Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-10-14
WEDDERBURN'S CASE AGAIN
Hearing Before the Post Office Depart
ment.
Required to Show Cause Why n
ButterwOrth's Statement.

hearing in the case of Wedderburn &
order. depriving them of the use of the
United States mails, should not be issued
against them, was begun before Assistant
Attorney General Tyner of the Post Office
Department yesterday afternoon, as stated
in yesterdays Star. 1t was 3 o'clock when
Gen. Tyner began the hearing, and only
preliminary proceedings were conducted.
Wedderburn & Co. were represented by
Judge Jere Wilson, and the Patent Bar
Association by Joseph r. Edison, VIM. II.
Doolittle and F. C. Somers, who had been
appointed to conduct the case on behalf
Of the association. Assistant Commissioner
of Patents Greeley and Law Clerk Stauf-
fer were present, together with several
prominent patent attorneys.
ommissioncr Duttcrworth's State
l0cnt.
The following communication had been
sent to the Postmaster General by Patent
Commissioner Rutterworth:
Il am III receipt of a letter from the hon
orable Secretary of the Interior, of which
the following is a copy:
Department of the Interior,
''Ofice Of the Secretary,
WASHINGTON. ID c.. September 30. 1897.
your decision and the report OF Assistant
Secretary Greeley in the John Wedderburn
and John Wedderburn & Co. case, and
herewith return them, expressing my full
approval of both.
Il direct that when the decision and re-
port are printed you transmit a copy of
each 10 the Postmaster General and that
his attention be specially called to the use
that has been made of the United States
mail by John Wedderburn & Co. Very
respectfully, C. N BLISS Secretary
In obedience of the direction of the
honorable Secretary. l herewith transmit
a copy of the findings and decisions in the
matter OF the proceedings against John
Wedderburn and John Wedderburn & Co
for disbarment for gross misconduct as
solicitors practicing before this depart
ment.
IL herewith return, with thanks for their
use. number Of letters from John We'd
derbSrn 4 Co. to various persons, loaned
TO this Office by your department. ! also
send for your information number of let
tiers received by this Office, col,ies of
charges against John Wedderburn & Co.
and their answer, together with other
printed matter. which discloses the charac-
ter and quality of the advertising literature
used by the respondents and the business in
which they were engaged
In compliance with this request of the
honorable Secretary Of the Interior, l beg
to call your attention to the fact that the
United States mails have been constantly
and persistently used to promote the
schemes of John Wedderburn & Co., and
used, as / believe, in contravention of the
law 1t seems obvious from the evidence
before me that a conspiracy was entered
into by number of persons in contrave,i-
ton of section $40 of the Revised Statutes,
and that the statutes in regard to the use
Of the mails for fraudulent purposes were
openly and defiantly violated by these con-
spiratGrs-
Certainly the literature and correspond
ence TO which your attention is called was
deposited in the mails for transmission to
the parties addressed. for the purpose of
deCefytng, misleading and defrauding them
and 1. appears that the commission of the
ofensc was SO profitable that the conspira-
tors not only went without rebuke or pun
ishment, but used at least two OF the de-
partments Of the government as instru-
mentaiities to carry out and into effect the
object OF the conspiracy. call your at
tention particularly to the circulars
pamphlets and correspondence used by the
respondents. and especially to the circular,
entitled "A New Departure and One