Birmingham age-herald., 1895-06-03
Piano tuning, $2.5O. Jos. B. Cole, 2IO9 2d avenue. Best city references. 5o I'm
A BELL TELEPHONE VICTORY.

 The Berliner Trausmtter Patent sus-
 tained.
 The Age-Herald publishes the follow ing from the Baltimore American of May 20 by request:
 Boston, May 1S.-The American Bell Telephone company won signal legal victory today It's Berliner patent was decided by the United States circuit court of appeals to be valid. This, as counsel for the United States frankly admits, is a great surprise and virtually gives the Bell company a monopoly of the microphone until the year 190S
 The United States relied upon two grounds to show that the patent was void. The first was that there was lle- gal delay in it's issue, The second was that prior patent was granted upon the same application to the same applicant for the same invention. The prior pat ent referred to was one granted to Ser liner in 1880.
 The application for the patent in suit was filed June 1, 1SS7 and a patent was issued November IT, 1891. The proposi- ton of the government was that the Bell company Intentionally delayed the prosecution of the Berliner application and the issue of their Berliner patent for the purpose and with the result of prolonging their control of the article of telephoning, which would cease with the expiration of the Bell patents in 1893, and that they did this by submit ting to delays on the part of the officers of the patent office, which delays the Bell company had In it's power to pre- vent and refrained from preventing for an unlawful purpose
 The curious fact has been established in connection with the fraudulent de- lay" about which the government com plained, that this condition was brought al m " 10 ill will of the patent office officials. The attitude of the patent office, especially at the time of the Pan Electric suits, was notoriously hostile to the Bell peo- pie, and 1t Is plain that all through the proceedings upon the Berlner applica- ton ever possible technicality was taken advantage of to delay the issue of the Berllner patent-presumably because 1t was possible that each proceeding might result in the overthrow of the patent. The ultimate effect was to benefit the Bell people, but that was far from be- ing the intention of the patent office officials. The long delay was due mainly to decisions made by the patent office Tn accordance with an absurd rule. since abolished, they put Berliner's application in interference Gas it is called with Pro lessor Bells application, although Der liner did not claim Professor Bells in- vention.
 The Berliner patent is the most valua- ble at this time held by the Bell com pany The two basic patents on the tele- phone, involving the magneto transmit ter and magneto receiver, have already expired, and, consequently, any one is at liberty to use a telephone of that description. It was by the ownership of the Berliner patent, however, that the Bell company held a monopoly of the long, distance service.
 The famous Berlner patent contained the following claims:
 l. The method of producing in a circuit electrical undulations similar in form to sound waves by causing the sound waves to vary the pressure between electrodes in constant contact, so as to strengthen and weaken the contact, and thereby increase and diminish the resistance or the circuit.
 g. An electric speaking telephone trans hitter operated by sound waves and consisting of a plate sensitive to said sound waves, electrodes in constant con- tact with each other, and forming part of circuit which includes a battery or other source of electric energy, and adapted to increase and decrease the resistance of the electric circuit by the variation in pressure between them, caused by the vibrational movement of said sensitive plate:
 B. The combination with the dia- phragm and vibratory electrode, of a rigidly held opposing electrode in con- stant contact with the vibratory elec- trode.
 f. In telephonic transmitter vibra- tional plate made concave for condensing the sound.
 D. In a telephonic transmitter, vbra- tional plate provided with one or more apertures, as and for the purposes set forth.
 G. A speaking telephone transmitter, comprising a diaphragm or disk sensitive to sound waves combined with a rigidly held but adjustable electrode in contact with the same, whereby the electric cur rent is transformed into series of undu- lations corresponding with the vibra- tions of said diaphragm.