Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1870-06-23

unfairly SEAbeQ 10 the COmmiSteo on
Patents
Mr.. Butler, interrnpting: do not
give way to be abused by a man who
has more beard than brains,
Mr.. FarnswOrth: That is a most
excellent retOrt, as good as the mem
Der Is capable of making. The mem
Der may curse my beard, but he can
not steal under the shadow of my
beard, My point of order is that the
gentleman, the member from Massa-
chusetts, has no right to be an adVO-
cate on this floor for a fee of $1,000.
The Speaker reminded the gentle
man from Illinois that the question OF
a members interest in matter be-
fore the House is universally left to
that gentleman's own sense Of prOpri-
ETY.. E
/ Mr.. FarnswOrth urged the reading
of the communication of the Commits
siOner OF Patents, to show that But
Ter had received full two thousand
! dollars.
/ The time for which Mr.. Butler had
the floor having expired, Mr.. Eldridge
asked that the time should be extend
| ed. 1t was a matter of great impor-
tance, and the House and the country
wanted to know all aboutit.
Mr.. FarnsWorth insisted on his
point of order, and the Speaker di-
! rected that the rule be read, which di-
reefs that no member shall vote on
! any question in the event of which he
] Is Immediately or personally inter-
ested; and stated that if the rule was
enforced in the utmost stringency, it
could not prevent the gentleman
from Massachusetts from debating the
question, the rule was limited entire
ly to the question of voting. 1t was
for the gentleman himself to decide
upon his honor or his oath as Il mem
Der. The Chair could mot be con-
science keeper of members. Jenckes
having four minutes time left, said he
would yield it to Butler.
Mr.. Butler said he did not ask for
half of it, he only wanted the record
to be read, which would brand the
statement of the member from Illinois
as malicious falsehoOds and an infam-
Gus .seDsation. ar
Mr. Farnsworth: Have 1t read.
Mr.. Butler: The entry is one of two
thousand dollars for counsel fees paid
me in january, 1869, when 1 argued
the case before the Supreme Court,
where, by the brief as filed, it was
for eounselfees and nothing else.
FarnsWorth said he would read the
record.
Butler desired it to be read at the
clerks desk. The paper was sent to
the clerks desk and read, and from
which it appeared that Butler had
written to the Commissioner of Pat
ents, suggesting that the patent would
not be extended without an examina-
ton, and he received q counsel fee of
$1,000 from applicant.
Farnsworth sought the floor, bat
Jenckes insisted on the previous ques-
ton.
The House, however, being in the
humOr to enjoy and encourage the
scene, refused to second the previous
question, and FaFnsWorth obtained
the floor. He said there were two
facts prominent in the matter. The
first was that in 1869 there was pend
ing an application from ROllin White
for the extension of his patent; that
that fact became known to the men,
Der from Massachusetts,, and he vol
unteered protest against it. Wheth-
er that was for the purpose of
cOurting the offer of 81 counsel fee, he
did not know. The second fact
was that when White fled his sched-
ule of expenditures in 1869 in order
to show that he had not made as much
out of the patent as he should, he en-
tered as one item of expenditure in
January, 1863, he paid member from
Massachusetts $1,000 for counsel fees. |
He would further state that the men,
Der did not Atter a word in the Su-
preme CoufT in behalf of White,
though he did I'LL very small and
insignificant bItef, so it might appear
that he did something in the Law |
Court toward earning his $1,000, but |
he (Farnsworth) would leave it to the |
House ard the country to deter |
mine what the motive of White |
in paying $1,000 was, and whether
it was not $1,000 that induced the |
member from Massachusetts to advo- |
cate on this floor the extension of this |
patent. The member had spoken of |
the length of his beard, and he (Mr. |
FarnSWOrth) had told him then, as he |
did now, that long or short no MEM |
ber of Congress with his knowledge |
should steal under the shadow of |
Ills tIldl AUll2IE1S |
should with his knowledge perpetrate |
fraud Ike this on the people of the |
United States whose interests were |
violated, as Mr.. Butler said, in his |
letter to the Commissioner of Patents, !
by the reissue of this patent. 1t would |
be noticed that in the letter written |
by the member in 1869, he said the re-
issue of this patent would be subservi-
ent of the interests of the Govern |
ment, but fee of $1,000 changed his |
views, and now the member forgetting |
his oath and forgetting his interest OF |
the United Statgs, advocates a reissue |
of the patent and avdises the patentee |
to make AN assignment of his inter- |
est to the Government, when the evil |
dence was that he had assigned it |
long before to Smith & Wesson, and |
therefore has no right to ase'gn it to |
Government and yet the plea |
of the member from Massachusetts |
was that his advice was worth $1,000,
and that while he gave him $1,000 for |
it that it was too thin a cause, too
thin veil, too shallow a pretenSe, for |
a member would not thus compound;
for since he was inclined to by dam
aging those he had no mind to be
believed, the House and country
would aFraign the member from
Massachusetts, for being on both
sides of the question, first one side
and then the other side for fee.
The Speaker called Mr.. Farms worth
to order.
Mr.. Garfield remarked that such
language ought not to be heard in
these halls.
Mr.. Farnworth said he had finished !
and moved the previous ques tion. A |
general murmur of disapprOval |
showed that the House did not relish |
the idea of shutting off further dis
cussion. The Speaker asked Mr.. Farms
worth whether be insisted on hisde- |
mand. Mr.. FarnsWOrth withdrew it. |
Mr.. Butler replied to Mr.. Farms
worth. AS he was speaking the
members gathered around to hear his
remarks, which were at times very
indistinctly heard by the reporters.
He denied having manifested any in
terest in the bill before the House in
the way of forwarding its passage,
and appealedsto the Chairman of the
Committee on Patents, and to men,
bers generally, to hear him out in
that denial.
Radical Rsw-A Crazy Orator.
WHEELING, June 22.-The Repub-
lican State Convention assembled in
Parkershurg this morning at ten
a,oIooLr Tho attendance uyq9 very