Evening star., 1920-03-05
PATENT OFFICE PAY
BILL Up IN HOUSE
Gripping of Business Feared
Unless Relief Is Given
Workers.

! The Nolan bill providing for in
! crsases from 916 to .06O employees in
the United States patent office and
for increases in salary from 81 1872, 900
to sl,9ii,1i is being considered in the
House today under a special rule
brought in by Chairman Campbell of
the rules committee making this leg
islation Immediately in order.
That the business of the country
would be considerably crippled
! through diSorganiZation of the patent
office unless this law is passed was
emphasized by Representative Nolan.
who is chairman of the patent COM
mittee of the House.
be told his colleagues that nearly
100 SpokeSmen for the biggest indus
tries in the country appeared before
the rules committee urging prompt
action on this measure.
No Burden to Country.
Mr.. Nolan emphasized that this
measure would entail no additional
financial burden on the country, be
cause the patent Office already has
produced surplus in the Treasury in
excess of sS,000.0OO. and during the
year 1919 had net increase from
fees and other charges amounting to
S43S.367. Questioned by Champ Clark,
the minority leader. as to whether the
proposed increase would not wipe out
the surplus in the Treasury, Mr.. Nolan
introduced statistics showing that in
creases in fees will more than meet
the proposed increases in employees
and salaries.
No other branch of the govern
ment service suffered such a loss of
specially trained men as the patent
ONCE. both during the war and since
the signing of the armistice. Repre-
sentative Nolan said. All of the in
dependent bureaus created during the
war took away from the patent office
some of this highly trained force.
They were able to do this on account
OF their ability to pay much higher
salaries than those provided by stat
ute to the patent Office force.
Expert Examiners Quit.
Since the signing OF the armistice a
large number of the expert examiners
In .thes patent ~of5ice- had -feft-tne~guv
ernment service to enter private en-
ployment. Representative Nolan said
that where the patent office formerly
had eighty expert examiners. it now
has only forty, and it Is impossible to
get men of proper ability to the take
the examination under the present
statutory salary schedule. During
the nine-month period. from Nav !
1919. to January 81. 1920. there have
i been sixty designations from the ex-
amining corps OF the patent
office. The work of the utmost
Importance to the manufacturing in
terests of the country. especially at
this time, when drive is being made
to increase production to meet the de-
mands of world trade. is falling be-
hind and the business interests are
| deeply worried over the situation
The Importance of quick action to
! the business interests of the country
assuring skilled technical men for the
patent Office was also discussed by
Representative cordill Hull, demo-
crat, of Tennessee, who explained to
the House the result from an exami- :
nation made by a committee in CO.
operations with the National Research
Council.
Backed by Research Council.
Representative Hull explained that
| the present bill was drafted on the
| recommendation of the patent COM
mite of the National Research Coun-
ell. consisting of DR.. w. F. Durand.
! professor of mechanical engineering
at Leland stamford University; DR.. l..
H. Daekeland, an eminent inventor;
| DR.. r. A. Milliken. professor of
physics at the University of Chicago;
DIR. S. w. Stratton, chief of the bu-
| reau Of standards. and DIR. NJ. l.
| Pupin. professor of electrical en-
! gineering at Columbia University
DR.. Reid Hunt, professor of medi
| cine at the Harvard University Med
/ ical School; Frederick P. Fish OF
| Boston. recognized as the dean of the
! American patent bar; Thomas Ewing.
former commissioner of patents, and
! Edwin j. Brindle. one Of, the most
| prominent patent attorneys in the
! United States. This committee had
| the services of G. p. Townsend, dis
/ tinguished consulting chemist. 1t was
! the decision of the committee that the
| United States patent office had prac-
! tically ceased to function in an eff
| cient manner during the war, and it
recommended a series of bills of
! which the present measure is one OF
the more imDortant.