Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-01-12
THE PATENT OFFICE
ITS METHODS INQUIRED INTO BY
AN ATTORNEY.
Uncertain How a Great Stride Can Be
Made in a Short Space Of
Time.

AS result Of the recent controversy re-
garding the delay In the work at the United
States patent office, Commissioner Allen
ordered all of the examiners to bring their
work up each week to certain dates. AS a
result, the patent office has today 10 PAT
cases less than 1t had on September 4, 1906.
Fred w. Barnaclo, a patent lawyer from
New York, who has been looking into this
matter, seems to think that If the patent
office force fell back continually from the
beginning of the year from 17,256 cases to
the %, $40 cases. and, in fact, has been
falling back for years, and can catch up
1924 in SO little time, some explanation Is
necessary.
Mr. Barnaclo has written Commissioner AL
len follows under date of January 8,
1907:
Il am sorry that it was impracticable
for me to return to interview you, as you
requested. when 1 was in Washington, In
the matter OF my recent letter asking for
certain information. If convenient. there
fore, l would appreciate reply to my last
letter, which in part reads: VIII you kindly
explain to me why in 1901 you had an in
crease of business over the beginning OF
the year amounting to 2,745 cases, de-
crease at the end of the year over the high
point during that year of 1922 cases; why
in 1862 you had an increase over the begin
ming of the year of 1926 cases and de-
crease over the high point during the year
of 2,30I cases; why in 1909 you had a de-
crease over the beginning of the year Of
,429 cases and a decrease over the high
point during the year of 1,429 cases; why
in 1903 you had an increase over the begin
ming of the year of BIOS cases and a de-
crease over the high point during the year
of 1@2 cases; why in 1905 you had an In
crease of 4,035 cases over the beginning of
the year and decrease of 1924 over the
high point during the year and in 1906 you
had a decrease of 6,949 over the beginning
of the year and decrease over the high
point during the year of 12,542 cases.
I'VE can put 1905 and 1906 on an equal
basis, it would seem. by seeing that you
have had 2,433 more cases at the high point
the hump during this year than you
had last year, and have either caught up
in reality 1O,1S2 cases within the last six
teen weeks, thus showing that the old men
in your equalization of forces or .distribu-
ton of forces against the lead have either
worked harder or the tWenty-eight new
men have been Of material assistance.
Where the New Men Were Put.
Secondly, will you kindly tell me where
you put the twenty-nine new men, in what
divisions would you put them and how
many men are in each division. l would
like to know how many men are in each
examining division.
The reason l ask this information is be-
cause some of the divisions, with great
deal more work their hands now than
they had at the beginning of the year, are
reported to have caught up considerably in
time.
Il noted during my recent visit to Wash
inSton that all of your men are working
very hard, and as l understand some OF
them are working overtime, and naturally
l can see that in your efforts to distribute
the effort against the load plus the extra
energy resulting from overtime work are in
tended to give the public some of the ad-
% rr-Ii a1, h ant
Il am at loss to know, however, how it
is possible for your bureau, after having
fallen back from week to week
in the work of the patent office during the
fore part of the year from 1855 cases to
%, $40 cases, which covered period of
about seven months, and then in about
seventeen or eighteen weeks catch up over
IL, 247 cases.
on an equal basis by subtracting 4,233 cases
from the q, $40 cases, and also subtracting
/ ,234 cases from 3,241 cases, and then add
ing the 4233 cases to the remaining 1908
cases. we would have result that your
office has caught up with the assistance CT
twenty-nine new men, who, you stated t.
me at our last interview, were practlcaA9
under tuition until about September u,
16 236 cases in about eighteen weeks, or as
in simple proposition or a non comparative
up to and including September
IS, with the assistance of twenty-nlne new
men, you have caught up 1921 cases over
against 234 cases last year or 1854 cases
over the beginning of the year over fall
ing back last year of 4,035 cases
A Great Stride in a Short Time.
IT cannot conceive how it Is possible for
YOUR men to make so great a stride in six
teen or seventeen weeks against a dia-
metrically opposed record for the last few
years without drawing the conclusion
First that the examiners and each and
all of them have been heretofore, prior to
September, left to their own caprices in the
matter of performing their duties and
therefore did not feel 1t an individual re-
sponsibility to reduce the number of pend
Ing applica tons, inasmuch as their individ-
ual efforts might we'll be deemed by them,
under the circumstances, to count for very
little, inasmuch as the totals were con-
stantly on the increase; or, second. that
they are now rushing the work, and must
necessarily permit one to believe that the
character Of the work coming from the
patent office cannot be the best; or, third,
the twenty-nine new appofntees whose serv-
ices have been very shortlived must possess
some superhuman powers. In either case
the public, and especially the inventor, Is
entitled to an explanation.
81 do not believe that the examiners are
doing anything excepting by orders from
the commissioner of patents They realize
that their bread and butter depends upon
their carrying out the instructions of their
chief; but If that chief is issuing any in
structions or orders calling upon the ex-
aminers to bring up their work to within
a certain date, whether it can be done or
not, and in the face of the fact that it is
we'll known that men are only human and
cannot render people of the United States
competent services in consequence of any
such order, then it follows that the in
ventors of our country, upon whom we
must rely for the vitalizing influence of our
are not being treated with the
regard to which they entitled.
ma tier"