The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-05-22

the fTeslucnt IN UOuy tohc up 'he bo"~'
he boldly threw down. Don ouxole might attempt It.
No other knight will seek the rencouner
While the bill amending The patent laws was pending
on Monday before the Senate the following amendment
was offered
SIC =. And Be farther enacted, That all rules orders,
and bylaws Of the Patent once sha oe sneied Ia book
inspection all persons Iansaoaf business AZ the Patent
Office and said rules orders ana snah DC general
This amendment implies that the rules orders, and by
laws (o which last there money OF the Patent Office
ara moi now open for the inspection OF all PERSONS and
that they are not general in their application to all per.
sons doing business at that Office This is certainly an
error All the rules regulating the manner OF doing
business the Patent Office printed and distributed
gratuitously all persons hauing business rih the Office
and TO all others applying for them This has been the
practice OF The Office, believe, under every Commits
sioner from the reorganization Of the Office to the present
time. There is secresy uncertainty about those
regulations and in the main, they are now the same as
when originally adopted is true, they are within the
discretion OF The Commissioner, who may, whenever
the necessities of the Office justice require. alter,
amend, even suspend them. He exercises the same
discretionary power the rules which regulate the
business Of his Office the heads Of the other bureaus
exercise their respective Offices. We have never
known the rules OF the Patent Office to be altered
amended suspended for favorsm in single instances
and whenever they have been amended or suspended,
has been for the purpose Of promoting the despatch of
business in the Office to enable the Office do Justice
to persons having business with it, We know that such
the under the administration of the late Com
missioner and have doubt that il is also
the under the present Commissioner, And we will
take the occasion to AFFIRM that do not believe there ia
another office connected with the government which u.s.
aud has been, more mpartially and systematically ad
ministered than the Patent Office.
Yet we are that there are, and have been and we
have no doubt will forever continue to be- complaints
against that office account of the manner in which il
is administered The late Commissioner was constantly
beset with these complaints and the Office was constant.
" charged with Partially and corruption But these
charges mainly emanaed not from inventors but from
agents and patn pirates and if such charges are now
made we have doubt they in the main proceed from
like sources The late Commissioner was constantly
assaed by such PERSONS who are the pests of scientific
improvement, instead of its promoters. Instead OF tram.
melting the hands Of the Commissioner, Congress should
give him power to expel from the Office and disquay
from all future business intercourse with it, patent agents.
when guilty Of offences which would disquay them from
doing business in any respectable court of justice.
We have examined the bill now pending before the
Senate and find that many of its sections merely
what the law and usage Of the Patent Office, and
the residue we humbly believe would open all valuable
patents general invasion by patent pirates We are
Of those who believe that the honest inventor should be
protected by the instead of being exposed by
its legislation to the depredations of set Of men who
make business to infringe the rights of the inventor
and who, in point of morals, are not above common
thieves 1t is great mistake to call the right of property
in valuable invention a. monopoly. 1t is not monop.
oily in any sense OF the word The inventor is as much
entitled to his invenonthe production of his intellect
labor and moneyas the farmer 10 the bushel OF whea,
produced by his labor. the lawyer his fee That
right OF property be taken for the public use as all
private property can be, but not without adequate
compensation. This adequate compensation the govern
pent gives the inventor by processing to to him
the exclusive and uninterrupted Of his invention for
the term Of fourteen years, in consideration that the
end OF that time. IL shall become the property of
the public Therefore. the government is in justice
bound be liberal TO the honest and real inventor and
give him adequate protection for the term of time
stipulated for.
In the preceding remarks, dsclaim all reflection
upon the distinguished Of the amendment which
has furnished the text OF our article We have no
doubt his motives most honorable and praiseworhy
but we believe he has been wrongly informed with re.
gard to the matters 10 which the amendment relates
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