The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1912-03-29
CATCHING UP
WITH ROOSEVELT
Taft Trying TO Have Supreme
Court Decision Recalled.
Chief JUSTICE is WITH HIM.

Rotary Monograph Case Gives sps-
cai Point to the ColonePs Columbus
Observation-Disclosures Wants Con-
qress to Overthrow Courts Action.
On Feb. q Colonel Roosevelt deliv-
cred before the constitutional conyen-
ton OF Ohio an Grafton on "a Charter |
of Democracy" In which he denounced
the doctrine Of the infallibility of the
courts as a grave danger menaeing
American institutions and advocated a
simpllfed method for the recall of
court decisions by the people. At once
he was assailed by the representatives
of big business and of monopoly as an
advocate of virtual anarchy and liy-
ing threat against the safety of prop
erty.
OF course Mt the time he was speak
ing more particularly of state courts,
but in less than three weeks, ON
March II, to be exact, the supreme
court of the United States handed
down decision, coupled with the dis
sent of three members, Including that
of the chief justice, indicating Colo
mel Roosevelts attitude In every par
ticular The supreme court caught up
with Roosevelt. And the severe COM
ments drawn upon himself from the
advocates OF special privileges ought
now In all justice to- be passed on to
the supreme court and especially to
Chief Justice White, for If ever hui
man being voiced a demand for. the
recall of decision of the courts Chief
Justice White did so in his dissenting
opinion.
The case was that of Sidney Henry,
ct al vs. the A. b. Dick company. Tho
Dick company owned the patent on
rotary mlmeograph. 1t sold one of the
machines to Miss Christina d. Skou of
New York under stipulation that the
ink, stencil paper and other supplies
used with the invention must be
bought from the Dick company. The
Henry company sold Miss Skou ink
for the mimeograph that was not Dick
ink, and the Dick company sued the
Henry company and Miss Skou FOR in
fringement of the patent on the mlmeo-
graph. On March II, with only seven
members OF the United States supreme
court slttlng, four of them, constitute
ing majority, decided the case and
held that when the Henry company
sold the non Dick Ink to Miss Skou and
she used 1t, this constituted an in.
fringement of the patent.
In dissenting opinion, in which he
was Joined by justices Hughes and
lamar, Chief Justice White denounc-
ed this extraordinary opinion In tho
most biting language. Stating that the
patent did not cover the ink In any
way, he demanded that the legislative
department of the government amend
the law so as to make 1t impossible for
the precedent established by the de-
cision TO be maintained.
Under this decision 1t Is now the
law" declared the chief justice, ''that
the patentee has the power by
contract TO extend his patent rights so
MS to bring within the claims of his
patent things which are not embraced
therein, thus virtually legislatlng by
causing the patent laws TO cover sub
jects to which they could not reach,
the result being TO multiply monopo-
Hes ut the will of an interested party"
The decision caused laugh of derl-
sion throughout the national capital.
The advocates of the doctrine of the
infallibillty Of the courts were over
come with chagrln. while the support
ers of Colonel Roosevelt inquired with
sarcastic emphasis whether the people
Mt the polls so frequently denounced
MS "mob' by the advocates of spe-
clal privilege, could ever do anything
worse.
In the meantime the attorney gen.
eral and other administration oppo-
nents of Colonel Roosevelt fluttered
about In habbergasted haste to find
some speedy way to recall the opinion,
for If sustained this opinion Will take
the life out of some of the most spec
tacular trust busting suits the admin7
istration has in its Incubator. The
attorney general notified the defeated
litigants that II they We're game to
try to secure IA rehearing of the case
before full bench of the supreme
court the administration would be
glad 10 lend all the assistance of
which the department of justice was
capable At the same time the attor-
ney general commenced the prepare
tlon of Il bill for tho amendment of
the patent law with the intention of
setting congress loose at the supreme
court. Other steps for the recall of
the decision were lnaugurated by the
commissioner Of patents, who also be-
gan WORK on bill to be handed to
congress
Apparently every legislator In con-
gress wanted copy of the decision,
some FOR the purpose of enjoying
themselves and others to study II In
the search for way TO recall 1t. Il
This is the second piece OF sensa-
tional legislation perpetrated by the
United States supreme court within a
few months, but this later Instance
could not better serve as an indorse-
ment OF Colonel Roosevelt's plea for
the recall OF court decisions II 1t had
been made 60 order for that purpose.
The supreme court has indeed