Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-02-21
THE TELEPHONE WAR.
A History Of the Contest With the He'll
Telephone Monopoly.
Grounds Upon which the Government
Orders Suit to be Commenced.
Special to the Kew York World.
rHE RESULT or THE OVERTHROW or THE

pnOne company uOeh NOT appear 10 NC
understood by the general public. 1t has
been Incorrectly stated in number Of
newspapers that relief against the exac-
lions OF this monopoly could be obtained
In a suit brought by private individual.
II II Is true that the Bell patent was OBJ
tanned by fraud, all that single indlvid-
nal could obtain In bringing suit against
that company would be the establishment
Of his right TO a telephone business. In
other words, suit Of A against the Bell
company TO resist the charge of an al
legged infringement could not affect the
rights Of Is. The only way, therefore,
that the rights Of the whole people can be
projected is through Just such suit az
was ordered by the secretary OF the in
terror when he decided that the attorney
general should bring suit to test the
question of the validity Of this patent
Second, the effect of the suit Is not
generally understood. II the govern
mcnt shall bring the suit against the Bell
Telephone company to a successful issue
the result win be a destruction of the
Bell patent, leaving the whole field OF the
/ telephone business open TO competition
from everyone. 1t will benefit the Pan
individual would be benefited. 1t will
simply have the right to 20 ahead and do
business without being subjected to suits
for infringement. The general sympathy
OF the public, therefore, should be with
the suit against the Bell monopoly, be-
cause the case against the Bell people was
pretty clearly made out before the inte-
rior department. The evidence upon
which Secretary Lamar's decision was
based establishes fairly well prima facie
case that the patent was obtained through
fraudulent means, and that Prof. Bell is
not entitled 10 be considered the inventor
of the speaking telephone.
The testimony before the department
In this case consists of volume of
closely printed matter of f3l pages This
includes all OF the papers which were
referred TO the interior department by
Gen Goode, in accordance with the let
ter OF President Cleveland, and with the
subsequent testimony submitted to the
interior department after the case was
taken up there for examination. The
case OF the applicants before the depart.
ment of justice Is very well summarized
in memorial which was submitted on
August &c, 1885, and addressed to the
United States district attorney for the
Western district of Tennessee. This
memorial is signed by Charles p. Hunt.
ington OF Mississippi, w. Van Benthuy-
sen and j. r. Beckwith OF New Orleans,
Geo. Gannt Memphis, Tenn, and II. w
McOory, United States district attorney
also OF Memphis.
Bells patent, according to this memo
rial, Is based upon letters patent No. ia, ;.
AGO, dated the 9TH of March, 1876, auC
letters patent 1856, 1877, granted to him on
the 80th OF January, 1871 Upon these
two patents rest the claim OF the Bel
Telephone company The dates are I'M
portant TO be borne in mind. 1t is frs
charged that a speaking telephone wat
long known before the earlier of these
dates aud That an instrument constructed
upon the, description given in the paper,
n'aPsbie OF trausGS,natGpt WAS issued 4
IN other words, the first instrument 1.
Imperfect and worthless, and that tn,
kno"ledge necessary to make the secont
instrument, which was patented in Jan
Jury OF the year later, was obtained from
drawings and specifications of forme,
discoveries OF the art OF conveying voca
sounds by electricity, and that i'm Tho
second application there was no prlorit,
of invention. fO- ~
They further set up and demopstrat,
that the speaking telephone had been In.
vented by Prof, Philip Rels, a learned
German, before 1870. They claim that
keis was The real inventor of the electric
speaking telephone, and that eyerythino
done since that time has been done by
way OF improving tho art which he dis.
covered and made known. Tho lnsiru.
ment OF the Refs invention was well
hnoWh IN Europe prior TO 1870, and was
IN the Smithsonian institute for some
tlme prior 10 Prof. Bells application In
1870 experiments had been made with
this telephone by the scientific gentle
men OF that institution, and it had been
demonstrated, that it was a successful in.
struinent for the transmission of spoken
sound. More than this, evidence was
submitted TO show that the telephone for
the transmission OF speech had been
invented prior TO the application OF The
! Bel patent ON February IL, 1876, by the
following inventors; Antonio MepccI
Van Der Wyde, Edison and Elisha GRAY
Ihey further charge that this prior In.
Nent0n- and particularly the prior in.
Ncntion OF Reis--was known TO Prof Rel
when he made application for his patent
IN 1876, and when he swore that he was
the first and original inventor of the art
that he swore falsely. The most serions
charge brought to set aside the patent Is
one that he obtained, through the favor
OF n clerk, certain knowledge OF the cayeat
hled by Elisha Gray, which improperly
outaineu Rnowledge enabled him to per.
iect ms papers and secure his patent,
Wnlch was obtained only through i'm.
properly acquired knowledge of the appli-
by Gray SN
The testimony submitted to show that
taetc were speaking telephones before the
Bell application is Overwhelming. One
OF the most Important pieces OF evidence
Is that OF William y. Green, the electrician
OF the Smithsonian institute and National
museumi Washington. lie has held This
position since 1879 and for sin wears prior
10 that time ne had done most Of the cleo.
trlcal work for the Institution. His AMI
uafit gives an estimate OF his examina.
ton OF the records OF the institution. In
them re unds that Rudolph Koenig.
manufacturer of scientific instruments In
rarls, sent TO the institution In 1874 n
kels telephone, consisting of a telephone
transmltter and receiver They are still
IN the institution. In his affidavit no
gives the evidence that In Nav, 1881. they
tested the original Refs telephone with 4
battery OF two Grenet cells. with the
ksls transmitter he heard several SEN
fences OF articulsted speech. He has
tested II several times since. lilo found
u 10 DC 4 practical working instrument.
Iberc Is a great mass OF accumulatiye
testimony on this subject, hnt there Is
nothing that goes beyond the testimony
OF Green, and he says that the ReIs tele
phone was 4 perfect instrument, well
adapted to practical business. ana There.