New-York tribune., 1909-12-15
WRIGHT SUIT OPENS
OTER PATENT FIGHTS.
Curtiss accused of Infringe
ment an United States Court.

Buffalo. Dec 14-Ihree OF the world
most famous aTisrors-w!lnur and Orville
Wright and Glenn H Curtiss, Of the Her
ring-Curtiss Company-joined issues in
legal battle here to-day. The proceedings.
which came before Judge Hazel IN the
United States Court. were f. a suit brought
by the Wrights for q preliminary irjunc-
ton against Curtiss 20 restrain him and his
associates from manufacturing and selling
aeroplsnes on the ground that in all essen
tial details Curtiss is infringing ths patents
OF the Wrights. Arguments had not been
completed when court adjourned until to-
morrow.
H. a. Toulmin. % Springfield, Ohio, rep
resenting the Wright brothers. argued for
three hours 20 show that his clients were
;ns pioneers in making and demonstrating
the heavier-than-air machines. He laid
special stress on their discovery Of devices
for balancing machine in the wind. one
Of the charges in the suit being that Cur
tiss copied these devices. II was also
charged that Curtiss received his inspira-
zion ana understanding Of these devices
while A NJ. Herring. his partner. was
guest Of the wrights in 1905
ATTORNEY DENIES INFRINGEMENT.
For Mr.. Curtiss Emerson X Newell of
New York. denied infringement. He de-
cla!ed that the Wrights themselves had ad-
rnitred that the inclined OF curved plane
and the forward and rear attachments
were old that while the wrights had solved
the balancing problem cu-tiss had adopted
an entirely different plan 20 maintain
equilibrium He also asserted that the par
tlcula- devices on which the wFights
charged infringement never had been
patented
"Mr. Toulniin seems to 90 on the theory"
said AIr. Newell. that when machine ac-
eonnplishes the same result II is an infringe
mant OF patent"
He contended that an automatic device TO
maintain equilibrium was still the great
oesideratura in the aercplane.
After paying q tribute 70 the Wright
brothers for their success he added that,
after al, their fame rested largely on their
skill as 'asroplane ehauneurs," which did
not figure in The suit
DETAILS OF wRIGHTs' BRIEF.
The brief OF Il. a. Toulnlin. counsel in
chief for the Wright brothers, says re-
garding A W. Herring Of the Herring
Curtiss Company:
And this great invention OF the Wright
flight by Mr. Herring, one Of the defend
ants II the year 1902. al Kitty Hawk
y c, the testing camp OF these investi-
gators while Mr.. Octave Chanute was the
guest or the Wrights and Mr. Herring
was in Mr.. ChanHtes employ. 1t was
there that this member OF the defendant
company hrst acquired d knowledge Of
thls invention, which he carried away with
him and OF which he wrote two years
later IN a journal called Gas Power -
he speaks OF the disturbing and dsstruc-
tive Influences OF the endless twists and
swirls OF the air. and says that until a
method was found 10 countsract these
disturbances, or a least a method was
found 20 quickly right the machine after
its equilibrium had been disturbed BY
these air waves hope OF a real flying
machine was futile: and then adds that
the Wright brothers work has been re-
warded by the production or q man
carrying machine that actually flies"
Here vas the unsolicited testimony of
one OF the officers OF the defendant COM
pany that the Wright brothers had solved
the very problem which he himself stated
IN the same article was the real obsta-
Gle 10 success and had stood almost like
a rock OF Gibraltar" in that held OF en-
dsayOr.
IN view o. this deliberate declaration in
writing Dir. Herring cannot now be heard
10 derogate from that position except at
the cost OF decentralization and in disre-
gard OF every principle OF good conscience
ana fairness which a court Of equity
shOuiS