Interest of Sir George Hay, grant. Surrender of former grant, and renewal thereof. Granting part. none other, shall and may, from time to time, and at all times, during the term of one-and-thirty years next and immediately following and ensuing after the date hereof, in all and every county, &c. (c) Letters Patent, 16 Feb. 16 Jac. . to Abraham Baker. (EXCEPTED IN THE STATUTE OF MONOPOLIES.) After reciting the grant of thirty-one years by the preceding, recited as follows: Which said letters patent, and licenses, powers, privileges and Knight, in said authorities, thereby granted, the said Abraham Baker, together with Sir George Hay, Knight, who had some power and interest, the same have surrendered and given up into our hands, to be cancelled and made void, which we have and do hereby accept : Know ye, that we, as well in consideration of the faithful and acceptable service to us done and performed by our trusty and well-beloved servant, the said Sir George Hay, Knight, one of the gentlemen of our privy chamber, and in consideration of his great costs, charges and expenses, bestowed in assisting the said Abraham Baker in the discovery, finding out and perfecting of the said art and invention, of making, working, and compounding of the said smalt, by these presents for us, our heirs and successors, at the humble request and nomination of the said Sir George Hay, do give, grant, and confirm unto the said Abraham Baker, full, free, lawful and absolute power, license and authority, that he, the said Abraham Baker, his executors, administrators, deputies, factors, assigns and servants, and every or any of them, only, and none other, shall and may, from time to time, and at all times hereafter, during the term of thirty and one years next and immediately following after the date hereof, in all, &c. Covenant by * * * *(d) And the said Abraham Baker, for him, his executors, and adsufficient smalt, ministrators, doth covenant, promise and grant, to and with us, our heirs and successors, by these presents, that he, the said Abraham Baker, his executors, administrators and assigns, shall (c) The other clauses in the letters patent are very nearly the same as in the preceding. The particular manner in which the former grant hereby repealed had become prejudicial is not stated on the face of the letters patent, but it is important to observe in this case of an imported invention, that the consideration of the grant is the supplying the kingdom with smalt in sufficient quantities, as good and as cheap as during the seven years preceding the grant. (d) The following is an abstract of the omitted clauses:-Power to all persons to import the raw materials-all forfeited smalt to belong to Baker -Habendum for twenty-one years, reserving 201. a-year to the crown-all others prohibited from making smalt-importation of smalt "from any parts beyond the seas or from or out of our realm of Scotland" into the realm of England, or dominions thereof, prohibited-grant of a seal with a half lion holding a sceptre, and the words sceptra fovent artes-no smalt to be sold without this device, and persons dealing in imported smalt to enter into bonds not to sell the same in England-all smalt not marked with said device to be forfeited to Baker-power to Baker to sue, and the letters patent or enrolment of them should be sufficient warrant to officers, &c.-Any mills, engines, or other instruments, for making the smalt in violation of the preceding, to be presented to the privy council, and, on good cause found, demolished, or their unlawful use repressed. and will, yearly and every year, and from time to time, during the said term of years hereby granted, make and cause to be made within this our realm, sufficient quantities and store of smalt to serve for the use of this our kingdom of England, and the dominions thereof, and shall also make the same smalt as good, perfect, and merchantable, as the smalt heretofore brought and as good and cheap as from beyond the seas hath usually been, and shall also utter and that heretofore sell the same smalt so by him or them made, at as easy and brought from beyond the reasonable rates and prices as the like smalt heretofore brought unto this our realm from the parts beyond the seas hath been usually uttered and sold for in this our realm, within the space of seven years, before the fourth day of February, in the sixth year of our reign of England, &c. scas. or dearness of Provided likewise, that when and as often as complaint and On complaint proof shall be made to the Lord Treasurer of England for the made to the Lord Treasurer time being, by any person or persons whatsoever, that the smalt of the badness made by the same Abraham Baker, his executors or assigns, the smalt, order shall not be fit for use, or shall be uttered or sold at greater or shall be made higher rates than the like smalt hath been usually sold for, respecting it. within the space of seven years last past, before the seven-andtwentieth day of July, in the third year of our reign of England, that then and so often, upon every such complaint, the said Abraham Baker, his executors and administrators, shall be ordered and shall stand to abide and perform such order and direction therein as the Lord Mayor of London for the time being, and any such four of the aldermen of the said city for the time being as by the said Lord Treasurer of England for the time being shall be in that behalf thereunto nominated and appointed, shall, upon deliberate hearing and examination of the matters contained in any such complaint, in their judgment and discretion set down in writing, under their hands and seals, to be observed, performed and kept, by the said Abraham Baker, his executors, administrators or assigns, in that behalf, although express mention of the true yearly value or certainty of the premises, or of any of them, or of any other gifts or grants by us, or any our progenitors or predecessors, to the said Abraham Baker before this time made in these presents be not made, or any statute, act, ordinance, provision, proclamation or restraint, to the contrary thereof, heretofore had, published, ordained or provided, or any other defect, uncertainty, imperfection, cause or matter whatsoever any wise notwithstanding. In witness, &c. (ƒ) (e) The following is an abstract of the omitted clauses;-Power of search and seizure, and the officers of customs to stop the introduction of any smalt-masters of vessels to swear that they are not bringing in smalt-proviso in case of failure of the raw materials that Baker may petition the crown for leave to supply the immediate demand by importation all mayors, &c. directed to aid in the execution of the grant, and no assignment to take place without the consent of Sir G. Hay. (f) See ante 8, as to the validity of the preceding patents at common law. Recital of the discovery of making iron with sea or pit coal, as good as that made with good. DUDLEY'S PATENT. (EXCEPTED IN THE STATUTE OF MONOPOLIES.) Letters Patent, 22nd February, 19 Jac. I. A. D. 1622, to James, &c., to, &c. Whereas our right trusty and well-beloved Edward Lord Dudley hath, at his great travail and industry, and after many chargeable experiments, found out the mystery, art, way, and means, of melting of iron ewre [ore], and of making charcoal; a the same into cast works or bars, with sea coals or pit coals, in work not formerly performed furnaces with bellows, of as good condition as hath been heretoin the kingdom. fore made of charcoal; a work and invention not formerly performed by any within this our kingdom of England; we graciously favouring and willing to cherish such ingenious and profitable inventions, and finding that the working and making of the said iron, by the means aforesaid, within this kingdom, Such invention will not only in itself tend to the public good thereof, but also for the public thereby the great expense and waste of timber and wood converted into charcoal and consumed upon iron works will be much abated, and the remnant of wood and timber within this land will be much preserved and increased; of the want whereof not only ourself, in respect of provision for our shipping and otherwise, but also our subjects, for many necessary uses, are That authors of very sensible; and holding it agreeable to justice, that the authors of so laudable and useful inventions should, in some good measure, reap the fruits of their studies, labours, and Granting part. charges; Know ye, that we, for the causes aforesaid, and other good considerations us hereunto moving, of our especial grace, certain knowledge, and mere motion, have given and granted, and by these presents, for us, our heirs and successors, do give and grant unto the said Edward Lord Dudley, his executors, administrators, and assigns, full and free liberty, license, power, and authority, that they and every of them, by him or themselves, or his or their deputies, factors, servants, or workmen, at his and their charges, shall and may, at all and every time and times, and from time to time, during the term of fourteen Grant of exclu- years next ensuing the date hereof, use, exercise, practise, and put in use, within this our realm of England, and the dominion fourteen years. of Wales, at his and their liberty and pleasure, the said useful inven tions should be rewarded. sive use of said invention for mystery, art, way, and means, of melting of iron ore, and of making the same into cast works or bars, with sea coals or pit coals in furnaces, with bellows; and also to make, erect, and set up, in any place or places, within the said realm and dominion, or either of them, any furnace or furnaces, engine or engines whatsoever, concerning the said mystery, way, art, and means, of sell the same. melting of iron ore with sea coals or pit coals, and of making the same into cast works or bars, as aforesaid, and the same iron so cast and made to utter and sell in gross or by retail, And to utter and or otherwise to do away, at his and their free will and pleasure, and to his and their best commodity and profit. And further, Prohibitory part to the end this our pleasure may be the better effected, and that the said Lord Dudley, his executors, administrators, and assigns, may the more fully enjoy the benefit of this our grant, we will, and for us our heirs and successors do straitly charge, inhibit and command, and do also of our more especial grace, certain knowledge, and mere motion, for us our heirs and successors, grant to the said Edward Lord Dudley, his executors, administrators and assigns, that no person or persons whatsoever, born within any our realms and dominions, nor any other person or persons, either denizens or strangers born in any foreign realm or country whatsoever, of what estate, degree, or condition he or they be, or shall be, other than the said Edward Lord Dudley, his executors, administrators, and assigns, or such as shall be by him or them set on work or authorized, shall or may at All others proany time or times during the said term of fourteen years hereby hibited from practising or granted or mentioned, or intended to be granted, practise, exer- using the said cise, or put in use, or in any way counterfeit, the said mystery, art, way, or means, of melting of iron ore, and of making the same into cast works or bars with sea coals in furnaces with bellows, or any furnace or furnaces, engine or engines concerning the same, within this our realm of England, or the dominion of Wales, or any place or places in them or either of them, upon pain of forfeiture to us, our heirs and successors, of the ore and iron so to be melted or made contrary to the true intent and meaning of these presents, and to have the said fur- Furnaces of innaces, engines, and devices, utterly pulled down and defaced; and fringers to be also upon pain of our high indignation and displeasure, and such further penalties, punishments, and imprisonments, as by any laws or statutes of this our realm can or may be inflicted or imposed upon the offenders, for their disobedience in contemning our royal command. invention. demolished. Provided always, and our will and pleasure is, that this our This grant not present grant and privilege, or anything therein contained, shall to prejudice any in force. (h) not in any wise extend or be construed to extend to the prejudice of any other person or persons concerning any other grant (g) With a constable to enter places where infringement is suspected. In case of resistance, Court of Exchequer to punish offenders.-All mayors, &c. to assist patentees in the enjoyment of their right. (h) At common law former grants were avoided by subsequent letters patent for the same thing; there had been several previous patents for the manufacture of iron with pit coal, some of which had been surrendered, post 16, n. ; these are not recited in the present grant, as in the smalt and glass patents, in conformity it would appear with the statute, 6 H. 8. c. 15. This proviso would probably obviate all objections to Dudley's grant under that statute, as well as save any prior patents still in force. A proviso to the same effect is contained in letters patent as at present granted. Law and Practice, Pr. F. XIII. n. m. Proviso for avoiding the grant if inconvenient. or privilege heretofore made by us, or any of our progenitors or predecessors, kings or queens of England, now in force, for melting of iron ore or making of iron or any iron works; provided also, that if it shall appear unto us, our heirs or successors, or the privy council of us, our heirs or successors, at any time hereafter, that this our present grant and privilege is or shall be inconvenient to the commonwealth, that then upon signification of the pleasure of us, our heirs or successors, under our or their sign manual, signet or privy seal, or upon signification under the hands of any six or more of the privy council of us, our heirs or successors for the time being, these presents, and every grant, clause, article, and thing, therein contained, shall cease, determine, and be utterly void and of none effect, any thing before in these presents contained to the contrary notwithstanding, although express mention, &c. In witness, &c. The history of the manufacture of iron with pit coal may be briefly traced. In 1612, Simon Sturtevant had a patent for thirty years, for the exclusive manufacture of iron with pit coal, in all its branches; and he was bound in return to publish an account of his discoveries, which afterwards appeared in his " Metallica;" but failing in the execution of his discoveries on a large scale, in the next year he surrendered his letters patent. Soon afterwards John Rovenson had a patent on the terms of publishing an account, which he did, a. D. 1613, in his Metallica; he also failing, surrendered his patent. Several other persons had patents, but failing, were compelled to surrender them. In 1622, Lord Dudley had the above patent, of which the following account is given by his son Dud Dudley, in the Metallum Martis. "Imme diately after my second trial I wrote unto my father what I had done, and withal desired him to obtain a patent for it from King James, of blessed memory; the answer to which letter I shall insert only to show the forwardness of King James to animate the inventor, as he did both Simon Sturtevant, John Rovenson, Dr. Jordanie, and others." Ib. p. 6. Dudley's success was very limited in the first instance, about three tons per week; the combination against him of parties interested in the charcoal iron trade, and others wishing to share in his new discovery, was very great. In 1651, an act of parliament was passed, granting to Jeremiah Buck the use of his invention of melting iron and other metals with coal, without charking. But his plan failed. Post 34. From the time of the invention by Dudley, for a period of one hundred and twenty years, little progress was made in the manufacture of iron. The epochs in the history of the manufacture of iron are distinguished by Mr. David Mushet, in his work, entitled " Papers on Iron and Steel," into the five following. 1. The invention of the blast furnace. 2. The use of pit coal and pit-coal coke in the smelting and manufacture of iron. 3. The invention of puddling and rolling bar iron by Mr. Cort. 4. The introduction of Mr. Watt's double blast engine. 5. The application of heated air to blast fur naces. The inventions constituting this last epoch are the subject of the two following patents. 1. To James B. Neilson, 11 September, 1828, for "the improved application of air to produce heat in fires, forges, and furnaces, where bellows or other blowing apparatus are required." The invention consists in supplying the air heated in a vessel intermediate to the furnace and the blowing apparatus. Neilson v. Harford and others. 2. To George Crane, 28th September, 1836, for "an improvement in the manufacture of iron." The invention consists in the combined use of the hot blast and anthracite. Crane v. Price and others. Conditions of validity. 1. The Grantee. Lord Dudley, according to the preceding account, was the first person who succeeded in making iron from pit coal; he brought, therefore, a new trade into the realm. Ante 5, 8. 2. The term. Fourteen years would hardly be considered other than a reasonable time. Ib. 3. The subject-matter. The result was iron made from pit coal, either in its natural state or coked, and the other substances in use before; so far as appears in the letters patent, the invention was simply the substitution of pit coal for wood or charcoal. It may be conjectured, from a variety of circumstances, that the success was due to an improved furnace, bellows and blast. The substitution, however, of coal as the fuel was the general feature of the invention, the means being subsidiary, admitting of continued improvement, and not necessary to be described; the common law only requiring the inventor to be in possession of such means, or the grant would be void for false suggestion. Other patents were granted subsequently for the same object, the means being different. As to Buck, post 34. 4. Novelty and utility. The preceding account shows that little doubt can be entertained as to the validity of the patents on both the above grounds. |