The Petroleum Centre daily record. [volume] (Petroleum Center, Pa.) 1868-1873, 1870-12-20
soBERTs' PETR0LEUM TORPEDO.
ROBERTS PETROLEUM TORPEDO.
EORP EDOES.
THE ROB ERTS
PETROLEUM TlRpED0 CO.
Office at the
ssHD RLANING MILL.
Corner OF Pine ana second streets,
,Nenr the i;niiroadO
TIrUSVILLE, Pa.


Owing TO the large and increasing demand for the
Roberts rorped le-, and the late decision of the
Commissioner of Patents in refusing 10 VIM. hecd
patent and tae deslsi N of Judge Il. Z Gner sns.
Lluing the Roberls pltcnt they nave LOW EhED
the price vi their Torpedots
TWENTY. PER CENT.
40 that every Operator can afford " try Torpedo
before abandoning We'll.
The following is the decision rendered by judge
Grier on the tweniy-sccouu (.3 day of September,
lsJ9, in the United states Circuit Court 1T Phade
phia The case was argued three lays by Charles
N. Keller OF New York. b T. Lucas and 5. A. Pur
Vance OF Ptsburgh, for defendants, and George
Harding of Philadelphia, ana George IL. Ih,is,y, Of
pittsburgh, for plaintiff.
OPINION OF JUDGE GRIER
A, write with difficulty can only state the con
clusious 10 which my inInd has come after careful
examination of this case.
Inc cump piainant has exhibited a patent dated
25th of April, lo65. This Is prIma acie evidence OF
good title, and puts on the respondents the bur
den OF proof tnat the patent is void or worthless.
need not repeat my remarks in the case of Good
year vs.. Day u Wall, &. c. kep 2.9) bat now
adopt them as ailording rule oi decision which ap-
plies clearly to the present case.
As the Infringement of the patent is admitted,
the only question will be us to the validity of com.
plainants patent of April 81, ls5S.
"lt was alter speculation had been reduced to
practice, aud after repeated experiments, that the
complainant succeeded in overcoming he prejudice
and ignorance OF the people the subject, and
perSuaulng the puDc that his invention useill:
after he had established its great utility and value
and "when his genius and patient perseverance, in
spite of sncers and scot-,' were completely sue.
cessfui, that Reed, who had before made expert
ments on the same subject, and was unsuccessful,
ma ned that he had the best right to tue inv ention
and after purchasing ono of more Complainant tor
pedoes, he applied ON the lst of November, 1867,
for patent for substantially tho same combna
tions of devices and Wachins contained in complain
ants patent On the 18th of the same month the
respondents formed themselves into u company or
lrn rat R..I II.
for the purpose oi piratng the cOmplainanls in
vention, ana supporting tile expense oi litigation
and thus defraud him of the fruits They have pc:
severed, even after the preliminary Injunction Very
properly granted by the District Judge
Let decree be entered for complainant for a per
| petual injunction. and Il Master appointed TO take
| AL ACCOUNT aCcoTuiAS to the PRAYER OF the bill
X. &. GRlER, Judge.
| NOTE-The passage referred to bv Judge Grier in
| his former decision, Wallace, .. 900 adopted as
| app. icabie to this case was as follows:
1T Is usually the case, when any valuable di.cov-
cry Is made, or any new machine of Crt uli ty il
invented that tue attention of the pubic has been
| turned to that subject previously, and that many
persons have been making researches and expert
| ments. PHILOSOPHERS anu inechanicians NAV have
IN III some measure anticipated in their spvculations
the possibility or probability of such discovery or
| inventions; many experiments have been successful
ly tiled, coming very near yet falling short OF the
desired result. They have produced nothing bene-
| hcal. The Invention whei. perfected may truly be
| said to be the eliminating point OF many expert.
mon :, not only by the inventor but by many 9TH.
ors. de may hav. profted indirectly by the iinslic
cessful experiments and failures of Others, but il
gives them no right to cain share OF the he nor OF
tine profit of the successful inventor II Is when
speculation has been reduced to practice, when ex
pertinent has resulted in discovery and when thai
discovery has been perfected by patient ana contn
ued experiments, when some new compound, art
manuiactule, or machine has been thu produced
which Is useful to the public that the party making
becomes apublic benetactOr and entitled to patent
"And yet when genius and patient perseverance,
have at length succeeded, in spike of sn. ers and
SCOTS, some valuable Invention or disco ely, how
seldom Is il followed by reward Envy robs hin
OF the honor, While speculators, swindleis and pi
rates rob him OF the profits. Every unsuccessiu
eXperimenter who did or did or did not come yer
near making discovery now claims it. Every on
who can invent an Improvement vary its form
claims right 10 pirate the original discovery. W.
need not summons Morse, or Blanchard or Wood
worth to prove nat this is the usual history of eve
| ry great discovery or invention.
"rhe present case adds another chapter to thi
long ana uniform history."-2 Wallace, C. C. Re
ports p 292.