The Petroleum Centre daily record. [volume] (Petroleum Center, Pa.) 1868-1873, 1870-07-11
ROBERTS PETROLEUM TORPEDO.


.ORPEDOES.
THE ROBERTS
PETROLEUM TORPEDO Co.
Office at the
RED planning MILL.
Corner of Pine ana second Streets,
k(Ncar the RatlrOad,)
1TUsvILLE, PA.
Owing to the large and increasing demand for the
Roberts Torpedoss, and the late decision of the
Commissioner Of Patents In refusing to VIM. Reed
patent and the decision of Judge II. &. Grier sus.
taining the Roberts' patent they have LOWERED
the price Of their Torpedoes
TWENTY PER CENT.
40 that every Operator can aford.,U try a Torpedo
before abandoning Well.
The following is the decision rendered by Judge
Grier on the twenty.second (22) day of September,
1852 in the United States Circuit Court at Philade
pha. The case was argued three days by Charles
NJ Keller of New York, u. 4. Lucas and S A. Pur.i 4
viance of Pittsburgh, for defendants, and George
Ii. ",
Pittsburgh, for plaintiff.
OPINIONIOF JUDGE GRIER.,
As write with difficulty can only state the con
clisions to which my mind has come after a careful
examination Of this case. |
The comnlainant has exhibited vpatentrdated
good titie and puts on the respondents the bur
den Of proof that the patent is void or worthless
need not repeat my remarks in the case of Good.
year vs. Day t2wall, G. c. Rep; 229) but now
adopt them as atfording rule OF decision which ap.
plies clearly to the present case.
As the Infringement of the patent is admit ted
the only question will be as to the validity of com.
paInas patent Psr Ot Arl ~ iss ssS nsor
practice" and after repeated experiments, that the
complainant succeeded in overcoming he prejudice
and ignorance of the people on the subject, and
persliadng the public that his invention was use.
after he had established its great utility and value
and "when his genius and patient perseverance, in
spite of sncers and scoif.,' were completely sue.
cessful, that Reed, who had before made expert
ments on the same subject, and was unsuccessful
imagined that he had the best right to the invention
and after purchasing one OF more Complainants tor
pedocs, he applied on the ist OF November, 1897.
for patent for substantially the same combna.
tions OF devices and achine contained In COMPLAIN
ants patent. On the 18th OF the same month the
respondents formed themselves into company or
CORPORATION called "rhe Reed Torpedo Conlpanyn
yentiou, and supporting the expense of litigation
and thus defraud him of the fruits. They have PEI.
severed, even after the preliminary injunction very
properly granted by the District Judge.
Let decree be entered for complainant for per
petual Injunction. and Master appointed to fake
an account according to the prayer Of the bill.
- r. c. GRIER, Judge.
NorE.-The passage referred to bv Judge Grier in
his former decision, 3 Wallace, p 900, adopted az
applicable to this case was a. follows:
at is usually the case, when any valuable discov
Invented, Eat the attention of the public has been
turned to that subject previously, and that many
persons have been making researches and expert.
ments. Philosophers and mechanicians may have
the possibility probability Of such discovery or
inventions; many experiments have been successful.
ly lied, coming very near yet falling short of the
desired result They have produced nothing bene-
fetal. The Invention When perfected may truly be
said to be the eliminating point of many experi.
mon T. not only by the inventor. but BY many 9th.
ors. lie may have protited indirectly by the unsuc-
gives them right to claim share Of the honor of
the profit of the successful inventor II ia when
speculation has beeE reduced to practice, when ex
pertinent has resulted in discovery. and when that
Discovery has been perfected by patient ana contn
ued experiments, when some new compound, art
manufacture. or machine has been thus produced
which is useful to pubc,that the party making il
becomes apublic bcnefactor and entitled to patent
"Aud yet when genius and patient perseverance,
have at length succeeded, in spite of sneers and
SCOTS, some valuable invention or discovery, how
seldom Is IL followed by reward Envy robs him
Of the honor, while speculatOrs, swinders, and pi
rates rob him of the profits. Every unsuccessful
experimenter who did or did or did not come very
near making discovery now claims it. Every ons
who can Invent an Improvement or vary its form,
claims right to pirate the original discovery. We
need not summons Morse, or Blanchard, or Wood
worth prove that this Is the usual history of eve
nv great discovery or invention.
"l'he present case adds another chapter to this
long and uniform history.'-2 Wallace, C. T., Re
ports p. 292.