Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-11-18

The drive we'll outrage is too well known
in the State to need repetition Ct it's history
here. Since its inception to the present day
1t has been source of annoyance and ex-
torted expense to the unlucky users OF the
patent. To date there have been filed in the
clerks office of the United States circuit court,
in st. Paul, 42G suits against different parties
for the use of the patent. AS is known, some
ten or dozen suits were first instituted, and
a test case was made by VIM. d. Andrews,
ct al, against George B. Wright, of Mime
apolis. The decision went against the de-
fendanr. Thereuron efforts were made to
compromise the matter, but were Intellectual.
From time to time the original number Of
suits have been augmented by complaint
against others, until the enormous figures
given above have been reached. These
suits are apportioned in number
to about SO in Winona; 10 in
Lake City; 80 in Pennington, and the re-
noainder in Minneapolis. These figures are
increased from day to day, as new parties are
discovered to have used the old wells.
TO BE APPEALED.
Though the suit went against the people in
the first instance, the desire is expressed to
appeal from the decision to the United States
supreme court. 10 this end Pennington has
subscribed $1,000 and the sufferers in the
other places are joining in the efforG to
have the wrong righted, so that the
people can escape the extortion
demanded. The plaintiff demands $40 roy
atty, and all who do not pay on notice are
sued. Then the original demand of $40 is
increased By fees and costs and other
ct ceteras until a sum of Ss46, moro or less,
is the amount paid when settlement is
reached. Rather than stand the vexation
and expense of trial, many parties are pay
ing, and when they come to settle up are
surprised ut the increased sum over the orig
lnal demand. It comes about in this way.
The complaint is filed, notice of the suit is
Immediately followed by q summons.
ACCOUNTING FOR TIE MILK IN THE cocoANUT.
These legal proceedings necessitates
clerks and marshal's fees. The former are
30 small in amount, $51.5o to So, that they
can be omitted in tho general summing up
Of the gouge. The marshal's fees are what
accounts for the milk in the cocoanut, as
we'll as plastering considerable hair thereon.
For instance, his service fees are charged up
in the general costs So for each summons
served. Fair enough, and allowed by law.
But suppose ninety writs are served in
Wlnona. One journey, one or two days en-
ployed in the service, everybody notified. 4
general average charge for travelling expenses
would be about the right thing under Cir
cumstances like these. But when any Wi
mona or every Winona sufferer comes to St.
Paul to pay the royalty of $40 and accrued
costs, he fins!s the cost of the marshal's trip
to and from Winona added up against him.
There's this much justice in the affair, every
individual is treated exactly alike.
EVERY SINGLE INDIVIDUAL HAS TO PAY FOR THE
MARsHAL's SINGLE TRIP,
consuming five hours there, five hours back,
ready reckoner would compute very nice
sum or product were he to multiply SO writs
by the railroad fare to Winona and return,
deduct the cost there and back. Then he
wouldn't reach the full sum made out of
single trip, for the great probability is that
the actual cost of tho one trip had
pass presented as All equivalent. This
manner of charging up fees or travelling ex-
penses is not even technically right. If this
service were done for the government tho
mileage would be collected fer only one trip
instead of ninety nine. The grand aggre-
gate of the amount of money to be gotten
out of the thing can be Appropriated, when
1t is remembered that Lake City is or has to
be visited forty times; Pennington fifty
times; and though Minneapolis is only
eleven miles away, eleven times several
hundred will count up. And these
hundreds of visits only require one trip to,
and a few days i'll each place. No wonder
that many of the weakened are braced up
to resistance, when they come to pay and
find the accumulation of costs arrayed
against them.
NO DELAY IN SERVING wRITs.
A feature of the above related proceedings
is that the marshals office is particularly ex-
pedltious i'll doing service-and no wonder
But the haste is rather untimely for the
people-sufferers-f they contemplate
an appeal and are clubbing together
in the several towns to defray
the expense of the appeal The amount to
be raised, necessary, is $4,000, and also legal
opinion is expressed that the people have a
case; more, that the supreme court will re-
verse the decision rendered. Meetings have
been held in Pennington, Winona and else
where, and organizations have been effected
to IT sist the claims of Andrews ct
al. Pending these arrangements of the pco-
pie, and with the full knowledge that the
appeal is to be made, the people are harrassed
with summons, and have "the charges''
heaped up against them. Some are coerced
into payment.