The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-01-23


sossss is fhyss.l and asntsl labor n would he impos
.abas ha discAlsc the sninstrats suties OF his
oaso sd hsaT IN pcn-n AL the aIgeais brought before
hssn oaa tle sisioIs II che examiners. The usage has
hsaee sso~u No ~ rsTing the investigation of most Of
the.s ssg-als bsd constituted sor the occasion con,
sstsls ~ t~o skslnlcfs, who make their report
b. ths CssnAsast AZ tiane poA1is ~es Isi,nanenee'
and ira assosaity lnccd have been constantly chang
ma ~hott a ersl examination of each report 10y the
Coan~sf wsdch u n,s uniicruity IN &C
ton and lA the Srsfiia "a pinsis csnnos o. maintain
"a. 10 tfcsent n fsinTs thai oiif which has been so
osa delogcd Ia the I~.ss hss hsa recommended that
there saa h. ag4luted permanent isrd Ut three eS.
anaiFefs sisf wls shall b. daixsd with the duty OF
hs~AnS and AsoFuiasg All agssas ifosn the Iadg-
,rnt al sls sassaas, rans.ss ss,s tribunal would
douia attain the eud suxhl anh ts inenirrs ot u,
shoud th.r appellate aass Dt fdis opy their time,
opud By tiss uesals-ssass x assigned labor ~ The
elasss Ecalrias sesh ~sanes sth much sisan'agc io
la e,a~ss..se a. ,s.luirilE Ialel. Ia applications or
designs ela.s ~ os-s in whlsh is purposes Of Illus
trsn the, arr rassly aeodcl and IN cas.s,asncc Of
llsc rscnsien iy she osg u e mssls IA all reecisd
apgsa,.s sias assaHslaieA has tscn A,i and threat
ems o. rEose ~ricas rel1e t,oontestcsor A iars"
nulnl-r ~ thcsc Ia-eIa whjh 0snlN innch ssae In
the bniIding adrsiei ~ ~ yalagoss, ani wcfe they
removed and the drawings aud slsslbsatias alono
tained pgeinsr to amy lnterysi, IUii % private
cDuld etlsns shoua Uafe~s lik IasfHr ~ Invest The
Commissioner With dl-TssiaIs satisiiS over them,
rs udicious exe4so woaa ssconIh results 'n'ch 10 lie
desrrd
IL win le observed that 81 che sgllss2 forth
te aggregate ~ tbc trefs
s5s. .ole ~ consisted d fees returned 90 applicants on
applications ~ithawn after examination aud fei.ston
The nccssy ui change in th STATURE oi the existing
aw has been heresofose exse~sed, and ls si ie with
Increasing force Did tie Ea,cnt constitute tie constr
alton for which the tee Of thirty dollars h is'd would
be but reasonable that this sna, par, cs H. shoaid i
returned upon the abandonment ci thc claim. such
however is not the The conrdcra ri tbs patent
n the surrender o the invention to the public at the
piration o years Cos whh the monopoly s
granted The thirty dollars tunia the compensation
and is than a ust for the labor bestowed
by the Office In the preparation and examination OF the
application When this has been Iesiomed II Is neither
Just expcdient that the wcll-earne compensation fof
il should, In whole ia part. lr withheld. tariff III
fees which, while dividing the services required. provides
that they shall be paid for step by step they progress
has been proposed and 1t Is hoped viii he inyoaby con
Sidered by Congress This woud he alike agreeable 60
the inventor and 10 the Office protecting as II would the
former from the oppression o la,ng for services not
in fact rendered, and the latter from the injustice oi per
forming any labor for which il is not remuneratej
1t should be mentioned that within the year Just closed
applications have filed letters ~ent several
Inventions, alleged to hc valuable. and 10 have been
made by slaves of the southern States As these persons
could not take the oath required by the statute and werr
legally incompetent, alike to receive patent anal to
transfer their interest to Others, the applications vote ne
c.ssarily rejected The matter s presented 10 the
consideration Of Congress- that, IN liz wirjo,n II may de-
eide whether modification of the existing aw should
not be made In order 10 meet this emergency which has
arisen, believe for the first time In the history Of In
ycntions in our country.
laws intended the rights Of inventors suggest
the propriety their careful revision At the expiration
OF his patent, the inventor is bound to surrender To the
public his invention the fruit 1t may be- Of many years
of xioIs toiand from this undertaking there is no
possibility of escape. As equivalent for this surrender
the go, ernment stands pledged to insure 10 him the
full and peaceful fruon of his monopoly during Its con
tinuance and this pledge constitutes one OF the most
solemn obligations of law and OF honor. The compact
thus entered into distinct in its import and recocall,
binding in its stipuations, is based upon the highest
considerations recognised by law, and ought to be
executed by the government with that scrnpnions
fidelity which should distinguish the strong
when dealing with the weak. While, however this spc
cics of property yields to other in its national i'm
lortunce and supasscs all Others in the amount which
il pays for the legal safeguards thrown around It, II Is no
torous that it enjoys but pccarous and Incomplete
protection The prominent OF the causes conducing
this result are the helpcsncss OF inventors as class
the peculiarly exposed character Of their interests TO bc
defended the universal impaenoe of legal restraints ms
manifested in that lawcssncss which 20 sadly mars the
,dy of the times in which VIC live and, lastly, the u
slul adjustment of subsisting instruncntates to the
performance of those duties of guardianship which the
government has assumed upon itself II the law elaxes
the vigilance Of its watch the homestead OF the ct
z,n he take his stand at his threshold and with
his right arm beat back those who would invade IL
but the rights OF the inventor cocxtcnsve with the
limits of the republic and may be assacd and scspoie
at thousand points in the same moment of time The
eyes of Argus would not suffice to discover nor the arms
OF Bareus suffice to resist the assaults of omnpresent
a foe it is his lot to encounter. III, then, the faith
which the government has plightcd with him ils he Is
utterly without shelter This is sketch OF the imagi
nation Again and again have inventors impoverished
in fortune and broken in spirit to this office, seek
ing the extension of their patents and demonstrating by
testimony that the fourteen years which should have been
devoted to reaping the harvest OF their labors were
than wasted in harassing and runoisly-expen-
sive litigation in defence of their patented privileges
The insolence and unscrupuousncss of caUta susldx
ing and leading its ncrccnary minons in the work oi
pating valuable invention held by powelless
hands, scarcely be conceived OF by those not familiar
with the records of such have referred to- In
yentors however gifted in other respects known To
be conidng and thess, and being generally without
wealth and always without knowe e of the chcanees
of the la they too often prove but children In those
rude conflicts which they called on to endure with
the salwart fraud and cunning of the world 1t would
certainly be practicable to ax limit to this oppressive
itigationat least to that feature of 1T which calls IN
question the validity of the patentwhe the sense OF
public Justice would not be shocked by ictng some
thing than verdict Of damages wanton offend
ers of this class 1t is admitted that the subject Is en-
baassed with difficulties but it is believed they not
nsuperable 1t is principle of criminal jurisprudence
that the penalty shall be propotoned in its severity To
the temptations and facilities which exist for the comm's
/ sion of the crime The principle b. a sound one and
would Justify legislation of unusual rigor in behalf OF tho
down -trodden interests of inventors
The existing laws authorize the granting OF patents
only to original inventors their representatives and
pnees While the wisdom of the general principle thus
asserted is ndenabe still certain facts connected with
the condition of arts and sciences in Europe would
Justify the inquiry whether, if compatible with the
stituon a solitary exception to the rule might not be
advantageously allowed 1t is well known that for