The Washington times., 1924-07-24
oil SUIT
IS BASED ON
PATENTS
Government Contends That
Method Of Getting Gasoline
Is Illegal Monopoly
tcOntInued from FIRST Pagel

Continued from First Page.)
idea have been invented and nat.
ented in recent times.
The apparently most widely used
of these devices was invented and
patented by DR.. w. M. Burton,
president Of the STANDARD OH Com
pany OF Indiana. He is by profess
sion chemist, and he rose to the
company'g presidency from q humble
position In the cornpany's chemical
laboratory
Meanwhile the Standard Oil Com
pany OF New Jersey came TO be
the owner OF cracking patents
bearing the names Of Rogers and
Of Ellis.
Meanwhile also the Texas Com.
paIly came to be the owner OF
Cracking" patents bearing the
names or Adams and OF Holmes
and Of ManIey.
There were also numerous other
cracking" patents bearing num-
erous other names, and in particu.
lar the name of Dubbs. whose
claims in court are represented by
Senator Reed.
Much litigation resulted.
Agree 10 Unite.
Then the Standard OH Company
OF Indiana and the Standard Oil
Company of New Jersey and the
Texas Company put their heads
and their patents together and
signed various agreements which
the government in its suit now
quotes and assails.
Under these agreements these
companies proceeded to cooperate
not only with regard to their pres
ent Cracking patents but also
with regard to all their possible
future cracking" patents, and they
proceeded also to sign agreements
with other oil companies mingling
the idea Of patents and the idea
Of division of territory ana re-
striction Of output.
The government in it's suit quotes
an extremely large number of sue
agreements. from among which the
two following are typical.
The Standard Oil Company Of IN
diana signed an agreement with the
Solar Refining Company OF Trina,
Ohio, granting 1t the right to use
the Burton patent, and then pro-
viding that the Solar Refining Com
pany could not and would not take
eAtAJ Va bAAO SAOOAAhC IAAu6
and sell it anywhere in Michigan.
Illinois. Wisconsin, Minnesota. North
Dakota, South Dakota. Wyomillg.
Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri Ct
Oklahoma.
Similarly the Standard on Com
pany or Indiana signed an agree
ment with the Pure Oh Company OF
Columbus, Ohio, granting 1t the
right to use the Burton patent and
then providing that the Pure oil
Company could not and would not
apply the Burton patent to more
than ten thousand barrels of petro-
leum daily.
Such agreements are denounced
BY the Government in its suit as
being restrictive covenAnts." To-
gether they are regarded by the
Government AZ constituting a sscon-
spiracy in restraint of trade"
What the Government now seeks
from the District Court OF the
United States in the Eastern Dfvi.
sion OF the Northern District Of
Illinois, In Chicago, is that the court
shall order all these companies,
numbering flfty-one, to cease to
observe these restrictive cOven-
ants" and to desist from their
conspiracy"
The Governments View.
It is to be noted that the Govern
ment's essential charge is that the
patents In question do not repre-
sent real inventions but are mere
paper forms OF words written out
Tor the Interior purpose of "coM-
spiriing" and ''monopolizing."
II the patents are good, firm.
useful patents. the Government viii
lose its suit: because the owner OF
patent owns a monopoly lawfully
granted to him by the Government
and he can keep the use of it law.
fully entirely to himself or else
lawfully, when he grants the <uso
OF 1t to others, restrict them as ne
pleases regarding territory or re.
garding output.
Thus the Government in this suit
is bound to try to prove that the
patents In question are Of a useful.
ness 30 slender and meager that
they really are worth little or moth.
ing to any oil company. e is
bound to try to prove that the pre-
tense or regarding any privilege 10
use these patents as a justification
for dividing territory or spr re-.
stricting output is nothing but 4
pretcnse and a fraud.
That Is the heart OF this case.
The Government must prove that
the patents are really practically
almost worthless, or else the out.
come OF the suit viii be that. It
will be shown that by means Of the
pooling and leasing OF patents the
OIL companies OF the United states
may possibly be able to divide terri.
tory and to restrict output through.
out the United States as they
please.
Such is the great issue to which
this suit Is addressed Meanwhile
the Standard OIL Company nf In
diana feels extremely misunderstood
and outraged