Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-16
DEFENsE OF PATENT EXAMINERS
A Former Member Of he tan Answers
To the Editor Of The Evening star:

To the Editor Of The EvenaQgs St1r:
In your issue of Thursday. May IL. 1904.
there appears an article Ander the title
Edison Raps Patent once In which Mr..
Thomas A. Edison makes statements cal
culated to mislead as 90 the methods and
personnel of the patent bureau. In the
spirit of justice and fair play 1t has oc-
Cured to me that your valued paper would
be pleased to correcta the erroneous i'm
preston occasioned by Mr.. Edison's inter-
view and do Justice 70 an office and its
learned corps of examiners which for
hundred years has stood at the bulwarks
of American manufacturing progress and
industrial supremacy.
know nothing of the particular case
which seems to have occasioned Mr.. Edi-
sons attack. but a former principal ex-
aminer in the patent Office. and now prac-
titioner before it. do know that his state
ments In the above article to the effect
that the examiners are Incompetent and
that lax and illegal methods prevail are
without foundation in fact. and grossly mis-
represent the true conditions in that Office.
In the first place, nine-tenths of the ex-
aminers and their assistants are graduates
of such well-known colleges as Yale, Har-
ward. Princeton. &c. who are appointed to
the patent office only after most rigid and
of the entire force are also graduates OF
law and members of the bar. In fact, there
Is not another public office Of corresponding
size In the United States. or perhaps In the
in scientific and legal attachments or per-
forms its duty as cOnscientiously and well
as the examining corps OF the patent Office
in Washington.
There arc thirty-eight divisions In the
patent ONCE. each having a principal ex-
aminer at its head. with five or six assist
ants under him. Such principal examiner
secured his position only after years OF ex-
charge OF his duties, and, In at least nine
cases out OF ten. after having passed
through the successive grades of fourth.
third. second and first assistant as the re-
suit OF competitive examinations.
In the regular course OF examining an ap-
plicati0n for a patent, the principal exam
liner assigns II to one of his assistants, who
Ike himself, has special knowledge Of the
art to which 1t pertains. After the search
has been completed, the assistant and
principal examiner together go over the
case and by their combined knowledge and
efforts decide the applicants right to a
patent Should the applicant feel himself
aggrieved. he has his remedy by appeal to
the board of examiners-in-chief composed
of three men appointed by the President for
their special legal and scientific attain
ments. and from here he can appeal to the
commissioner Of patents. and then to the
Court of Appeals.
Mr.. Edison In the article referred to says:
They will go and take a young man out
of the bottle department or the collar but
ton department and set him to examining
applications for patents on wireless teleg-
raphy or some other such thing, and we
are the sufferers" AS q general state
ment. this is not correct. On the contrary.
after an assistant Is once assigned to duty
In any department 1t is the inyariable pol
icy of the Office to keep him there, for the
obvious reason that he becomes in a short
time an expert in the particular line of in
yentions placed in his charge. He then
knows the lines of inventive development
quickly recognizes new departures, and
with thoroughness is able to submit his
cases to the principal examiner for deter
mination Of the applicants legal rights
Again I notice Mr.. Edison states that
when an inventor wants to add some thing
to his application not originally contained
therein he gets sharp lawyer, who
induces the examiner to hand back the ap-
piication papers. SO the new matter may
be added. 1 do not know what the expert
ence of the author of this statement may
nave been, but do know that in nineteen
years experience as examiner and prac-
tittoner have never heard of this being
done. and If 1t has ever been done. then
the patent granted under such conditions
would be void-a reason all sufficient to de-
ter such practice on the part of the inventor
even If the examiner were willing. AS a.
matter Of fact, the examiner could not
hand back the application papers as
tney are matters of record In the patent
ONCE. and after once being flied they cam
not be withdrawn for any purpose what
ever: indeed. no changes, however trivial
can be made except by special communi-
ents asa - 20
Iaking into consideration the large
amount OF work the examiners are called
upon TO do. the constant appeals by in
Ventors Tor prompt action and hurried
grant OF their patents, the large response
piues resting upon the examiners. the
scientific, mechanical and legal Lnow,adae
necessary for the proper adjudication of the
inventors right, the work of the examining
corps OF the United States patent Office
s s IN poid relief as to methods and
American systems and learning.
ROBERT p HAMS