| Show BERLINERS PATENTS A DECISION AGAINST THE TELEPHONE TELE-PHONE COMPANY The Complainant Made Out So Case The Case Will Be Carried to time Federal Court of Appeals and to the Supreme Court If Neeesary Boston Dec 18The longcontested patent suit of the United States vs the American Bell Telephone company was ended this morning when Judge Carpenter of the United States circuit court rendered a decision against the telephone company This suit was a bill In equity praying for the repeal of letters patent issued to Emile Berliner assignor of the American Bell Telephone Tele-phone company for a combined telephone tele-phone and telegraph system The Berliner patents were issued to the telephone company but never put Into use by them on account they say of the expense of making changes in the telephone system while other com panies1 were prevented from using the system The first ground of the bill brought by the claimant in this suit is that the patent is void it being beyond the power of the commissioner to issue On this point the decision of Judgsj Carpenter declares Judge Carpenters Decision It appears that one of the functions of the device shown in the patent of 18SO namely the function of transmitting trans-mitting articulate speech is identical with the sole object or function of the device covered by the patent of 1891i and that the device for effecting the transmission of sound is identical in both patents The patent therefore seems to me to be void and beyond the power of the commissioner to Issue The second ground in the suit u > that the issue of the patent was unlawfully I delayed through the fault of respondent The respondent corporation was of ample means to prcsecute the application The result of any delay which might take place In the issue of Befilncrs patent would evidently be to continue so much I longer the practical monopoly of the art of electrical transmission of articulate I speech Under the circumstances I think It clear that the duty of the respondent company was to use the greatest degree I of diligence ir prosecuting the application on to an early issue The plication for which an Interference Inter-ference was anticipated was that filed July 2i 1S90 by Daniel Drawbaugh under which he claims to be the original and first inventor of the telephone It would never appear in the patent I office that Drawbaugh wa entitled to a patent The plain duty of the respondent re-spondent corporation was as it seems tome to-me to insist pn its right to a patent at oflce That the unwarrantable delay thus caused was intended by the respondent I can have no doubt I think these acts were so gross as to forbid any interference except that the i dishonesty delayed Issue of the patent taking advantage for that purpose of the perhaps excusable willingness of the officials offi-cials of the patent office to postpone the decision of a sharply debated question in which a large public Interest was In ivolved j My conclusion therefore is that the I I complainant has made out no case and I that there should be a decree that the patent in question was void and Shall be delivered up and cancelled The Case to Go Up lawyer L P Fish of the Bell company m com-pany speaking of the decision sad The case will now go to the Uncted States Court of Appeals and a decdsZi wall possibly be rendered next spring after the case has been argued anew as though the Circuit Court hod not made Vhs decision If the case is decided de-cided against us it mil be taken to the United States Supreme Count The value of the patent involved is said to be 5000000 The governmns case against the Cell company contafned tmo counts and the jude sustained tae government gov-ernment in both The flr = t cum wa it effect that the issuance of the patent to Berliner was unnecessarily delayed and the second count was In substance that a former patent to Berliner covered substantially sub-stantially the same claims as made in the patent issued fa 1391 In the stock exchange the effect of the decision was to send off Bell Telephone Tele-phone stock with a rush and for a few minutes there was great excitement excite-ment The stock opened unchanged at 2001 and when the news of the decision deci-sion reached the street it slumped by degrees to 181 From this point it recovered re-covered to 190 and at 1 oclock was alj 192 |
