To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY K. RUGER, of Bay St. Louis, in the county of Hancock and State of Mississippi, have invented a new and Improved Insulator, of which the following is a full; clear and exact description.

My invention has reference to the class of insulators for electric wires called "self-tying" and has for its object to so improve their construction that the wire can be readily and securely fastened thereto, the accumulation of moisture therein around the wire will be prevented, while extreme simplicity and economy are obtained.

The invention consists in certain novel and useful features embodied in the construction of my improved insulator, as hereinafter fully   described, and then definitely claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a front view of my improved insulator, showing a wire held therein. Fig. 2 is a side view: and Fig. 3 is a front sectional view of the insulator on the line x x, Fig. 2.

A designates the shank of the insulator, and B a support in which it is keyed or secured in the usual manner.

The insulator is provided with the usual water-shed, and is cast or formed in a single piece of glass or other suitable insulating material.

The tapering head of the insulator above the shed is cut or cast in a peculiar manner, constituting the improvement herein claimed.

The slot C is approximately U-shaped, starts at the front, and extends to the center of the insulator-head, the bottom D of the slot

inclining upward to said center, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. The side branches of the slot C approach the center of the insulator-head by equal curves E, which meet the short vertical slots F, extending downward therefrom at points diametrically opposite the center of the head. The bottoms G of the vertical slots F are curved inwardly and downwardly to the rear part of the bottom D of the slot C, so that any water or moisture entering the slot will immediately flow out thereof, thus preventing corrosion of the wire.

 To apply the wire, it is bent upward to correspond nearly with the forward U-shaped part of the slot C, and such bend passed into the slot to the rear end. The oppositely-projecting parts of the wire are then bent outward and downward, thus forcing them into the vertical slots F, in which they are securely held by the tension on the wire.

The curves E of the slot C facilitate the pas- sage of the wire from said slot to the vertical slots F.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is--     

An insulator for electric wires, formed with a U-shaped slot, C, having curved or rounding upper and lower surfaces and terminating in vertical slots F, the bottoms of the slots F being curved or inclined downward and inward to the bottom D of the slot C, and said bottom D being inclined downward and outward, substantially as shown and described.

HENRY K. RUGER.

Witnesses:

E. H. HOFFMANN,

LOUIS J. PIERNAS.