The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-17 00:00:00

ANOTHER.

The plaintiff in this case, a smoke-jack maker, who in
the year 1838 had taken out a patent for :propelling
vessels, by means of a screw working under water at the
stern of the vessel, and the defendants are Messrs. Penn,
the celebrated steam-boat builders. The action was
brought for an infringement of the plaintiff's patent, by
applying his screw to the steam-boat " Infant Prince."
Mr. Sergeant Byles conducted the case for the plain-
tiff, and Mr. Platt, Mr. Martin, and Mr. Peacock ap-
peared for the defendants.
It appeared from the evidence for the plaintiff.
that he had taken out his patent in 1838,
and that in 1839 he had caused a number
of experiments to be tried on b yard a steam-boat called
the Wizard, the name of which was subsequently
changed to the Cygnet, and that, in consequence of
those experiments, he had caused various alterations to
be made in the skape of his £crews or propellers. It
appeared that Mr. Francis Smith, the proprietor of the
Archimedes, was present at some of those experiments, and
one of the persons who had assisted at the building of the
Archimedes, deposed that she had first of all been fitted
up with a whole screw, which occasioned a disagree-
able vibration at the stern, but that subsequently
the whole screw had been changed for the sec-
tions of a screw, by which the vibration was got
rid of. A person had called on Smith for the purpose of
remonstrating with him, but Smith was not at home,
and it did not appear that any further steps were taken
in the matter. It also appeared that the Government
had adopted the same principle in fitting up some of her
Majesty's ships, but it did not appear what steps
the plaintiff had adopted in consequence. When
the defendant was fitting up the steam-boat
Infant Prince and another boat with steam propellers,
they were waited on by Mr. Curpmeal and Mr. Briggs,
a gentleman possessing 7-12ths of Lowe's patent, to re-
monstrate with him for using Lowe's patent propeller
without a license:; various interviews took place, at the
conclusion of which Messrs Penn refused to apply for a
license, and the present action was in consequence
brought.
For the defence it was contended that the invention was
not a uew one—that it did not differ in principle from
Shorter's patent skulling machine, which was invented
in 1800—that it was identical in principle
and nearly in detail with Millington's propeller,
which was patented in 1816—that a Mr. Brown,
had invented and published, in 1825, a method of pro-
pelling vessels by means of vanes working under water.
and had published it to the world, ; and that as far back
as 1815, had invented a method of propelling vessels by
means of a worm screw, or a number of leaves placed
obliquely round an axis; and that in Dec., 1829, a method
had been invented by Cummerow, of placing the screw pro.
peller between the stern-post, and the rudder-post.
The various patents andmodels having been ';,tit in, Mr.
Rennie, the engineer, gave it as opinion that
the principle of Lowe's il'",rention differed in
nothing from those ",;ready known, and that
the mode of propel =ing by means of curved blades
working und47, Water, and providing for the pass-
ing ar::y of the water without choking, had been in use
oefore 1838. On his cross-examination, he stated that
in Shorter's, Millington's Brown's, and Trevethick's in-
vention the vanes were flat, and that Cummerow's patent
' was for a whole screw, and not for a section of a screw.
The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff—Damages,
Forty Shillings.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.
GUILDHALL.

Thomas Barry, a respectably-dressed young man, who
was remanded on Saturday, on a charge of attempting
is pick a lady's pocket on Ludgate-hill, for the purpose
of making inquiries into his character, was again brought
up in charge of police-constable Wardle, 325.
A policeman of the L division of the metropolitan
police, stated that he had known the prisoner for the last
four years as a member of the swell mob. About that
time he was taken into custody for assaulting the police,
and was sentenced lo two years' imprisonment. He sub-
sequently, about two months since, was brought up be-
fore the magistrates for thrusting a lighted link in the
face of a policeman, and was sent to prison for 14 days.
He was a well-known character.

Alderman JonNsox said he should send him for seven
days for his present offence, and, as he appeared to be so
well known to the police, he had no doubt it would not
be long before he would be in their custody again.
Charles Why, a young urchin, about nine years of
age, was charged with stealing a sovereign entrusted to
him, the property of George Brown, hairdresser and per-
fumer, of No. 17, Ludgate-hill.

Alderman JOHNSON said that the lad had been often
before brought to the Court. On the last occasion Le
was sent, it appeared, with half-a-crown to buy some
meat for the purpose of making a little beef tea for hi. 4
sister, who was lying dangerously ill, and that he then
absconded and spent the whole of the money. It ap-
peared that he was incorrigible, and for his present
offence he should send him for three months to Bride-
well ; and in the meaatime see what could be dune with
him.