causes the faces of these hammers to approach each other, and to beat or press the red-hot rod of iron introduced between them, so as to flatten it on two opposite sides. The rotary cam passing round, the wedge lever is released, and springs instantly throw back the hammers: when another cam and wedge lever brings the second pair of hammers to act upon the other two sides of the nail in a similar way. This is repeated several times, until the end of the red-hot rod, gradually advanced by the hands of the workman, has assumed the desired form, that is, the bevel and point of the intended nail.

The rod is then withdrawn from between the hammers, and, in its heated state, is introduced between the jaws of the holders for cutting off and heading the nail. A bevel pinion, on the end of the main shaft, takes into and drives a wheel upon a transverse shaft, which carries a cam, that works the levers of the holding jaws.

The end of the rod being so held in the jaws or vice, a cutter at the side of a wheel on the transverse shaft as it revolves, separates the nail from the end of the rod, leaving the nail firmly held by the jaws. The heading die is now, by means of a cam, slidden laterally opposite to the end of the nail in the holding jaws, and another cam on the main shaft forces the die forward, which compresses the end of the nail, and spreads out the metal into the form of a head.

As the main shaft continues revolving, the cams pass away, and allow the spring to throw the jaws of the vice open, when the nail falls out; but to guard against the event of the nail sticking in the jaws, a picker is provided, which pushes the rail out when finished.

In order to produce round shafts, as for screw blanks, or bolts, and rivets, the faces of the hammers must be made with suitable concavities, and the dies for heading also.

A second "example" of a manner in which the abovedescribed machinery may be worked principally by cranks and rods, instead of rotary cam shafts and levers, occupies three other sheets of drawing; and the description of its operation is repeated nearly verbatim. A third "example" is shown in a seventh sheet of drawing, in which the hammers and other moving parts are mounted and imbedded in sockets or recesses formed in blocks of cast iron, the operation of the machinery being nearly the same as abovedescribed. Inrolled in the Rolls Chapel Office, January, 1837.]

To RICHARD WOOD, late of New York, in the United States of America, but now residing in Bishopsgatestreet Within, in the city of London, (being one of the people called Quakers,) for his having invented an inking apparatus to be used with certain descriptions of printing presses.-[Sealed 24th May, 1831.]

Tuis improved apparatus for inking a form of types in a printing machine, consists of a certain arrangement of cylindrical rollers connected to levers, which, by means of rotary mechanism, are made to receive the required supply of ink from an ink-trough, to distribute it uniformly upon the periphery of the inking roller, and to carry that roller to and fro over the face of the flat form of types, for the purpose of giving the requisite quantity of ink for every impression.

There is some peculiarity in the way in which these rollers are mounted and made to work, but which does not appear to present any sort of advantage over the ordinary modes, nor is it by any means so simple.

The apparatus being affixed to a printing press of any of the ordinary constructions having a flat table, a winch is to be turned, which, by means of a shaft and toothed wheels, causes the ductor roller to rise and fall upon vibrating arms, for the purpose of communicating the ink from the trough to the distributing roller. This last-mentioned roller has a lateral movement, as well as a rotary action, produced by a screw-thread upon the end of its axle, acted upon by a tooth, in the same way as in many of the printing machines in common use; which lateral movement is for the purpose of spreading the ink upon the inking roller uniformly, and not allowing it to lay in bands of different thicknesses. The axle of the inking roller is mounted in vibrating arms or long levers, which are, by rods and cranks connected to a fly-wheel, made to carry the roller to and fro over the face of the types, in order to ink them.

This construction of inking apparatus, it will be perceived, has considerable complication, to explain which fully several figures of drawing would be required; we do not, however, think the subject deserving of that attention from us, as the only feature proposed as new, is the general arrangement of the whole; the parts being all well known, and have long been in use for the same purpose. [Inrolled in the Inrolment Office, September, 1831.]

AMENDMENT OF THE LAWS RELATING TO PATENTS FOR INVENTIONS.

Another bill for amending the Patent Laws has been introduced into the House of Commons by Mr. Mackinnon, M.P. for Lymington, and Mr. Baines, M.P. for Leeds. The present bill is in all its features different from that which was presented to the House last sessions by Mr. Mackinnon; and if we are to form any judgment from the speech of the hon. member in introducing it, as reported in several of the newspapers, we should conceive that he is very little better informed as to the real defects of the laws and practice regarding patents than he appeared to be on the former occasion.

The bill comprehends twenty-nine clauses, which are much too voluminous and extensive in their range of subject for us to discuss the merits of upon the present occasion. We shall therefore merely state the leading features of the proposed law, leaving our readers to digest the bill itself, and conclude with a few remarks upon its general bearings.

The first eight clauses of the bill are for the constitution of a new court or Board of Commissioners of Patents, and the regu lations by which they are to discharge the duties of the office in place of the Attorney and Solicitor-General, who are to be superseded, and their part in the business of granting patents to be transferred to the new Commissioners. The ninth clause directs the new routine of granting patents, or rather the ordeal through which Patentees and their Agents will have to pass in soliciting a patent. The tenth, eleventh, and twelfth clauses repeal those parts of the late Act which allowed disclaimers of any portions of the title or specification of a patent, subject to the approval of the Attorney or Solicitor-General, and transfers the same powers under similar regulations to the new Commissioners.

The thirteenth clause reduces the stamp duty upon a patent to 10%; the fourteenth gives the date of the patent from the filing

of the petition; and the fifteenth extends the patent right, if desired, over Great Britain, Ireland, and the colonies.

The sixteenth to the twentieth clauses inclusive, are for the purpose of protecting new designs and patterns in works of art from piracy for one year, and for granting protecting licenses for that purpose.

The twenty-first clause abolishes all fees heretofore paid at the public offices in soliciting patents; the twenty-second empowers the Secretary of the Commissioners to receive all fees in future payable for such grants; the twenty-third directs the payment of salaries to the Commissioners, Secretary, Assistant-Secretary, Registrar, Deputy Registrar, Clerk, Messengers, and all other officers or servants out of the funds produced byt he above payments of fees; and the twenty-fourth fixes a penalty upon any such official person who shall act directly or indirectly as a patent agent, that in the procuring, maintaining or opposing of letters patent, under a penalty of 50%. and expulsion from the office. This is very proper, and would remove a very serious evil which at present exists.

The twenty-fifth clause empowers the Commissioners to issue general orders and settle all extra fees, which are to be approved by the Lord Chancellor; the twenty-sixth allows compensation to all persons who shall be injured by the operation of this Act; the twenty-seventh directs that all surplus monies remaining after the satisfaction of these demands, shall be carried to the Consoli dated Fund; the twenty-eighth allows this Act to be altered during the present session; and the twenty-ninth, that the powers and provisions of the Act shall come into force on the 1st January, 1838.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

"Mr. Mackinnon moved for leave to bring in a bill to alter and amend the Patent Laws, and for better securing to individuals the benefit of their inventions. In making this motion, the hon. member urged upon the consideration of the house the importance in a commercial and manufacturing country, of stimulating ingenious and enterprising men to devote their minds to improved