Opinion ID: 92222
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Proofs of Drawbaugh's Priority.

Text: Mr. Storrow, complainant's counsel, admitted in his oral argument that `forty-nine witnesses testified that they had heard speech in Drawbaugh's shop before the date of the Bell patent' (Oral Argument of Storrow, p. 149). Seventy witnesses heard talk through the Drawbaugh telephones, or were present when others successfully talked through them prior to Bell's alleged conception of the telephone June 2, 1875. One hundred and forty-nine witnesses actually saw the instruments, and two hundred and twenty testified to having heard of or seen them prior to that time. Many of the witnesses testified to such circumstances, facts, and records corroborative of their evidence as to make it impossible that they could have erred, and either their testimony is true or they committed wilful perjury. No attempt has been made to impeach them. The dates they positively aver are all prior to June, 1875, the year when Bell claimed to have first conceived the idea of the telephone. Of this class of witnesses are the following:  Wilson H. Strickler: Never was at Milltown but once. Had made an invention for insulating telegraph wires. Visited Drawbaugh for information and advice concerning that invention. Had not then filed his application for a patent. He and Drawbaugh talked to each other through the telephone at that time, and Drawbaugh explained to him how electricity operated it. Subsequently filed his application and obtained a patent for his invention. Produced the specifications and drawings as filed, and the patent as issued. Date of filing, August 22, 1874; date of patent, April 20, 1875 (Additional Proofs, p. 233).  George W. Bowman: Resides at Mechanicsburg. Drove to Eberly's Mills with his wife to attend a baptism. After the baptism drove to Drawbaugh's shop. This was during the lifetime of his wife's mother, who died in 1871. He then and there heard Drawbaugh talk through the telephone (Additional Proofs, p. 173).  Mrs. Maggie E. Bowman, wife of the above, corroborates his testimony. Her mother died March 14, 1871. Knows the baptism was before her mother's death, because it was upon her mother's persuasion that they went to attend it (Additional Proofs, p. 177).  Emanuel K. Gregory: Resided at Milltown from March to October, 1870. Then removed to Massachusetts. Has never been in Pennsylvania since until he testified. At Milltown worked at Drawbaugh's shop for faucet company. The company's books corroborate this. Assisted Drawbaugh in his experiments, and heard him talk through his telephone a number of times. Identifies B and F as the instruments (Additional Proofs, p. 185).  William H. Zearing: Had a pair of steelyards relettered by Daniel Drawbaugh. Entered the date and charge therefor in a book, November 23, 1873, as shown by book produced. Never had any steelyards relettered at any other time. When he went for them Drawbaugh talked to him through a telephone, saying among other things, The steelyards are finished. Zeering was the secretary of the school board of his township (Def. Sur. Reb. Testimony, p. 122). Other witnesses of the same class are: Goodyear (Def. Sur. Reb. Tes., p. 1011); David Stevenson, Jr. (Def. Add. Proofs, p. 141); his two daughters (Def. Add. Proofs, pp. 166, 169); William H. Martin (Def. Sur. Reb. Tes., p. 827); John Keefauver (Def. Sur. Reb. Tes., p. 837). See accompanying brief for many others.