The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-12-19
RINGING THEM OFF
BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY GETS A
SHARP SETBACK.
BerIiner Patents for Com bined Tele-
graph and Telephone Appliance
Called in Observation-Disclosures Against
the Patentee on Each Of the two
Counts-Patent Office Scored.

Boston. DC. 1S-The long contested
patent suit of the United States VS.
the American Bell Telephone company
was ended this morning when Judge
Carpenter of the Unied States circuit
court rendered a decision against the
telephone company. This suit was
bill in equity praying for the repeal OF
letters patent issued to Emile Berliner
assignor of American Bell Telephone
company, for a combined telephone and
telegraph system.
The Berliner patents were issued TO
the telephone company but never put
into use by them on account, they
claim, of the expense of making chang
es in the telephone system While otner
companies were prevented from nslng
the system.
The first ground of the bill brought
by the claimants in this suit is that the
patent is void, it being beyond the
powers of the commissioner TO issue.
on this point the decision of Judge Car
penter declares: 1T appears that one
of the functions of the device shown in
the patentiof 1880, namely, the function
Of transmitting articulate speech, is
Identical with the sole object or func-
ton of device covered by the patent OF
1851 and that the device for effecting
the transmission of sound is ldentlcai
in both patents. The patent, therefore,
seems TO me to be void and beyond the
power of the commissioner to issue.
UNLAWFULLY DELAYED.
1.-THE second ground in the suit is
that the issue of the patent was un-
lawfully delayed through the fault of
respondent The respondent corpora
ton was of ample means to prosecute
the paplication The result of any de-
Law which might take place in the is
sue of Berliner's patent would evil
IDENTIFY be to continue so much longer
the practical monopoly Of the art or
electrical transmission of articulate
speech. Under the circumstances L
think it clear that the duty of the
respondent company was to use the
greatest degree of diligence in prose-
cutting the application TO an early issue.
THE application for which an inter-
ference was anticipated was that nled
July %, 1890, by Daniel Drawbaugh, in
which he claims TO be the original and
first inventor of the telephone. IT
would never appear in the patent Of
flee that Drawbaugh was entitled TO a
patent. The plain duty OF the respond
ent corporation was, as II seems 10 me,
to INSIST on its right to patent at
once. That the unwarranted delay
thus caused was intended by the
l.
OFFICIALS WE'RE WILLING.
Il think these acts were so gross as
to forbid any interference except that
the dishonesty delayed issue of the
patent taking advantage for that pur-
pose of the perhaps eXcuSable willing
ness of the officials of the patent office
to postpone the decision of a sharply
debated question in which large pub
lie interest was involved.
fS n
the complainant has made out the case
and there should be a decree that the
patent in question was void and shall
! be delivered up and cancelled.
Lawyer F. p. Fish, counsel for the
Bell company, speaking of the decis-
! ion, said: The case Will go to the
| United States court of appeals and a
! decision will possibly be rendered
next spring after the case has been ar
I gued anew as though the circuit court
| had made this decision. If the case is
! decided against US it will be taken
| the United States supreme court"
The value of the patent involved is
said to be s5,000,000. The government 5
| case against the Bell company con-
| tanned two counts and the judge sus-
! tanned the government in both. The
! first was to the effect that the insur-
! ance of the patent TO Berliner was I'M
necessarily delayed and the second
! count was in substance that fromer
patent TO Berliner covered substanti-
ally the same claims as made in the
| issue in 1891.
In the stock exchange the effect of
! the decision was to send the Bell tele-
phone stock down with rush and for
a few minutes there was great excite
| ment. The stock had opened un-
changed at 2001a per cent and when the
| news of the decision reached the street
( c1rt nod n TO &c
point it recovered to 1874 and at ]
o'clock il was at 1Q3