Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1884-01-11
Suit Ordered 10 be Dismissed,
UNANIMOUS DECISION By THE
L. 5. SUPREME COURT.
Judge BIatchford Renders the OPin.
iOa Reversing the Dectsion Of Him
self asd Judge wheeler.
ESTEY a co. WIN s2OO,OOO.
Complete Vindication on all Points,
THE corB- HOLDS THAT IHEEE WAS NOTHING
10 IHE PATENT.
History Of the Case.

nave ever LEEu fought IN lAlh Ut aAN 0AAHA
country. was originally brought by Riley Bur
dstt in a bill in equity in the [. S Circuit
Court for the district Of Vermont, and Il nov
transpires that the bill was never signed At
all by Burdett but was sworn to on the 30th
Of December, 1871, and got into Court by
SilAs NJ Waite, who has during all these
years carried on this litigation, which has
come TO such an end.
Blrdett had lived 10 Brattleboro and been
10 the employ Of Estey. aud for few months
wa7 bis partner; but in 1866 be vent TO Chi
cago, silss NJ Waite being hts silent partner,
having sod to j. Estey q Co. a pateut for
reed board which that company was at that
time u-ing. Previous 10 bis leaving for Chi.
csgo. d tuner in Estey's factory had explain
ed to Mr. Burdett a way Of tuning one Of
the sets Of reeds in this reed board which
be thought would be popular which was
largely 10 use in Europe. and which vas de-
scrlDed in all Of the organ publications Of
tina, daY. Some time after his arrival IN Chi
cago Mr.. Burdett attempted 10 patent the
thing which had been shown and described
to him and in l-69 did patent il, although
used IN the patent which be had sold to Is.
tey a Co., IN ,56.
In due course Of time as will be seen, Mr..
Waite brought suit against Jacob Estey aud
his partners Levi K Fuller and JuEus J. Is
tey, and pressed II with extraordinary vgor
aud the aD.est counsel the country afforded,
employing c. b. S.oughton, L W. Slough.
ton and II. I Stoughton Of New York, L J.
Phelps aud Senator E1munds Of B1rling,ou,
and George Harding Of Philadelphia. Estey
4 CO. of course resisted this suit with equal
vigor employing for their various counsel,
Edmund Burke OF New Hampshire, Wm. NJ.
E,arts, c. c. BeamAn, IT,, and Edward n.
Dlckerson, Of New York Judge Smaley
was sitting upon the bench il Vermont when
this suit was originally brought. During his
long illness arrangements were made 10 have
it heard before Circuit Judge Woodruff but
ere the time appointed was reached death
had oyertakeu hun. Judge johnson was ap
pointed IN bis place, and before hin the case
was argued in 1876, but be died before rem
dcring any opinion upon il, although 1t has
since been learned taat, had be lived, in all
probability he would have rendered decis-
ion in favor Of Estey q Co. After the de.
cease Of Judge Smaney, Judge Wheeler vAs
appointed upon the District bench aud Judge
BAtchford was appointed 10 succeed John
son. Before these two the case was heard IN
the spring Of 1875. In the early winter Of
that year they rendered q decision confirming
q portion OF the patent aud holding the re-
maiuder invalid. This was held by the Court
to deprive the plaintiff Of the privilege Of re-
covering coats Tue case then vent before
e1-Goy. John W Stewart, Master, Who
found that Estey 4 Co., had received $50.
900 from the proceeds Of this reed board
and be also found that Burdet, had traced no
part Of II to his patent OF 1869, but that
whatever there was that was valuable in It
was due 70 the patent OF 1866 While these
proceedings were pending, a motion for at.
/ tachment for contempt Of Court for violation
! Of the decree was taken out against Estey X
/ Co., and they were summoned before Judge
| Wheeler 10 show cause why they should not
/ be punished either by fne or imprisonment
! but Judge Wheeler held tina, they had not
violated the order of the Court and that they
were doing only what they had a right 10 do.
This was consIdered a. the time a great VIC
tory for Estey and as almost a crushing de-
/ feat for Waite and Burdett. But upon the
/ bringing IN Of the Masters report the
/ Court gave 10 Waite and Burdett the
/ whole verdict, then amounting With interest
/ to SlGl, 600 and issued judgment therefor.
! To this decree, and To all the decisions in the
case 80 far as they were against Estey s. Co.,
/ they at once appealed to the United States
/ Supreme Court at Washington, and gave
bonds in the sum Of 500, 900.
After this case had been carried up to
Washington it will be remembered that
/ Waite ran away after wrecking the First Ma
/ tional bank of BrAttleboro, of which he was
| president, leaving absolutely nothing except
the furniture and few pieces Of waste paper.
| The history OF this wreck has been told SO
many times that it is only too familiar to all
I Of our readers. The United States Govern.
meut put detectives upon Waite's track, and
in the course OF few months be was over
taken in the far West brought back, lodged
in jail, convicted Of perjury, received sen
tence in Judge Wheeiers Court, and is nov
serving out his term OF imprisonment
h. fhfrg that eharaafsF1zaa and ma Ia
this case different from others IS that all of
I the parties stood high in the community and
we're looked up to as leading and prominent
. men. After Estey Il Co. had put in their de-
/ fence it began TO be rumored about upon
. the streets that there was fraud somewhere
and Estey & Co. we're charged in public and
in private with fabricating their defence
and, as they needed evidence from time to
time, of manufacturing it, until finally there
grew up a thick haze about this matter. It
was the thing that was brought into the po-
litical campaign Of 1876 which defeated Ja.
cob Estey for Governor Of the state Of Yer
mont it has entered into all the social and
| business relations Of Brattleboro and the sur
rounding country it has been the theme Of
conversation in cottage and mansion, in store
and Office. The particular thing which was
charged was that some Of the organs put into
the case were not genuine and we're not made
at the time when they we're alleged to have
been made; but upon this point the Court in
1875 decided that they were all genuine and
made exactly when and as Estey 4 Co. said
they we're made. Upon all these points, how
ever, the Court has been with Estey from the
first, and has never given ground for breath
Of suspicion upon the firm. 1t has &C.
CURED to US often to inquire why this was 80,
and since the decision announced on Monday
by the Supreme Court We have made inquir-
les into it, and to our astonishment we find
that Estey & Co. say that, according to the
printed testimony in the case, not q single
witness has ever been found by Burdett or
Waite to swear against the integrity of Es-
tey's exhibits, and not a single witness has
ever sworn to the falsity of any of the state
ments Of any Of the defendants and Estey &
Co. say that the whole Of this vast cloud of
vituperation, of abuse, and Of charges Of per-
jury, forgery and subornation of perjury have
been mere street TumoF, sidewalk gossip, i'm
ported into the case as occasion demanded,
for purposes outside Of the patent and from
what has trAnspiTed in regard 10 the ruin of
the First National bank il would look as il
the necessity for loans of money, needed I'M
der peculiar stress Of circumstances, was re-
sponsble for very much of this talk. We
take the liberty to quote from one of the ar.
guments Of Estey d Co.'S lawyers, before
Judges Blatchford and Wheeler, upon these
points;
"Mr. Estey, Mr. Fuller and Mr.. Dayton, the sup
posed 'crmnals' Of this plot, instruct to beg Of
your honors, and add my solicitations TO theirs thai
H. in judgment Of law 1t is found by proofs that theJ
have committed the Infamous crimes charged against
them, then let It be so set down in the decision, with
out favor eItenuation; but II on the other hand
this s an unJusthabe csumny, charged against III
by disappointed rivals IN business to their has,
ends by backenng pure characters before the world
th N let that be so set down. They not suppAnt
for mercyi they demand justice"
In the arguments before theSupreme Court
at Washington, Judge BlAtchford, who had
before sat in this case, coneurring In the de-
oision of Judge Wheeler sat to review the
subject, Chief Justice Waite and the
whole bench being present-nine judges in
all Estey d Co., were represented by Wm.
NJ Evarts and Edward N. Dickerson Bur
dett and Waite by E. j. Phelps and George
Harding. Upon that trial, from the stenog
rapher's report, We hnd that Mr. Harding
speaking for Burdett, said that in his opinion
there had been no forgery or manufacture OF
exhibits, but that all of the exhibits were gen
uine and made when and as stated and thii
is now again accepted by the court, Judg,
BlAtChfOrd rendering the opinion for the Whel'