[draft:]
B.
3 Feb/57
It was a new invn or discy
That whn G. is mixed wh a phc liqd & dried on a surface: ye actn of light makes ye G. insol. in Wr
I wishd / place that invn undr ye protn of ye Pt laws – If any 1 says yt I hd no right to patt that invn I ask upn wht grds [illegible deletion] is yt objn made?
[expanded version:]
Bolton
3 February 1857
It was a new invention or discovery
That when Gelatine is mixed with a photographic liquid <1> & dried on a surface: the action of light makes the Gelatine insoluble in Water
I wished to place that invention under the protection of the Patent laws – If any one says that I had no right to patent that invention <2> I ask upon what grounds [illegible deletion] is that objection made?
Notes:
1. Potassium bichromate, sensitive to light when mixed with an organic substance – in this case, gelatine.
2. Talbot’s patent Improvements in the Art of Engraving, Patent No. 565 of 29 October 1852. For a description of the process, see H. J. P. Arnold, William Henry Fox Talbot: Pioneer of Photography and Man of Science (London: Hutchinson Benham, 1977), pp. 273–74. In 1857 Talbot sought an injunction against the Patent Photo-Galvanographic Company for infringement of his process.