Omaha daily bee., 1912-07-21

Gorgona and inquired how this flame
was operated, and they had even or
dered the oxygen and machinery for the
work from the states, claiming that they
were going to use it In cutting the grid
ers of an old pier in Ecuador. The
Gorgona engineers kindly showed them
the process, and they were fully equip
ped for using it in that safe burglary.
Indeed, the operating machine and the
gases were found In the tunnel after
they left. They had expected that the
safe floor would be steel, and to use this
for melting it. But the floor was only
cement, and it broke down upon them
before they knew 1t was coming. The re-
suit was that they rushed off with their
gold, leaving the machine behind.
How to Beat Patentee.
During my visit to the Gorgona shops l
went through the pattern department In
which Uncle Sam has about 10000 pat
erns Of machinery and parts Of machin-
cry. These patterns are estimated to be
worth something like 100000. The mod
els OF all the inventions made by en-
ployes are kept there, and also those of
the parts of the patented machines now in
use.
The latter are used for repairing big
machines, and that because of the great
may be sold at a profit Of is tor 20 per
cent, while the repair parts for that ma
chine are often sold at profit Of 100 or
200 per cent.
Now by our patent laws, If I am rightly
informed here, a man has a right to use
patented machine as long as bit of
the original machine Is left. He could
build up the whole invention provided he
used bar, bolt or nut of the patented
article he bought and provided he did not
have a greater number of such patented
machines than he had actually purchased.
OF course 1t would not be possible to tear
up one machine and make lot of new
ones In this way, but one has the right to
build up old machines provided he uses
some of the original parts and does not
create greater number Of complete ma
chimes than his purchases show. Uncle
Sam finds 1t cheaper to make these new
parts and repair the old machines rather
than buy new ones or new parts. More
over, 1t takes a long time to get material
from the states, and he can manufacture
his supply parts more quickly than he
could get them from home. The ordinary
time for the fulfillment Of an order Is
ninety days, while the same machinery
can usually be manufactured here in less
than half that time.
In the Warehouses mt Empire.
But let us take the train and ride down
to Empire. We can get there In twenty
minutes, and see the shop where the
steam shovels and their parts are made
new. We shall first enter the quarter
masters warehouse. There are eighteen
OF these on the isthmus, and each COW
ers acres. The one here, at Empire is
right near the shops, and is well worth
visit. 1t is divided up like depart
ment store, being walled with shelves and
cut up by aisles. 1t has hundreds of
thousands Of dollars worth of materials,
embracing all the way from nut the
size of your little finger to a completed
ninety -five-t ton steam shovel as tall as a
haystack. -
The yards outside Of 1t are full OF car
wheels and of steam shovels being re-
paired. stand beside one of the great
shovel buckets to show you its height 1t
will hold five tons of rock. Nearby are
rolls of wire cable and heavy machinery,
barrels Of insulators for electrical use.
and great piles of poles. used for tamp-
ing the dynamite. The steam shovels now
on hand are worth something like s40o,-
900 and their repair parts are as deiicately
made as the pivots and wheels of a
watch. They must be exact to prevent
the great machines from destroying
themselves.
We have now on the isthmus more than
one hundred shovels and from ten to
twelve are sent in kor repairs every
month. They are mighty machines which
will take up from five to ten tons Of