The Rugby gazette and east Tennessee news. (Rugby, Morgan Co., Tenn.) 1884-188?, 1886-03-20
THE BELL TELEPHONE
VIII Tinkle More or Less Musically 2
at Columbus, o.
The Bill to yacnte the Telephone Patents
Completed.

WASHINGTON, March 10,--The bill which
the Government will file against the Bell
Telephone Company and Alexander Gra-
ham Bell has been completed. 1t will be
filed at Columbus by ex-senator Thurman,
as stated some weeks ago, and it is believed
that next Monday will be finally agreed
upon as the date for its presentation to the
court. This bill itself is n very lengthy
document covering fifty pages Of legal cap,
closely printed in small type. The bill at
present omits the name of the circuit
court in which it will be filed, and
also the local company against
which the suit will be directly
brought The omission will be filled in by
Judge Thurman, in Columbus, when the
bill finally reaches him. The suit is brought
under Section S, Article l., of the Constitu-
tion and the acts of Congress passed there
under. The United States charges that
certain letters patent issued to Alexander
Graham Bell, dated March {, 1875, num-
bered 1I4465, and January 30, 1917, mum.
bered lS6,TSs, were illegally and improp.
erly procured to be issued, and for this rea-
son brings this bill in equity as means of
causing justice to be done Prof. Bell is
plainly charged with not only failing to
but with misleading and deceiving
the examining officials of the Patent Office
The case of Philip Refs, of Germany, among
others, is presented at length, and it is
claimed that he in 1851 invented and pub
lished to the world description of an
apparatus whereby speech could be trans
mitted. Particular stress Is laid upon the
case OF Elisha Gray, who, on the same
day, February IA, 1876, that Prof Bell
allnpa rod "a tho no afanf oftfoa ruitb his Hpn-
ument, filed caveat. In this he ex-
pressly declares that he had invented an
instrument for which ne claimed the art
of transmitting vocal sounds and conver-
sation geographically through an cleo
trio circuit Prof. Bells application was
filed later in the day. 1t contained no ref
erence to articulate speech, and lacked in
description or drawings any machine or
apparatus then cr at any time capable Of
transmitting speech. Yet Prof Bell
claimed patent ''for transmitting vocal
or other sounds geographically" The
United States charges that Bell was antici-
pated in the discovery of the cleo
trical speaking telephone by Philip
Refs, Cromwell Fleetwood, Var
ley, Antonio Muecci, Elisha Gray Thos. A.
Edison, Asebel X. Eaton and many others.
1t is claimed that this valuable discovery is
either the property of some one of these
prior discoveries, or having been aban-
doned by the original discoverer is now free
to be used by the people CT the United
States. 1t is alleged that the telephone is
OF great public interest and Importance,
and that the Bell Telephone Company,
by receiving and demanding large sums of
money for use of telephones alleged to be
covered by its patents is expressing the
people of the United States. The court is
prayed that if the patents are not to be
wholly repealed to decide in what part
they are void, and make decree concern
ing that portion of the patent which is
wrong and illegal.