The Petroleum Centre daily record. [volume] (Petroleum Center, Pa.) 1868-1873, 1870-11-09
ROBERTS' PETROLEUM TORPEDO.
RODEI1S NOLEUM 1ONt Ts''V'
.TORPEDOES.
THE ROBERTS
PETROLEUM TORPEDO CO.
Office at the
RED PLANING MILL.
Corner Of Pine and Second streets,
Near the Haiiroad,)
TITUSVILLE, Pa. :.

tktC he2sAaooNS
TITUSVILLE, Pa. :.
Owing to the large and increasing demand for the
Roberts TorpedDes. and the late decision Of the
Commissioner of Pa'ents in reru-in:; TO VIM. Reed
patent. and the decision of Jud &c Il. &. Gier sus
winning the koberts' patent they lave LOWkRED
the price vi their Torpedoes
TWENTY PER CENT.
so that every Operator can afford ,ury Torpedo
before abandoning Well.
lhe following is the decision rendered by Judge
t'ricr on the twenty second (22l day OF September
1871 in the United States Circuit Court Plladel-
phia. The case WIS argued three days by Charles
Al. Keller Of New York. b. +: Lucas and 5: A. Pur-
vauce of Pittsburgh, for defendants, and George
llacding of PHILADELPHIA and George II. Christy oi
Pittsburgh, for plaintiff.
OPINION OF JUDGE GRIER
As write with difficulty eau only state the con
CSsious to which my mind has come after careful.
examination of this case.
The comnliinint hns exhibited patent dated
.6th OF April, 1855 This Is prima acr evidence of
good title 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 q Wall c. C. Rep; 2.9.) but now
adopt them as aii0rding rule OF decision which ap-
plies clearly to the present
As the Infringement Of the patent IA admit ted,
the only question will be to The validity OF COM
-lainants patent Of April 25, 1855
at was after speculation HAD been reduced to
DfdCtlce, ana WtVr repeated experiments, tfat the
complainant succeeded in overcoming he prejudice
and ignorance of the people on the subject, and
persuading the public tina, his invention was usefu
after he had established Its great utility and value,
and "when his genius and patient perseverance, In
spite of sncers and scO'f-,' were completely sue
Cessful that Reed who had before made expert.
menis on the same suhjcct. and was unsuccessful
imagined that he had the best right to the invention
ard after purchasing one Of more Compainant's tor
peioes he applied on the LIST of November 1867,
for a patent for substantially the same cornbina.
I'M
ants patent. On the 10th of the same month the
respondents formed themselves Into a company or
corporation called '.The Reed Torpedo Company"
for the purpose of piriting the cOmpainani's in.
vention, AMI supporting the expense OF litigation,
and TINS deffaud hin, of the fruits. They have per
properly granted by the District Judge.
Let decree he entered for complainant for n per
petual injunction. aud Master appointed to take
sn account according to the prayer Of the bill.
.NorE-The passage referred to bv Judge Grier in
his former DECISION, ) Wallace, P. 299 adopted as
applicable to this case was rs follows:
at is usually the case when any valuable di,cov.
cry Is wade, any machine Of great Uiity l.
invented. that the attention of the public has heen
turned to that subject previously and that many
persons have been making researches and expert.
lnents. Philosophers and meclilnicians NAV have
III some measure anticipated in their speculatiuns
the possibility or probability of such discovery or
invention; many experiments have been successful.
ly tiled, coming very near yet falling short of the
desired result. They have produced nothing bone-
2cal. The Invention when perfected may truly be
said to he the eliminating point of maIv expert
=, not only by the inventor. but by many 9th.
Ors tie may hay. protited indirectly by the unsuc-
eessful experiments and failures of Others hut 1t
gives them right to ca nj share OF the nor of
the profit of the snccn-sful inventor 1t is when
speculation has been reduced to practice, when ex
pertinent ha- resulted in discovery and when that
discovery has been perfected by patient ana contn.
lied experiments, when some new compound. art.
manufacture. or machine has been ihu. produced
which is useful to public that the party making IL
becomes apuhc benethctor and entitled to patent
Sand yet when genius and patient perseverance
have at length succeeded. in spite Of Surers and
Fcoffs, some valuable invention or dis,o"ery how
seldom is il followed by reward Envy robs him
OF the honor, whe speculators, swindlers, and pi.
rates rob him Of the profits. Every unsuccessful
eIperimenter who did or did or did not come very
near making discovery now claims it, Every one
who can invent an Improvement or vary its form,
claims right to pirate the ORIGINAL discovery. We
need not summons Morse, or Hllncfard or Wood
worth prove that this is the usual history of eve
ry great discovery or Invention.
"Thc present case acds another chapter to this
hong and Uniform history."-2 Wallace, c. &. ke.
ports D. .02.