Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1860-1862, 1860-09-15

have been sold during the present term of
The patent. il Is aTgued that The quantity
sold during the next sever years mus, amount
10 many millions of dollars. and that. there
lore the inventor should be proportionately
remHnerated. or. III other words, that instead
Of being half millionaire he should be made
a whole one We need not point out the abb
surdity OF such an argument. II admitted ii
would al once establish what Congress has de-
termined 20 get rid GA vested interest on
the part of the inventor in all the future pro-
ceeds of his discovery. But the injustice OF
the principle cannot be better demonstrated
than BY the example before us. Here is "a
man who has been made abnndantly rich by
the monopoly of ii chance idea, OF but very
little originality in itself, who claims TO tax
for "A perpetuity The very Likelihood OF bun
dIrefis of thousands of poor sewing girls, who
toll twelve or fourteen hours in the day 10
exc out prccarious subsistence. The cost
of the best sewing machines, with the Howe
impi ovements. owing 10 the protection at
forded to the pateHtees by the law, Is from
seycnfy-five 10 a hundred dollars. although
their expense of manufacture does not
amount TO fourth of these Sums. Whilst
the inventors should be accorded fair remit
nerati0H for their lab7rs. it Is manliesiiy
against the Interests of society that congress
should give them 4 longer monopoly oi the
D"EtHtS Oh tDef Ingenuity itiNth " III SuhiOC W
effect that object. We contend that this has
been done in Mr.. Howe's case, and we pro-
test. in the name Of the poor, oVcrworked
creatures Tor the Improvement OF whose con-
dition Providence evidently inspired the idea
of the sewing mOchinc against its price b.
Ing thus unnecessarily enhanced.
Should The reported extension oil this pa
tent turn out to b. correct ii will lead 10 one
important result. We have always been OPP
posed 10 the placing in the hands Of any
public officer power 50 dangerous as 'nat
wich is coniid ii To the Commissioners under
the law. Were he never 50 honest it would eN-
pose him TO unjust suspicious, and IN any case
la temptations which not one man cut OF ten
. can resist. Just look at the enormous taIuc OF
+r4.- ...s,-r~su- IN SUCH pa'ehtS do
those of Colt. the India rubber companies,
the Telegraph. and fifty others that we could
namr. OF shat importance il would be Tor
the OwueIs Of any of these to find Conn
missioner of Patents accessible to- the iniiu-
eucc Of a bride Ii would bc well worth
while TO give such IL man one, two, three, or
even four hundred thousand dollars to secure
4 seven years extension of Il gigantic monop-
oily whose y! Olits amount 10 several millions.
| We ohIcct. Therefore, to any pubic officer DC
ing EXPOSED 10 the chance OF il, which must
be the case If by any error Of judgment ne
ran counter 10 the public interests by recoS-
niziil., such claims a. that of Mr.. Howe We
sincerely trust that the report of his having
done 50 will turn out TO b. incorrect. Should
il prove otherwise, 1t will certainly lead 10
an agitation Ion the repeal of that clause IN
the patcut law which gives the Commissioner
this dangerous discretionary powcr.-A. l.
Herdia