Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-02-11

ARE MANNERS OBSTRUCTIONISTS!
To the Editor Of The EvExISG STAR:
The substance of the following observations
was sent to the New York World on the 18th
of January. but publication was refused.
like fate. but at the hands Of the New York
Tribune befell a subsequent communication.
Under these circumstances, a love of fair play
and firm belief in the general excellence of
the system of which the examiners of the pat
ent Office are a part. compel some brief OBJ
servations in reply to the reckless, wholesale
and mostly unfounded criticisms and accusa-
tons made in the issues of the World of Janu-
airy IL, 10. is and subsequently, and which. il
allowed to go uncontradicted, viii result in a
public prejudice not warranted by the facts
and hurtful to the best interests both of the
Office and of inventors
The assailants of the office-both the World
Itself and those whose utterances il processes
to repOrt-exhibit an unanimity in some re-
spects and an equal lack of unanimity in others,
which are certainly striking and instructive,
and very seriously detract from the force of the
criticisms made. 1t Is a remarkable fact that
in not one of the deliverances OF these critics
is there even an allusion 70 the public and its
interests. Among those quoted are a num-
Der who have forgotten, il they ever
knew. that a patent is n contract
to which the public Is party; that it is the
duty of the office, by its representative, the
examiner, under his oath of office, TO see that
the public gets an equivalent; that its interests
are protected; that neither you nor 1 nor any
other of the sixty odd millions who are not in
ventors are made to pay royalty-in other
words robbeG-for making use of the common
sense with which kind nature may have
endowed rs. One well-known practitioner
finds fault with many of the examiners: some
Of them seem to deem it their duty to protect
the public from the attacks of inventors" tissue
of January 49,. Truly, this is inexcusable
conduct, especially if in his excess OF zeal in
the performance of duty the examiner should
happen to inconvenience the applicant by re-
fusing patent i'll the face of full anticipa-
ton of his invention. Again, 1.-The Office was
created for the public convenience" (WorId,
January 15). This Is the most that can be
acknowledged convenience!
FROM A SELFISH POINT OF VIEW.
Is it not plain what is the point of view of
these critics of the office? 1t is the lowest;
the personal, the selfish. the individual view,
which has an eye only to individual profit and
self-interest, and ''damns the public" which
would convert the instrument called patent.
from the public benefit and powerful civilizing
agent that il is, into the hated monopoly of old,
that robbed the public for the benefit of the
few. What reliance can be placed upon criti-
cism from such point Of view! In plain and
common words, il is obvious that some one has
an axe to grind; fair means having failed,
resort Is had to broWbeating and intimidation.
The powerful agency of a great newspaper is
70 be used in the effort to demOralize the ex-
aInIning corps into neglect of duty; an effort.
the failure of which will be as signal as its ex-
hlDItlOn of weakness and ignorance.
WHERE IS THE FRAUD?
To this one-sided and essentially degrading
view a fitting accompaniment is found in the
reckless. vague. and wholesale accusations of
official corruption; the scandalous attempt to
blast the reputation of some hundreds of repu-
table men without shadow of evidence to sup
port the infamous charge. According to the
reporter. THE office Is honeycombed with
frauds. there is confessed corruption:" the
examiner could be dishonest without the pos
sible fear OF detection" and so on. But l am
proud to note that the accusers are unanimous
IN falling to specify any instance of actual cor
ruptlOn or bribery; they are mot in position
TO specify where any bribery had been at
tempted HOrh. Jan. 10; they deal solely in
vague generalitles and portentous hints in
large statements of opportunities for making
nifty thousand a wear. and the like While il is
possible that there may have been cases of
bribery In the past. an experience of over eight
years IN the Office has failed to furnish me with
knowledge of more than one attempt even at
the procurement of patents by undue means
and thar recent one, which had a fitting sequel
VIZ. prosecution at the instance of the ex-
amlner approached. and penitentiary sem
tence Indeed, considering the interests in
yolved and the many hands through which ap-
the ONCE Is one of which ii may well be proud
for Its freedom from collision and corrupt
practlce-a record which even the recent bitter
contest over the most celebrated case in patent
annals left uninjured, nay, even strengthened.
DISAGREEMENT AS TO THE REMEDY.
But if there appears a remarkable unanimity
as TO the points above noted. there is an equally
striking lack of unanimity as to another-the
remedy for the alleged abuses. No two OF the
flr--sa It'd
the articles in question and gatherer of the III
formation upon which they are based. has OF
course, his opinion. He proposes radical re-
form. He thinks the only requisite should be
description, claims, oath, and date of filing
because then the claims and specification
would have To be more scientifically drawn
than now" But as to requisites. the Germans
Gone of the most intellectual and cultivated
nations on the globe) have taken the liberty of
differing from him; to saw nothing of the
founders and upholders of our own system. in
Guiding some of the best minds of America for
the past eighty years; and as to his reason
such ridiculous statement could only have
been penned by one who had never read an
English specification.
IGNORING THE GOOD.
Among the published interviews are MANY
expressing confidence in, and satisfaction with.
the present system and those by whom it is ad-
ministered. but by disregardng these-bv per-
sistentiy ignoring the praise and giving undue
prominence to the blame-the reporter has
worked himself into headline rage which
has run away with his discretion and led to
many accusations which are almost beneath
notice. and cannot for a moment bear criticism
or investigation. Some. indeed. of the more
specific charges. as to delays, annoyances. and
bad practice IN individual cases. can be proved
BY Official public records to be absolutely false
But among the more vague and general COM
plants. the chief and most persistently reit-
Grated are that the examiners are arbitrary
and "autOcrats;" that they commit the actual
work OF examination and the decision of dues-
tons "a to patentabilty 10 assistants who like
the examiners themselves. are young and mex
perienced-''mere boys" that they keep .'blaek
lists; that some are incompetent and others
'.obstructionists and proud OF the title;' that
they are appointed by favor; that the office is
curse 70 inventors. since il harnesses the in
ventor, while, when he has obtained his patent.
he Is no more secured than before. since the
patent Is not worth the paper it is written on;
that an Official search is useless, since every
patent must stand the test of a suit at court:
that whether opportunities for fraud are used
or not. they should not be tolerated: that
the delays are unreasonable; and that
the examination system should be abolished
1t IL sufficient TO say in reply 10 these com
plants and In brief. that the exercise of ar
birary power TO the prejudice of the inventor
Is carefully guarded against by system Of ap-
Peals which seldom fails to protect such inven-
tons as are of real Importance; that close SUI