Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1890-11-14
patented his invention, and the leading
examiner of the motor section Of the
Patent Office believes that there is no

patented his invention, and the leading
examiner of the motor section Of the
Patent Office believes that there is no
danger that he ever will.
"We have" said the examiner, "hun-
dreds Of applications for patents, but
these arc based on descriptions and
specifications, and not on working
machines In more than two decades
we have not received any thing like
model of perpetual motion inventions.
Once ! remember German brought a
bag containing some wheels and bits of
tin fastened together with strings. He
had no doubt that it would work, be
cause he had dreamed for five nights il
succession that it would, and as he hao
no money to pay for his patent, he was
sent away sorrowful. At another time
an attorney brought in couple OF
levers and the picture of a machine OF
which these were part, which ma.
chine, he said, was actually working in
New York, and he asked us to grant q
patent on the levers. Ho was told he
must give perfect working model, and
we have never heard from him since
then. The application for perpetual
motion patents are so many that the de-
partment has gotten up blank which
is filled out for all such applicants. On
many other things working model is
not required, and we grant the patent
on designs and drawings. To the per-
petual motion cranks we send back the
money which they forward with their
application, with one of these blanks,
which reads as follows:
"'SfR-Your -, an alleged perpetual mo
tion, has been received with the fee therefor.
Before entering said - on the books Of
the Office, 1t is thought proper to advise you, in
order to save you further expense and labor
that tho Views of the Office coincide with those
of scientists In general, in regard to mechan-
zeal perpetual motions-that they are impossi
bilities Should your - be - the first
official action would be the requirement of q
working model -, the office being aware
that 1t will be impossible for You to comply with
this requirement
I" For the reasons given you - and the
accompanying fee are herewith returned.
% If. Notwithstanding this notice. you still
desire your and the fee to be accepted by
the office you may return them and they win
be retained. Very respectfully.
&c CHARLES E. MITCHELL,
Commissioner Of Patents"
1t will be seen from this that the
Patent Office promptly advises all ap.
plicants for perpetual motion patents
That there is no hope Of their success,
and that they will only accept their
application and money If they insist
upon it, Many of the would-be patent
ees get very angry at this notice. They
return the money and insist upon the
patent, but they do not get so far as to
make the working model required. The
/ Patent Office does not wish to make
money out Of enthusiasts. 1t is run on
common-sense, business basis, and II
is tho best-paying bureau in Uncle
Sans great governmental machine. II
is one of the few departments that bring
in more every year than they pay out
and it has balance in the Treasury
to its credit of more than three and one
half million dollars. 1t made, last year,
one hundred and eighty-six thousand
dollars more than it spent, and it grant
ed, during that time, more than twenty
one thousand patents. Its officers EN-
brace some Of the most skilled thinker.
of the country, and it is big machine
run on business principles, in the inter
est of the people. Frank G. Carpenter
in N. Y. Ledger.