The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-11-08
SUING FOR MILLIONS.
The Big Morse Claim Against the United
States.

me Dig MORSE claim Against the United
States.
case of more than ordinary interest which
has been pending before the Court of Claims
Tor many years, will soon come up for argu-
ment 1t is particularly interesting here
owing to the fact that the claimant, during
the war, lived in Washington. The ease is
that of George w Morse against the United
states for S4,5O0,000 on account Of the use by
the Federal Government of patent breech-
loading rifle of which Morse was the inventor
The interests of the Government i'm the case
will be represented by Judge Cheney of the
Department of Justice, and his Office has for
some time had the appearance of an embryo
gun factory. Morse originally came from
Baton Rouge, La, but during the war
lived in this city, He had gun factory at
Harper's Ferry, which was an important
manufacturing point at the time of the John
Brown incident.
Morse invented the first breech loading gun,
containing the breech-block by which the
cartridge could be forced into the breech, and
after being discharged would eject the she'll
The Morse plan is almost dentically the plan
of the present well known Springfield rifle,
which is used by the United States Army and
Navy. The defense of the Government in
this case is that Morse was disloyal citizen
during the war, and therefore he could have
no recourse financially or otherwise against
the United States. Morse died about year
and half ago, and the suit is now being
furthered by his heirs. The case has been be-
fore the Court of Claims for many years. and
at each hearing Morse claimed that he was not
dsloyal, did not sympathize with the Con-
federacy, and did not furnish arms to the
Southern army.
The Department of Justice has caused a
search of the records in the War Department
to be made, and has found that Morse ad-
dressed number of letters to President Jef-
ferson Davis, offering these arms to the Con-
federate Army; that he proposed to blockade
Red River against the Federal fleet and save
forage up that stream for the Confederates,
and the records all show that he furnished
large amounts of arms from time to time to
the Southern armies, and they were made
mostly at his gun factory at Harper's Ferry.
Were it not for this record proof it is very
probable that the heirs of Morse would secure
large judgment against the United States
Government, as it is an ndisputable fact that
the Morse patents on firearms were largely
used by the Federal Army
When the Department of Justice few days
ago, called on the Patent Office for the models
presented by Morse when he got his early
patents. 1t was discovered that he invented
the breech-loading rifle in 1912, and that the
first model upon which patent was granted
bore the Harpers Ferry stamp. This shows
at what an early period the greatest improve
ment in firearms was begun. An interesting
feature of this case is that shortly after the
war the United States Patent Office refused to
extend the patents upon the Morse rifles on
the ground that he had furnished the army
of the Confederacy with arms, and was there
fore disloyal citizen. About 1870 Demo.
cratic Congress passed a bill extending the
patent of Morse, and, although he and his
representatives have been steadily manufactur-
ing the guns ever since, the Federal Govern
ment has also manufactured the Springfield
magazine rifle, based upon the Morse inven-
tions, and should the suit for 81 500 900 fail,
as it undoubtedly will, it is believed that the
heirs of Morse can secure a large royalty for
the use of the Morse inventions in the Spring
field gun since the time Congress extended the
patent and when loyalty could not be brought
into the question.