Evening star., 1909-08-20
WR|GHTS BRING SUIT
Alleged New York Aero Society
Has Infringed.
WILL SETTLE ALL DISPUTES
Brothers Claim Flexible Wing Tips
Are Theirs.
MAY MEAN AIR MONOPOLY
Whole Aeronautic World Is In
tensely. Interested in the
Outcome.
May MEAN AIR MONOPOLY

NEW YORK, August Ca legal fight
that will cause a stir in the aerenautical
world began here when the complaint In
an action brought by Wilbur and orville
Wright against the Aeronautic Society
was filed in the United States district
court yesterday by Arthur C. Fraser OF
Fraser & Usina, patent lawyers at LII
Broadway.
The outcome will be watched eagerly by
persons interested In -aeronautics, both in
this country and in Europe. -
The gist Of the claim made by the
Wrights is that. the new Herring-Curtiss
aeroplane, which was built for the Aero
nautic Society, and with which Charles
Foster Willard is experimenting at Min
cola, L. l., contains several infringements
Of the Wright patents, which. are regis
tered at Washington and In practically
every civilized country. The main in
fringement. 1t Is alleged, lies in the use of
to the ae-oplane, particularly when glid-
ing or making turns.
Should the Wrights be successful in the
federal courts and procure the injunction
they ask for they will have almost a
worldwide monopoly of aeroplane con.
struction at its present stage, for there
is hardly a heavier-than-air flying ma
chine of any consequence which does not
use the flexible wing tip in one form Of
another. Even the Bleriot machine ir
which the French aviator crossed the
English channel a few weeks ago, though
a monoplane, and thus essentially different
in its scheme from the Wright flyer, has
flexible tips at tthe extremities of 1t:
wings or planes and would be PRACTICAL,
useless without them.
The Wrights have advanced theil
claims informally when comparing theiI
machine with others. but this is the frs
overt step they have taken to establish
their sole right to use the flexible tips
Other aeronautical engineers have decrie6
the idea that the Wright patents gave
them the sole right to use this device, anc
have stated that long before the Wrights
did any active work In the invention oa
flying machines Hiram Maxim. Chanute
and others had devised the flexible tiI
idea and had adapted It in one form OF
another to aeroplane construction.
Hearig Set for October 4.
There will be a hearing in the United
States district court October 4, when
counsel for the Wrights will ask that q
temporary injunction be granted re-
straining the Aeronautic Society or Its
members from using the Herring-Curtiss
machine or any other that contains de-
vices the Wrights claim they invented
and patented. particularly the flexible
tips.
Coming at this time, the suit is an un-
expected blow to the ambitions of the
Aeronautic Exhibition Company, which
has acquired from the Aeronautic Society
the right TO experiment with the Herring
Curtiss machine and to exhibit it through
the country, with c. F. Willard as the
| aviator. Whether the proposed tour will
take place depends largely on the action
CT the federal court. The complaint OF
the Wrights is very specific. and reads:
sThat the defendant, alleging to be
formed for the purpose of promoting
aerial flying. procured the Herring-Cur-
| tiss Company and one Glenn H. curtiss
personally, both of Hammondsport, N
complained of and deliver them to the
defendant, under whose auspices the said
Glenn II. Curtiss is giving public exhi-
bition flights with the said infringing
flying machines within the jurisdiction o.
this court; that the defendant has pur-
chased such machines from one or both
of said parties. and has charged the pub.
lie for admission to said exhibition
| flights, receiving large sums in gate OF
ticket money.
| In the other clauses of the voluminou.
complaint the Wrights set forth that the
lHerring-Curtiss machine infrnges their
patents of May %. 1906. They ask that
all the parts which constitute such in
| fringement be ordered destroyed. The
United States government. say the
Wrights. has recognized the worth and
validity of the Wright patents by pur-
chasing one of the Wright heavier-than-
air machines, and these rights, 1t Is al
legged. have also been recognized publicly
| by the sovereigns and governments OF
other countries.
Have Suffered Losses.
The Wright flying machine factory at
Dayton. Ohio. the brothers allege. is suf-
fering financially from the infringement
of these patents, and the brothers ask
that when their losses have been esti-
mated they be awarded three times the
amount compensatory and punitive dam
ages.
THE inventions of the complainants," "
concludes the bill of complaint. .'are OF
great value and utility. and constitute the
| first instance in the history of the count
Iless attempts to produce flying machines
wherein a heavier-than-air machine ever
made aerial flights and wherein the ma
chine was within the control and will OF
the operator, thus giving to the world the
| first machine to actually and successfully
| fly, being in this sense a creation or en-
bodiment of new art and epoch In
| for ages synonym for failure and i'm
possibility
Lee S. Burridge. president of the Aeros
nautic Society and also Of the Aeronautic
Exhibition Company, which has leased
| the Herring-Curtiss flyer from the society
said last night that so far as he was
concerned the action begun by the
Wrights might be regarded as in the ma
| ture of friendly suit.
II am really very glad, said Mr.. Bur.
ridge, that things have come to head
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