The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-11-15

| There is no special statute cover
! ing the use of the stamp Patent
Applied For" or Patent Pending"
The mark simply means that an ap-
| plication has been actually filed in
| the Patent Office. 1t does not affect
an inventors rights before the Pat
ent Office to manufacture and market
| his invention after the application is
| filed and before the patent is grant
ed, but there is no real protection
against infringers until the patent
has actually issued.
VIII it Pay to Take Patent?
AS a general rule an invention is
worth little or nothing until the pat
| ent is obtained; and until then, no
one is likely to buy Therefore, the
| first thing to be considered, the first
| step to be taken, is to obtain the
| patent.
The extent of profit frequently de-
| pends upon the business capacity of
the inventor or his agent. One man
| by his activity will make a fortune
| from an unpromising improvement,
! while another, possessing brilliant
! invention, will realize little or moth
, ing, owing to incompetence.
In speaking of this subject, in an
official report, a chief examiner of
! the Patent Office says: "a patent, if
it is worth anything, when properly
managed, is worth and can easily be
/ sold for from one to fifty thousand
dollars. These remarks only apply
/ to patents of ordinary or minor
value. They do not include such as
the telegraph, the planning machine,
I and the rubber patents, which are
worth millions each. A few cases of
[ the first kind will better illustrate
my meaning.
"a man obtained a patent for a
slight improvement in straw cutters,
| took a model of his invention
through the Western States, and af-
| ter a tour of eight months return
ed with forty thousand dollars in
cash or it's equivalent.
Another inventor in about fifteen
months made sales that brought him
sixty thousand dollars, his invention
being a machine to thrash and clean
grain. A third obtained a patent
for a printing ink, and refused fifty
thousand dollars, and finally sold it
for about sixty thousand dollars.
These are ordinary cases of min
or invention, embracing no very
considerable inventive powers, and
of which hundreds go out from the
Patent Office every year. Expert
ence shows that the most profitable
patents are those which contain very
little observer of little value"
The Goodyear Rubber patents, the
Sewing Machine Patents, the Bell
Telephone patents, have brought
many millions of dollars to their
owners, and are notable instances of
| tho nr6ino Inc nf CT nj in
ventions, when of such a nature as
to enter extensively into the require
ments of the general public.
Minor contrivances of less uni
versal need are still, in some cases,
of great worth. An example is seen
in DR.. Higgins Sliding Thimble for
umbrellas. This is a little contriv-
ance for pushing umbrella springs
and protecting the fingers. The doc
tor states he received more than one
hundred thousand dollars in cash as
royalties from his patents. He Sc
cured American, English, French,
German, and other patents at a
small cost. His foreign patents have
proved especially profitable.
The foregoing and other instances
are significant in showing that good
| business management is an essential
element in effecting the Introduction
and sale of a patent. 1t is, there
fore, often advisable to transfer a
share or interest in the patent to
some business acquaintance for the
purpose of forwarding the introduce
tion of the invention.
How and What to Invent.
Inventors, attracted by the adver-
| tiSpnnntS of lictc Of
wanted" send for such lists and pro-
ceed to work on suggestions therein
contained, with the glittering pros
pect of a quick sale and immediate
wealth, little thinking that many of
the suggestions are old; some of the
devices already patented, and the
rest, for the most part, things that
are not in demand.
This is only a scheme to secure
patent fees. The inventor has made
| great progress when he has found
a real chance for invention. Ordin-
airy common sense teaches that no
one having valuable knowledge of
| inventions wanted would be likely to
give such knowledge away freely.
Often there are developments in an
industry which come to public notice,
demanding new inventions.
The way to invent is to keep
thinking; and to thought add practi-
| cal experiments. Examine things
about you and study how to i'm
prove them. Note all defects in the
objects of everyday use about you,
and see If you cannot devise some
means of overcoming these defects.
Many opportunities may be taken
advantage of by noting what is sell
ing well in your neighborhood, or
what is in general use or coming in
to use. Try to keep we'll informed
of what is going on.
Hints on the Sale of Patents.
No sooner does any PERSONS name
appear in print as the patentee of a
new invention, than he receives by
mail a shower of letters and circu-
lars from a gang of patent knaves.
The patentee is invited, if he wants
to realize Immediately, say one
thousand, two thousand, or ten
thousand dollars, to send forward to
the agent small advance fee. Thus
instead of helping the patentee to