The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1882-10-14
ANOTHER BARB WIRE DECISION.

ANOTHER BARB WIRE DECISION.
After years Inexpensive litigation, Wash.
burn & Moen, year or two ago, got de-
decision IN the Supreme Court of the Uni
ted States that virtually gave them mo-
nopoly OF the whole barb fence wire bust
MSS of the country. Under the impression
that their patent covered only limited
part of the business, many other firms had
sprung up over the country and had IN
vested large amounts Of capital IN the
manufacture of fence wire, and the deci-
sion placed all these at Washburn & Moen's
mercy, who proved themselves abundantly
hogglsh IN the use Of their power, levying
royalty on the other manufacturers to the
amount of over million year. Their
way was to grant license to all manufac-
turers who came to their terms, agreeing
to protect such IN the use of their patents.
Some Of the manufacturers, however, re-
fused to take license from them and went
on manufacturing in defiance Of the Wash.
burn & Moen monopoly. Among these
was Jacob Haisch, of DeKalb. The agree
ment of Washburn & Moen with all those
who took license from them was, that no
better terms should be given to other par.
ties than to themselves In order, howev.
er, to bring Hash to terms, they tried to
get all others whom they had licensed to
allow them to make better terms with
Halsch to draw him into the pool. Forty
firms signed this agreement but the Chi
cago Galvanized Wire Company, the Gran.
dali Manufacturing Company of Chicago,
the Hawkeye Company of Burlington, and
one or two Others refused to sign the per-
nit Washburn & Moen, however, went
on ANA made their special agreement with
Haisch, and thereupon the companies re-
fusing to sign the permit declared the
agreement with them broken, and the Chi.
cago Galvanized Wire Fence Company
commenced SUIT against Washburn & Mo.
en- for damages in the Superior Court of
Chicago. A few days ago Judge Gardner
decided in favor of the plaintiffs and gave
them judgment against Washpurn & Mo.
en- for S36,000 the amount they had paid
W. Il NJ. in royalties, and decreed that they
should pay no royalties In future OF
course, if the Chicago Galvanized Wire
Company are entitled to damages and are
released from the further payment OF roy
slties by reason of the special terms grant.
ed to Haisch, then all the others working
under license from them are thus releas-
ed. The effect OF the decision, if ultimately
sustained in the higher courts, to which OF
course 1t will be appealed, will be not only
completely to break up the Washburn &
Moen monopoly, but to subject them to
millions of damages besides Says Mr.
Schutt, of the Joliet Stone City Fence
Company, in the Joliet Meas: 1T is the
biggest thing in the West for years. II
will give our firm $4,000 besides the
Buffalo concern, and Will knock million
and half out Of Washburn, Moen & Co
every year-it bursts the monopoly. Yes
sir, to-day is royalty day in Joliet and OF
about $4,000 due not cent, will 20 out of
town for Washburn."
There is no doubt, however, whether the
claim for damages and exemption from
paying royalties obtained through this de.
cislon by the companies refusing to sign
the permit of Washburn & Moen to gran,
special terms to Haisch Will also enure to
the benefit of those companies und firms
that signed the permit If 1t does not,
such companies will be virtually ruined
for the others will have such an advantage
as must give them monopoly of the bus.
mess. There will no doubt be another
long siege Of litigation and another big
feast by the lawyers before the matter is
again settled.