The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1877-08-23

Tno COcnf8n0 Mining fatenC.
wa.hinston Correspondence Of the Chicago Inter-
In the platform adopted by the Ohio
Republican Convention occurs the fol-
lowing plank:
Resolped, That we are opposed to the
which are burdensome and oppressive to
the masses or the people, and especially
to the laboring classes. vs. aa
II is asserted here that this resolu-
ton was inserted through the influence
Of the milleTs of the United States, who
are lust now fighting in the courts
what Is known as the Cochrane patent,
being method Of milling wheat called
1.-THE high process of grinding" Low
grinding" Is term used by millers to
describe the operation where the upper
or revolving milestone il brought close
to the neither or lower stone, and the
-four IL of purer quality on account
of the difficulty Of separating the bran,
which IL ground into IL. High grind
ingp IL the operation by which the
crust of the kernel of wheat IL only
broken by passing through the stones,
which are not 90 near together, 30 that
the bran is blown of, and the little
granules of pure -four are left for q
second grinding. This process was
introduced from France into this coun-
try about six years ago, and Ii now al
most universally adopted by millers
throughout the United States.
It Is stated by persons interested that
VIM. +. Cochrane went quietly into
the Patent Office In 1873, and got the
process patented, although It was In
use by hundreds of millers at the time,
and was not his own invention. Then
he brought suit quietly against q small
miller in Georgetown, ID. c., and sue
ceeded in having the case rushed
through the courts of the District of
Columbia and into the Supreme Court
of the United States, where q decision
was rendered in April last by Judge
Bradley, confirming the patent to
Cochrane. Justices Clifford and Strong
dissented from the opinion OF the
court.
Having received this decision, Coch-
rane, Warder, Mason, and w. B. Cox,
owners of the patent, 1.-THE two last be-
ing wealthy patent attorneysof Wash
ington who had managed the case), APP
piled for an injunction to prevent all
millers In the United States from using
this process. Several of the prominent
Western millers are now fighting this
Injunction, and will bring the matter
before Congress with bill to have the
Injunction cancelled.
A great many millers have recently
visited the Patent Office here to OBJ
tain information in regard TO the case,
which promises to be Of q popular In
terest equal to the recent sewing ma
chine agitation. They contend, In
the first place, that Cochrane had no
right to this patent, and that II could
have been so shown had any one
known that an attempt was being
made to secure IL. They say that the
whole proceedings were conducted
with the utmost secrecy, and the facts
were almost unknown until they were
brought out In the arguments before
the Supreme Court. 1t IL also claimed
that these Georgetown millers who
were the defendants In the suit. were
practically men of straw, who made no
show Of . defense, 90 that the court
was not properly informed regarding
the true state OF the case. Both sides
Of the suit, it II claimed. were conduct
ed In the interest Of Washington spec
ulators, with . view OF anticipating
any legal proceedings that might be
brought In the future, and that the
Georgetown millers were slmply actr
ing g dummies for the speculators TO
4 In order TO answer the many inqui-
ries In regard to the matter, the Com
missioner of Pstents ordered the decls-
Ion Of the Supreme Court Published In
the Qnicial Gazette Of the Patent Once.
The men who own the Cochrane pat
emit have made propoGitions to all the
millen ofthe United States to allow
them the use Of this patent on the sign-
ing Of document. recognising its Va
lidlty, and the payment Of q, 900 for
each run OF stones. A there are about
six thousand runs Of stones In which
this process u used In tho United States,
the speculAtors win realize 8,O0O, 900
frum thely pqtVnt. lfI