“I consider the use of sulphur to be objectionable, because of the offensive smell which it imparts to the article, and of the tendency which sulphur has to effervesce, or exude from the surface of it. And therefore I prefer the use of orpiment or some other sulphuret which will combine more effectually with the other component parts of the article.”
Fourthly, “My invention consists in a mode of rendering gutta-percha, or a combination of that substance with ‘jintawan’ and caoutchouc, or either of them, of a light, porous, and spongy texture, forming a species of artificial sponge, suitable for stuffing or forming the seats of chairs, cushions, mattresses, saddles, horse collars, buffers, and for many other useful purposes.
“To gutta-percha, which is intended to be made porous or spongy, for such purposes as aforesaid, must be added about 10 per cent. of rectified spirit of turpentine, or other proper solvent, and the whole mixed together by any convenient means. And if any of the above-mentioned compounds of gutta-percha is intended to be similarly treated, the caoutchouc or “jintawan” used therein, must be previously dissolved in from 100 to 200 per cent. of a similar solvent, the quantity of solvent being more or less, according as the product is intended to be more or less spongy and elastic. To the article which is intended to be made porous and spongy, must be added alum or carbonate of ammonia, or some other description of volatilizable substance.
“If the article which is intended to be made porous and spongy, is required to be made more permanently soft and elastic, it should be combined orpiment, liver of sulphur, or a sulphuret, in the same way as described in the third part of my invention. A portion of sulphur may, in such a case, be used, but I prefer orpiment, liver of sulphur, or a sulphuret, for the reasons I have before stated.
“The article which is intended to be made spongy and porous must then be thoroughly mixed with from ten to twenty per cent. of alum, carbonate of ammonia, or some readily-volatilizable substance, either in the masticating machine, or by any other convenient means. The material thus prepared, may be put into moulds, or forms, or upon trays, or confined in such a way as to cause it to assume the form which it is intended to possess. The material is then put into an oven or chamber, heated by steam or other convenient means, to a temperature of from 250° to 260° of Fahrenheit, at which temperature the article must be kept from one to two hours, according to the desired result. The effect of the exposure of the article to this high temperature will be to drive off the solvent with which it has been mixed, and at the same time, the alum, carbonate of ammonia, or other volatilizable substance before mentioned, cause the article to swell, and will render it porous and spongy. When the article has been exposed to this temperature for about one hour, it will be in the most porous and spongy state, and if the operation is further prolonged, the effect will be to render it less elastic and more rigid.”
Fifthly, “My invention consists in imparting, by the following process, to gutta-percha and its various combinations with caoutchouc and “jintawan,” when orpimented or sulphureted as aforesaid, almost any degree of hardness and tenacity, without injury to its water-repellent properties. I take the gutta-percha, or gutta-percha compound, after it has gone through the process described under the third head of this specification, and while it is yet in a plastic state, and press it into moulds, which I bind tightly together with iron plates, screws and nuts. I then place these moulds in a chamber or vessel raised by steam or hot air to a temperature of from 300° to 380°, for from one to five or six days, varying the degree of heat and the time of exposure to it, according to the degree of hardness and tenacity required, after which I set the moulds aside to cool slowly. The gutta-percha and gutta-percha compounds may be so hardened by this means, as to be turned in the lathe, like wood or ivory. And they are thus rendered applicable to a great variety of purposes, for which they could not in any other state be suitable, such as picture-frames, knife and sword handles, door-handles and panels, walking-sticks, chess-men, seal-holders, paper-cutters, combs, flutes, musical-keys, buttons, pulleys, ornamental and architectural decorations, &c.
“The material may be either at once formed into any of these articles, by making the moulds of the form and figure of the articles; or it may be produced in the first instance in plain blocks, and afterwards cut up and fashioned at pleasure, by such tools and instruments as are ordinarily used for like purposes.”
Eighthly, “My invention consists in forming in manner certain varnishes which may be applied to the water-proofing of leather or cloth, and in applying them either alone or mixed, without coloring matter, to gutta-percha or its compounds, or to articles made from them, they may have a fine, glossy exterior given to them, and the smell of any ingredient which may have been mixed up with them, and which may be of an offensive nature, (such as sulphur) may be effectually shut in. For this purpose I take the gutta-percha, or gutta-percha combined with “jintawan” and caoutchouc, or either of them, orpimented or sulphureted as before described, or sulphurize and dissolve it by confining the mass in a steam-tight vessel, and by placing that vessel in a chamber heated by steam or other convenient means to a temperature of 300° to 380° Fah., or I mix gutta-percha and caoutchouc, or gutta-percha and “jintawan” (using the substance indifferently, so far as the proportion one bears to the other,) with sulphur or orpiment, or other sulphuret, in the proportion before directed to be observed, where these substances are introduced with about eight to ten parts of animal or vegetable wax, or of animal or vegetable fatty matter, and then dissolved in rectified spirits of turpentine, and evaporate as before. As these varnishes combine readily with colors, they afford the means of rendering a numerous class of articles, such as elastic rings, bands, bandages, straps, &c., much more extensively, suitable and vendible than before. These varnishes mixed with colors, may also be used for the purpose of painting or printing cloth, leather, or any other fabric. These varnishes will also be found very useful as cements, particularly in combining gutta-percha and its compound, with silk, cotton, and other textile fabrics.”