The Washington union., 1857-08-25

OF man who, after filing a caveat and paying twenty
dollars, demanded, in instance the return of ten dol
lars, and in another paying additional ten dollars
making thirty dollars in all the return of twenty dollars
which recently referred to him by the Secretary Of
the Interior
ArqosSsS GISERALs OFFICE,
August IL, 1857
Sin have examined the questions proposed in your
communication of the Esd ultimo, arising upon the pa
tent laws The presented, upon which they aiise
is substantially this
person fling caveat and paying twenty dollars
demands in the return of ten dollars, and In
Others paying additional ten dollars making thirty
dollars in the whole, and without doing any other act
demands return of twenty dollars The question Is
whether the commissioner is authorized to refund the
amount claimed in either oasl
The first question involves the meaning Of the law
cerning caveats The twelfth section of the patent law OF
1886 provides:
1ha any citizen of the United States or alien who
shall have been resident of the United States year
proceeding and shall have made oath OF his nten-
ton to become citizen thereof who shall have invented
any new art machine, Improvement thereof and shall
desire further time to mature the same, may, paying
to the credit of the treasury in provided in
the ninth section Of this act, the of twenty dollars
file in the Patent Office caveat setting forth the design
and purpose thereof and Its principal and distinguishing
characteristics, and praying protection Of his right till
he shall have matured his invention which of TWEEN
ty dollars in of tho person filing such caveat shall
afterwards take ont patent for The ntetion therein mentioned
shall be considered part Of the sum herein required for
the same and such cavcat shall be led In the cunden
tia archives OF the Office and preserved in secrcsy
This entities the caveator TO notice Of any competing
invention within one year, and allows him three months
to complete his application There no provision allow
ing SUCH to withdraw any portion OF the
,wentydolars fee which is required filing it, In the
absence of any such law it cannot be lawfully done The
claim to refund ten dollars in the should be reject
ed because there is no authority for such refmding
The second question depends upon the construction OF
The with
of which provides that whohas discovered or IN
vented any and useful improvement in any art ma
chine, manufacture, composition OF matter, may make
application in writing for a patent. lhe secnon then
specifics what the applicant shall do TO make an appca
ton The following being statute requirements, canno'
be dispensed with by the commissioners
But before any inventor shall receive patent for
any such new invention discovery he shall deliver
written description of bis invention or discovery and OF
the and process of making, constructing using
and compoundng the same in such full clear and exac
terms avoiding unnecessary proxity, as TO enable any
person skilled in the art or science to which 1t az
pertains or with which it is most nearly con
nected, to make, construct, compound, and use the
same and in of any machine, he shall fuiiy eA-
plain the principle and the several modes III which he
has contemplated the application of that principle char
acer by which it may be distinguished from other nven-
tons and he shall particularly specify and point out the
part, Improvement, or combination which ne claims a.
his invention or discovery. He shall furthermore, ac
company the whole with drawing or drawings, and
written references where the nature OF the case admits q
drawings with specimens of ingredients, and OF the
composition of matter sufficient in quantity for the pu
pose of experiment where the invention or discovery is
of composition of matter; which descriptions and draw
ngs signed by the inventor and aested by two witnesses
shall be filed in the Patent Office and he SHALL more
over furnish model of his invention in all cases which
admit Of representation by model of convenient sz
TO exhibit advantagcously its several parts The app
shall make oath affirmation that he does verify be-
lieve that he is the original and first inventor
or discoyerer of the art, machine composition or i'm
for vi,ic ne patent
does not know believe that the ever before
known or used and also Of what country he is citizen
which oath or affirmation may be made before amy person
authorized by law to administer oaths
The applcant must conform to this enactment The
Commissioner Judge whether the nature of the
admits of representation by drawings and models, ant
consequently their size and suciency and the sucienc
of the ingredients and composition Of the matter With
out conforming to the statute In making the application
it cannot be said that has legally been made II
impossible to withdraw application before it is made
and caveat is not an application Tor patent IN any
possible sense of that term it is clear that the Com
missioner cannot refund portion OF the caveat fee as
claimed.
One Of the steps TO be taken in making application
is paving into the treasury thirty dollars The twelfth
section of the act provides that where caveat has been
fled and twenty dollars paid, and the caveaor shall
afterwards take out patent for the invention therein
mentioned said twenty dollars shall be part OF the
sum herein required for the sum.
BY very liberal, instead of strict, construction,
understand it has been held that the twenty dollars may
he treated as portion of the thirty required to complete
the application that the applicant only pays ten dol
lars in addition thereto. The payment OF the ten dol
lars additional does not convert caveat into an applica
ton 1t merely completes OF the steps required by
the statute. Added to the twenty paid on iling the
caveat il makes up the fee of thirty required by law
But the other steps required by the sixth section t.
make an application still remain to be taken Tn
cayet sets forth the design and purpose and prin
cipal characteristics, and prays protection, This
can be- and is done without describing tho pro-
cess of making, constructing using, and compound
ing the same in such full, clear, and exact terms
as to enable others properly skilled to Z construct
compound and the same The cavcator is not re-
CURED to explain the principle involved or the modes IN
which it can be applied how is distinguished from
other inventions. He is not required to furnish speci
mems of ingredients and compounds, nor models noi
drawings nor make oath TO his invention OF discovery
Nor does the caveat necessarily ask for a patent
cayeat neither requires the petition specified in the
sixth section nor the specification there required The
Commissioner can perform act upon the cavea beyond
fling IT, nor in consequence of it, except TO give the ca
veator notice of a conflicting application when made
cveat and application different as the provis-
ions of law which relate TO them There is no provision
for Withdrawing caveat Money cannot lawfully be re
turned TO one who only files cayea whether he make
up the thirty dollar fee or not.
Bv the eighth section the Commissioner Is required
..on the filing of any such application description, and
specification mentioned in the seventh section and
this pnymen Of the Duty to examination OF tho
alleged discovery invention, and to grant patent Il
certain things specified in the section appear 1t then
imposes another duty the Commissioner in the follow
ing words
But whenever on such examination, 1t shall appear
to the Commissioner that the applicant not the orig
nal and first inventor or discoveror thereof that