The herald., 1897-08-02
Fortune in the Balance

Half the governments of the world
have eyes on a case now pending at
Washington whose issue may involve
millions and the fortunes of war. On
the records it masquerades as Inter
ference No. 17,411, Bauschlicker VS..
Porsch." 1t has to do with the manu-
facture of smokeless powder, that new
munition of war which is revolution
izing the destinies of battle.
Not so long ago in Frankenthal, Ger
many, there lived two men, August
Bauschlicker and Heinrich Nowak the
best of friends. One Of them invented
the chemical acetone, the basis of
smokeless powder-which one the
Washington patent Office is trying to find
out. Nowak grew rich beyond his
widest dreams by virtue of the process
that all the nations of Europe would
have given fortunes to possess solely.
Bauschlicker didn't remain poor either.
But at last things went wrong. Nowak
lost every pfennig he owned, and sought
the United States to recoup. Letters
passed between the two old friends.
Finally Nowak, now DR.. Ottokar
Porsch, got out patent on acetone ard
the Orangeburg Chemical company of
Nyack started in to make and sell it.
Bauschlicker got wind of IL. 1t was
his process, he asserted. The Hass-
lacher & Rassler Company were sell.
ing it in this city, too So he brought
suit, and now the case is near a final
settlement. Thousands and thousands
of pages of testimony have been taken
here and in Germany. Dr. Porsch, who
now lives at 932 Park avenue, Hoboken,
admits that he has changed his name
from Nowak to Porsch, but says he did
it because he wanted to start life anew
here. He swears that he invented the
process Of making acetone, and his
wife, Olga, backs him up.
In his testimony, taken abroad,
Bauschlicker swears that the invention
is his, and that one day in fit of con-
fidence he told the priceless secret to his
friend Nowak. He accuses him now of
having sold the secret to the United
States and to Russia for use in the
manufacture of smokeless powder for
their respective armies.
"This has caused me loss of 81, ,000,0
in royalties" swears Bauchlicker.
at isn't true that he invented ace
tone" swears Porsch, just as positively.
81 discovered it years ago in my factory
in Frankenthal."
"Porsch worked for me in my factory" +"
rejoins Bauschlicker, "and there learned
the secret so valuable in warfare"
Porsch's disappearance from his old
town was a mysterious one. No one
knew of his whereabouts, swears
Bauschlicker, until he heard that ace
tone was being manufactured in the
United tSates by one Ottokar Porsch.
He had grown wealthy over it. Bausch-
Ticker wanted the royalties that every
pound of smokeless powder had to pay.
and 50 the action was brought. He
wants the patent declared null and void.
II he wins he will sue all the manufac-
turers who have used acetone under
Porsch's patents.
When the missing Nowak was firmly
established here as Porsch he sent for
his wife. His employers sent their ex-
pressman to the steamship pier for her
trunks, but none could be found The
only ones that the check called for were
those of a Mrs. Heinrich Nowak The
expressman came back with his story,
and the secret 80 long concealed came
out. DR.. Ottakar Porsch was Heinrich
Nowak.-New York World.