St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-12

IN &e ~ demand at from $40
s@ Wy to $3.50 per day?'
A< - said an old friend of
mine, who is the
W *: patentee of some
thing more than
forty patents and the
president of one of the largest manu-
featuring companies in Chicago. | re-
piled that L would say, as prominent
Chicago editor once said to me when L
stated that certain singer to whom we
were listening received 81, 900 per week
for her services: Il would sing until l
had the lock-iaw for that salary"
Then, prompted by the reflection that
as women are doing almost everything
nowadays, it was quite possible that
woman of pluck, possessed OF that
quality which Carlyle defined as genius.
''the infinite power of taking palms,"
might compass this business Of deSir-
able remuneration. | inquired with
animation what this business might be?
lit is that of an expert Witness" said
my friend. smiling at my eagerneSS. l
think must have looked the utter men,
tai vacuity L felt, for, evidently recOg-
niZing my want of comprehension, he
proceeded to explain that an expert
witness was one who so thoroughly
understood mechanics and patents that
his written testimony is taken, to very
great extent, as authority by the court.
Nv friend further explained, and there
by fired my heart at once with envy and
ambition, that ia the two important
! patent suits which were about to be
tried i'll the United States court before
Judges Blodgett and Gresham, he had
been employed as an expert, and for
less than five days work had received
$500. He kindly invited me, as [ was so
intereSted-and, he might have added
with truth, so ignOrant-to attend the
forthcoming trial of Pullman VS.. Wag
| her. which was to be the most import
ant patent right suit which has been
| tried in Chicago for six years. l &C
| cepted the invitation with enthusiasm,
| and proceeded to ''hold myself in readi-
ness" for the calling of the case, which,
by the way, was several days later than
was anticipated, way important cases
| frequently have. believe.
WHEN, ON THE MORNING OF THE TRIAL,
| found myself-like the daughter of
| Gov. Trumber at the first national
temperance convention held in America
| at Saratoga in 1636-the only woman
PRESENT. should have made haSty
retreat, if I could have done so without
| being more conspicuous than by re-
naming But could not. and soon be-
came so interested as to entirely forget
| the fact that | was the only woman in
| the court room.
| The audience was composed almost
entirely of the most distinguished mem
| bers of the bench and bar of Chicago.
There was Hon. Leonard Sweet, tall,
| stately and handsome, with beetling
browS projecting fully all inch beyond
| his strong, penetrating, dark eyes;
Robert Lincoln, resembling in no par
ticular his illustriouS father, if we
| Judge from such presentations as we
have of him, including the statue in
Lincoln park, which is said to be an eX-
cellent likeness: Mr.. Pullman, rubi-
cund, well-rounded. impenetrable, with
his clearly cut mouth closed like steel
trap and mOtionleSS, save now and
again touching his eyeglasses with his
! shapely hand; Henry Webb, of the
| Wagner company, small and compact,
| with gem-like eyes which see every
thing, while he moves not muscle,
and Ii. I'll. Sessions, sole director of the
great works at Pullman and inventor
of the contested patent, dark, vital
man of thirty, who, it is stated, has not
been away from his Office and the Pull
man works half a dozen times during
the past two years. MIR. Sessions, i'll
speaking Of this, attributes such sue
|
| it has not been inSignificant-to his con-
slant application.
The case was opened by Mr.. Ofheld,
of the law firm of Offield e Towle, who
| appeared in shining broadcloth dress
suit, with the yelloWeSt of canary-cOl-
ored handkerchiefs protruding from his
outer breast pocket. He began his adj
dress by calling attention to what Mi.
Pullman had done for the comfort of
the travelling public, and also to the fact
that he had been pioneer in improve
ments of this kind. He also stated that
Mr.. Pullman and his company were
for the comfort of the said public, and
that they were constantly
IMPROVING ON THE LUXURIEs
already furnished, as was demonstrated
by the veStibule trains recently placed
on the Eastern roads, which included
the spring buffer involved in the present
suit. The testimony of prominent cit
liens of Chicago was brought forward
to prove that these trains with the SeS-
SiOnS spring buffer attachment, which
holds the ears together from the roof
downward. run with much less oScela-
ton than other trains, causing no
nausea to passengers SO affected, and
also proving that gentlemen could be
shaved with ease anu Safety on tneSe
trains, which could not be accomplished
on the ordinary train. The expert work
of my friend was then produced to prove
facts in regard to the priority of the art,
or in other words that nothing similar
had ever before been patented, and also
to prove the value of the invention,
these two being the pivotal points to
prove or disapprove in all patent-right
suits.
When | had listened to this volumin-
GUS technical testimony l concluded
that the distinction of being the first
woman to become an expert witness
must of necessity be left to woman of
the future. When, i'll accordance with
the law of gradualisnl-of which we
hear so much just now--wOmen shall
have evoluted up to the possibilities OF
expert witness work.
When Mr.. Offield had finished his
opening of the case the court was in
vited to examine two little veStibule
trains composed of cars four feet lone
by one high, complete in every detail
and mounted on tiny steel tracks, ar
ranged on trestle work in the court
room. These little trainS--One Of which
represented the Wagner and the other
the Pullman earS-were made at the
Pullman works especially for this trial
at n cost of $4,000. Judge BlOdgett
who, like the distinguished Unitarian
divine, Rev. Robert Collyer, is a black
smith by trade, examined these car:
with the nice intelligent care of a me
clIanic. 1t was really an interesting
study to see this eminent jurist going
| nynp urith ayidant npinUmppt aapt