1858-06-07 James Ferrabee Patent No 1277 P04

instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.

NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Ferrabee, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per- formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-

This Invention relates, firstly, to improvements in the construction and arrangement of the cutting parts of mowing machines, and in the means of regulating their action; and, secondly, to improvements in revolving brushes and rakes, and the application of the same in the manufacture of hay-making and sweeping machines.

In the accompanying Drawings, Figures 1 and 2 are elevations of a grass- cutting machine, showing part of my improvements applied to ordinary mowing machines. Fig. 3 is an elevation of my improved frame and carriage; and Figure 4 is a plan of the same.

In Figures 1, 2, and 3, A is the improved carriage or frame made in one piece and attached to the main frame of the machine by the screw pins a, a. b is a carriage for carrying the cutting cylinder, and turns on the pin c; d is a link attached to b by a joint and pin; e, e', are set screws for adjusting the cutting cylinder to and from the fixed blade f; g is a lever attached to the main frame by a joint and pin; h is a link jointed to the lever g; i is a small ground roll turning on a spindle running in the end of the link h; k is a handle with a pawl for retaining the lever g in its place, and I is a rest for holding a grinder and sliding on the top of the frame A.

The lever g, with its jointed link h, and the small ground roller i, are for the purpose of altering the length of cut while the machine is in motion, and for raising the cutting parts when turning the machine or to avoid obstructions. By relieving the pawl from the rack, and pressing down the handle of the lever g, the front part of the machine is raised from the ground, and by an opposite movement of the handle it is again lowered. This mode of adjustment may also be applied to the front guide wheels m for regulating the length of cut, 35 or those guide wheels m may be adjusted by a pinion and rack, as shewn in the Drawings, or by an excentric [sic] and lever.

The frame A may be made in one piece or of several pieces fitted together, the object being to support the whole of the cutting parts with their several