Solomon Henry’s Explanatory Notes relating to his Patent Drawings:
No. 1 The Street or Warehouse Door Lock shooting six or more bolts: (a).The Lock, (b.b) The Bolts, c). The Receiver, (d). The Leather or other substance fixt in the pipe to deface a smoak’d Blank.
No. 2 The Desk Lock and Receiver.
No. 3 The Front of the Padlock: (a). The Guard that covers the Pipe for the Key to enter which is opened by a Sprung Catch at the bottom or Side of the Lock. (b). A small hole through which a cross bitt at the top of the key is put to open the Spring Catch, or cover of the pipe.
No. 4 The Reverse Side of the Padlock. (a).The back of the Receiver into which the ball falls.
No. 5 The inside View with the Wards on the back of the padlock: (a). The Bolt, Tumbler and Spring, (b). The Ratchet and Serpentine Ward, (c) The Wheel Ward, (d.d.) The small Ratchet Wards or points that meet the Key at its first entering, (e) The hole through which the Ball passes into the Receiver, (f). the Jagg’d or Serpentine Ward abstracted from the Padlock, (g). The Two small pointed wards abstracted from the Padlock.
No. 6 The inside View with the Wards on the front of the Padlock. (a). The Pipe for the Key to enter, (b). The Serpentine Ratchet Ward correspondent with and covering round the Ratchet Ward of Letter (b) No. 5. This Ward is jagg’d at the points the same as the above Wards, (c). Two small jagg’d Wards or Points correspondent with and answering to two of the same kind in No. 5 that meet the Key at the first entrance.
No. 7 The Back of the Lock with the Receiver down the Spring extended and the Valve up for the Ball to pass into the Receiver. (a). The Spring, (b) The Valve, (c). The Receiver.
No. 8 The Key of the Lock with a Flat Head. (a). The small Bitt for opening the Spring catch or Cover of the Pipe to let the Key enter, (b). A Guide or Mark to show which side should be upwards, (c). A Slider that slips down on the Bitt of the Key when it is turned into the shank makes it convenient for the pocket and prevents persons seeing the wards of the Key, (d). The Bit or Tongue of the Key swinging out of its shank.
No. 9 a. a. a. a. a. a. The different forms amongst others in which the pipes are made.
No. 10 The Key in a different Form. (a) The Cap that covers the Bit put through the Eye of the shank in the form of a Corkscrew.
No. 11 The Ball that is put in the Pipe and drops into the Receiver when an attempt is made to pick or open it.
Comment
Whether Solomon Henry ever produced any locks with many of these strange and probably costly ideas is doubtful. Since there doesn’t seem to be any such items available for collectors to see. However if anyone knows otherwise, information would be greatly appreciated.
Further details about Solomon Henry and his lock patent may be obtained from The Lock Collector journal Issue No. 15.