The Washington herald., 1909-08-20

New York, Aug. l9.-Suit was begun in
the United States Circuit Court to-day by
the Wright brothers against the Aero
nautic Society. New York corporation.
for infringement Of patents in connection
with q machine bought by the society
from Glenn H. Curtlss and the Herring
Curtiss Company. Of Hammondsport, n.
Y, and exhibited by the society.
The Dayton men seek to restrain the
society from exhibiting the machine fur
ther. and also TO recover damages.
The bill Of complaint is signed by VIII
bur Wright on behalf Of himself and his
brother, orville Wright, and was exc
cuted in Washington on August 16 before
Calvin T. Milans. notary public
The attorneys for the Wrights are given
as Il. A. Toulmin, Of Springfield, Ohio,
and Arthur c. Frazer. a patent lawyer Of
40 Broadway. A subpoena was issued for
he society to-day By the deputy clerk Of
he court, Charles a. Van Hagen. and
vas turned over 20 Marshal HeRkel.
Calls for Hearing.
The subpoena calls for an appearance
of the defendant in court on the first
Monday I'm October.
In their bin of complaint the Wrights
say that they were the true, original,
drst. and joint inventors Of new and use
ful Improvements in flying machines"
which were not known and used by 9TH
ers In the country. and had not been put
Up TO the time Of the issuance Of their
patents. They received their patent No.
S2l.Ss3. on May 2. 1906. to run for the
customary seventeen years.
The invention, the complaint continues,
is Of great value and utility and con-
sttutes the first instance In the history
OF the countless attempts to produce fly
ing machines wherein a Observation-Disclosures
machine ever made aerial flights, and
wherein the machine was within the con-
troll and viii OF the operator"
First Machine to Fly.
The Wrights claim to have given the
world the first machine to fly actually
and successfully. being in this sense a
creation or embodiment Of a new art. and
an epoch in aerial endeavor. human flight
having for ages been the synonym Of fall
Ure and impOssibnity"
"The public generally" the document
continues. "and the United States gov
ernment ip particular through its ap-
pointed officers, have acquiesced in and
acknowledged the validity of said pat
ent' II cites the purchase by the gov
ernment from the orators, OF "one Of their
flying machines embOdying the invention
embraced I'm and covered by said patent
with the right 10 use the same for ma
tonal purposes, as proof Of this recog-
milton by the government"
The complaint further alleges that sew
eral sovereigntes in foreign lands have
similarly acQuiesced IN and recognized
the novelty and utility OF the machine
and the rights Of the Daytonlans in ii.
Expended Much Money.
The Wrights. according to their com
plaint, have expended. hrse sums Of
money. and have been to great trouble
ard expense ia the production and pro-
motion Of their invention, and the per
fection Of the machine, and for the man
Ufacture OF the machine at Dayton.
The specification Of the violation of pat
ent is given thus:
The defendant. alleging to be formed
for the purpose Of promoting the science
OF aerial flying, procured the Herring
Curtiss Company, and Glen H. Curtiss
personally. both Of Hammondsport. n. 7.
10 make the flying machines herein com
planned Of, and to deliver them to the
defendant, under whose auspices the said
Glenn II. Curtiss has given public exbi-
billion flights; that the defendant has
purchased the machines ana has charged
admission to the exhibition flights. re-
ceiving large sums OF gate or ticket
money"
The Dayton inventors aHege that unless
me society Is restrained from further
flights 1t VIII practically destroy a large
source Of revenue which the Wrigbts
otherwise would receive. by .'precedjne,''
INC Wrights. and making public flights or
exhibitions.
The Golden Filler.
The machine in question is presumably
the Golden Flier." built by the Herrfno-
Curtiss Company. for the Autonitic So
ciety. and at present leased BY the So
ciety 10 The Aeronautic Exhibition Com
pany. Lee +. Burridge, Of the society.
said tonight that the machine had been
bought from Mr.. Curtiss under a guar
antee that it should be free from the
Wright patents, and in the present suit
Mr. Curtss would assume the real de-
tense.
we are very glad. indeed. that the
suit has been brought" said Mr.. Bur
ridge tonight. There are some 2eS /
American patents on flying machines. !
and each inventor appears to be under
the impression that his patents cover the !
entire field. I do not mean to suggest
that the majority OF these inventors are
IN anyway IN a class with the Wright
brothers. but there IS such confusion In
tne matter Of patents that Il is necessary.
for the good OF the work OF aerial ex- |
perimentation, that the tangle be straight !
ened out"
No Violation, Says Herring.
A. N. Herring. who is associated with
Mr.. Curtss in the manufacture Of the /
oeroplanes, said tonight that the ma
chine as made by them for the Aeronau-
tic Society violated nothing in the
Wrights patent.
In fact" he said. they have very
little IN their machine that IS not already
public property. In the matter of warp