The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-10
BELLS TELEPHONE PATENT.
Judge Thurman Makes the Opening
Argument in the Suit.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 9.-The argument in
case No. S45, the United States against the
American Bell Telephone Company, began
III the United States supreme court to-day.
Judge Thurman made the opening address
for the United States The case grows out
OF the suit brought by Acting Attorney
General jerks in the circuit court of the
United States for the district Of Massachu-
sets to have cancelled two patents granted
Alexander Graham Bell rs the inventor Of
the telephone, on the ground that the patents
were detained by fraud.
DEMURRER
The Bell company entered demurrer to
this sulJ i'll which they maintained. amo g
other things, that in the absence of any spe-
clhc statute, the United states had no power
to maintain a bill in equity to cancel pat
ent for an invention.
The circuit court held that this point was
we'll taken, Tut furthermore ruled that were
the court not to so 10 this extreme length,
the demurrer must be sustained on the
ground that the man questions raised
against the va idity OF Prof. Bells patent
could be advanced in an infringement suit,
and that the alto ney general could not
bring suit to cancel the patent on the
grounds which constitute the defense in
the infringement case. The case comes to
the supreme court on an appeal from this
decision.
JUDGE THURMAN's SPEECH.
Judge Thurmans voice was low and
husky at the start. but soon gathered
strength and remained clear and strong to
the close Of his forty minutes speech. His
manner of speaking was plain, simple and
direct, and in his choice of words, he used
homely Anglo-Saxon that was as intelligi-
BILE to the laity present as to the learned
justices themselves. Standing erect, facing
the court, his right hand holding his eve
glasses and his left at the pocket Of his
trousers, he spoke slowly and distinctly,
and with an absence of oratoricaI flourish.
HIS ONLY GESTURE.
When he desired to emphasize some point
In his argument, it was done with q simple
downward sweep of his right hand. He was
only interrupted twice, and then by ques-
tions OF no pertinency as showing the
opinions of the justices. When he took up
the opinion of Judge Colt of Massachusetts,
overruling the government's<d he
said that 1t seemed to be sin in the eyes of
some judges not to blindly follow the de-
cisions of their predecessors. aud this, he
said, seemed to be particularly true in the
good old commonwealth of Massachusetts" "
I'VE in the west" he continued, with
smile, don't think SO, and if a judge rem
ders wrong decision and another judge
gets chance to reverse his decision, he is
very apt to do it,"
THE CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTION.
Judge Thurman, in his argument, said
that the Bell company conceded the consti-
tutional right of the government to enact
a statute giving the attorney general power
to bring suit against a patent. but main
tanned that in the absence of such a suit the
attorney general had no such power. Judge
Thurman asserted that no congressional
action was necessary, that the constitution
gave ample authority for the bringing of
the suit and lie declared that congress
could not, even by express statute, limit
tins power, for it would thereby abrogate
the constitution.
The other government counsel are JEFF
Chandler, formerly of Washington, now Of
st. Louis and William G.. Strowbridge of
Philadelphia. The Bell Company is repre-
sented by Messrs. Storrow and Dickerson,
who have been connected with all the liti-
cation in which the telephone company has
been engaged.