INVENTION AND DISCOVERY. 559 



becomes hopeless, disruption takes place, and the situation is aban- 

 doned. Further, in the majority of cases, after some substantial prog- 

 ress has been made it is found that under the existing patent laws 

 insufficient protection can be secured, and the prospect of a reasonable 

 return for the expenditure becomes doubtful. Under such circum- 

 stances the capitalist will generally refuse to proceed further unless the 

 prospect of being first in the field may tempt him to continue. 



Very many inventors, as I have said, avoid the expense of searching 

 the patent records to see how far their problem has been attacked by 

 others. In some cases the cost of a thorough search is very great 

 indeed; sometimes it is greater than the cost of a trial attack on the 

 problem. In the case of young and inexperienced inventors there 

 sometimes exists a disinclination to enter on an expensive search; they 

 prefer to spend their money on the attack itself. There are some, it 

 is true, who have a foolish aversion to take steps to ascertain if others 

 have been before them, and who prefer to remain in ignorance and 

 trust to chance. It will, however, be said that the United States and 

 German Patent Office reports ought to suffice to warn or protect the 

 English patentee; but my own experience has been that such protec- 

 tion is not entirely satisfactory. There is, firstly, a considerable inter- 

 val before such reports are received, and the life of a patent is short. 

 Then, if the patent is upon an important subject, attracting general 

 attention, the search is vigorous and sometimes overwrought, and the 

 patent unjustly damaged or refused altogether. If, however, the 

 patent is on some subject not attracting general attention, it receives 

 too little attention and is granted without comment. 



