the gases that 

 under ordinary circumstances aro driven up the chimney, carrying 

 with them a very large proportion of the generated heat. In the 

 Jaffray grate a direct up-draught is avoided. The register imme- 

 diately above the fireplace is closed after the fire is lit, and the 

 effect is to create a down, or rather a backward, draught, which 

 carries the smoko .and gas through longitudinal perforations in the 

 sloping fire-brick back of the grate, and passes themagaiu through 

 the fire to a hot chamber, where, with heated atmospheric air, 

 they are burnt, the residue of the smoke escaping into the chimney 

 through a very narrow neck, so placed that the risk of smoky 

 chimneys is reduced to a minimum. This invention is undoubtedly 

 a valuable jiractical contribution to our domestic economy. It 

 may be seen at work at the Jalf ray Patent Grate Company's offices, 

 6, Charing Cross, Loudon. 



