The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1897-05-07

coupler, nut lock, or in some other
of the hundreds of classes of over
stocked invention. Many patent
attorneys, so called, are flooding
the country with "list ofinventions
wanted" The inventions are of
course not wanted. There are,dead
in the Patent Office, hundreds of
patents in the same class, and these
stimulating, seductive statements
are really and only in the interest
of the alleged patent attorneys who
send them. The average cost of a
patent is $65. The Government
fees are $35, and the balance, $50,
goes into the pocket of the attor-
ney. All of these attorneys demand
their fee In advance, or before they
present the application for patent.
They do not have to earn their fee
by getting the patent, but simply
to tell the inventor that his patent
is patentable, and, since fully one
third of the applications thus made
are rejected, the statement of pat
entability is often false, and no
doubt, in hundreds of instances, is
made only to get the fee.
The average inventor is credul-
Gus. Some who have been taught
in the school of experience are
wary, but many even Of these have
fallen prey to the bold and brilliant
talent that has recently appeared
in The field. They have been piled
with such seductive "literature"
and lured by such caressing prom
ises of sale of invention and for
tune only waiting to be grasped
that they have overcome their eau
tlon and silenced their common
sense to find themselves sans
money, sans patent, sans sale, and
rich only in fresh experience and
the chagrin which rough teaching
brings. 1t Is no small task to edu.
cate and warn seventy millions of
people, "mostly FOOLS" that patents
are game, which, were the peo-
pie wise,patent sale agencies would
not play at. Patents more frequent
Iy ruin than enrich the inventor.
OF all the 100000 granted, it is
doubtful if 10000 were really valu-
able, or marked an advance 10 the
art to which they pertained. 1t Is
far from desirable that real genu-
inc progressive invention should
be discouraged or checked, but it is
desirable and imperlous, that the
mehdacities of patent attorneys
shall be stopped, because they are
the source of most of that which is
spurious and sloppy in the Patent,
Office, to say nothing of the ruin
and misery of thousands of people
fitted only for honest toll. Not half
the patents would be applied for if
the alleged inventor was reliably
advised as to the state of the art, or
told that his device was not patent
able. The facts are Withheld from
him until the attorney has pocket
ed his fee, and he is not only kept
ignorant Of the truth, but is cum
ningly piled with assurances of the
great merit of his invention, the
promise Of its ready sale, with al
offer to advertise it for considera.
ton, or with medal alleged to
come from "Board of Awards" as
a certificate of excellence, etc. BY
these means he is adroitly lured
and robbed, not by the bold "stand
and deliver" method of old, but by
the cowardly and degenerate meth
ods of educated, refined, brilliant
and lawyer-like rascality, using the
press of the United States for
shingle and the United States mails
for tentacles.
A bill has been introduced in the
Senate to prevent inventors and
others from being deceived and de.
frauded by alleged patent attorn-
eys; making 1t unlawful for any
person, firm or corporation engag.
ed in procuring patents to offer or
award to their clients any gift,
or chance to win one, medal of
honor or any other article or thing
of supposed value, and any person
violating the provisions of this act
is to be punished by a fine of from
$500 to 5 600 or imprisoned from
six months to one year.