Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-10-01

| opportunities to make fortune by little
inventions and be induced to believe that
they would be advised free of cost to
the patenta bility of their conceptions or
| endeavors in the inventive line.
The respondents were in 1900 cases en-
| abled to get fee of S in consideration of
| having search made that probably cost
| twenty-five cents or less, SO that thriv-
ing business was done in that behalf
| Deceptive Methods.
| The commissioner says the letters giving
| unfavorable reports were worded so that
| they appeared to the uninformed to be
| favorable reports, and the company de-
nlanded ''the first government fee of s2O'
] before the application was filed. because
the client would be more apt to pay gov
| eminent than an attorneys fee, and so
tney would De In position to compel pay
| nent for their work. by returning the So
whether the application was filed or not.
| Then. he says the company sent a letter
| OF extravagant praise Of she invention
| without regard to the merit of the inven-
| ton, extoling the genius of the inventor
| and suggesting that the invention would be
| very valuable If patented Immediately and
| 5udtciously handled. Further, that they
continued to urge the inventor on by tell
| ing him his name was placed on the roll
| OF honor" and that when he paid his fee
| he would be entered for the "Wedderburn
| prize" Then, IL there is any hardness, the
I
| demonstration with a silver medal as a
| reward of genius"
1T will be noted,'' says the commits
| sfoner, that the name of the genius does
not appear on the medal, but that of John
| Wedderburn & Co. does; nor is the inven-
| ton mentioned SO that the medal could be
worn by man or dog with equal pro-
| prfety, and would serve the same purpose
as cheap advertisement for the respond
| ents.
| But the client, the sucker as Wedder-
burn facetiously calls him. is played still
further, along the line, thus: About the
time that the sterling silver medal reaches
| the supposed inventor, he she receives
a communication without date from the
National Recorder which announces that
the Recorder has learned that the party
addressed has been placed upon Wedder-
| burns roll of honor and has received a
sterling silver medal as a reward of
genius, and the National Recorder appears
| to the reader of the letter to be wonder
| iuliE wrought up over the discovery of
pudding genius of such rare merit; and the
| recorder proposes at once to write up, to
| nave written up, the individual who has
| won such distinction" This he shows is
done for $.
! And So" the commissioner continues.
the recorder comes out with whole page
OF the picture Of these credulous and duped
| mortals who have paid s. for a boost up
| the ladder OF fame and the Post Office De-
partment of the United States and the pat
en-. once were for nearly two years the
agents and fnstrumentalities used for car
rylng on these schemes, to the disgrace of
the government. And the brilliancy
| ana pecunary profit of the achievement
nave hitherto purchased absolute Immunity
and even favor If in the future with ref
erence to the respondents or any other
compahy' COMBINE or persons adopting and
using such methods (and there are many
OF them) 1t will be due to gross neglect of
DUTY on the part of governmental officials
who are charged with the administra tion
| Oh the law: 1t is well known that
me methods and schemes here condemned
are becoming common as a result of the
supposed immunity the delinquents find in
the money they make and the influence
ana power the money SO obtained will pur-
say here that as to the practices, methods
ana conduct under consideration, no mat
yer by whom practiced. We are at the part
| ing OF the ways"
Above the Reach of LAW.
In many of these cases." the commits
sioner continued, ''the parties to whom 1
refer, in order to succeed, seem to have
done things and employed methods and
agencies that barely fall short of subject
Ing them to criminal prosecution, and in
many cases they do violate the criminal
statutes of the Unit ID States and of the
several states, but unfortunately those who
DO the wrong seem to be above the power
OF the law, and the poor victims Of the
wrong appear to be beneath it's care
The action in this case will establish
precedent of far-reaching influence for
coed or Ill, and the action taken will helm
70 compel the Observance of honest meth
DDS or will grant immunity to those who
are, to say the best that can be said of
them, rogues within the law"
The commissioner reviews the advertising
circulars used by Wedderburn & Co., and
points out various statements which he
says, there can be no doubt were ONLY In
tended to deceive, and he characterizes the
award OF prizes held monthly as "a pre-
tentious humbug."
1000 Medals, 1000 Patents.
Wedderburn & Co.. he says. have filed
less than 1000 applications fer patents and
received patents in about half of those
cases. yet they sent out 1000 silver medals
as awards of genius"
OF the newspapers which hold stock in
the Wedderburn company, Mr.. Butterworth
says: 1T will readily be understood that If
there Is silence on the part of the newspa-
pers that have helped, though unwittingly
to establish the scheme to defraud in the
matter of condenning the iniquity, we may
infer that such conduct Is due to the in
;a ISL winch attaches to ownership Of stock
Copies OF correspondence used by the
company In inducing newspapers to take
It's It's stock stock is given, and the commissioner
the attorneys be diSbarred.
Assistant CommissiOner's Report.
AS ASpOft VI TIE ASSISTANT commissioner .
Is careful and exhaustive review of the
evidence in the case
The Office cannot" says Mr.. Greeley, in
concluding his report, without bringing
lasting reproach upon itself, permit the
continuance of such deliberate and system
attic deception of inventors as is clearly
shown upon fill and fair Investigation to
have been practiced by the respondents.
The duty of this Office toward inventors
and the public inperatively demands that
the attorneys practicing before it who are
shown beyond reasonable doubt to have
been so utterly false to their obliga tions
toward this Office and toward their
clients. so utterly false to professional
honesty and fairness. so utterly false
to even common decency. should no longer
be permitted to be recognized
The fact that the United States mail was
being used by these respondents TO pro-
mote schemes of fraud was called to the
attention Of the Post Office Department
many months ago, but the matter was. +
understand, placed in the hands of an on
cial of that department, who for some -ea-
son failed to do his duty. He has since.
am informed, been dismissed and criminal
proceedings against him for misconduct in
nfI{r.