^26 STATE BOARD OF AGRICUI/rURE. 



It is luudly necessary to state that such a course as pointed out tends to 

 destroy the vahic of a patent, as well as to demoralize the practice of the pat- 

 ent office. 



OUR PATENT SYSTEM VALUABLE, 



There is little or no doubt that the patent system has on the whole been of 

 much benelit to this country. This much is certainly true, that no country in 

 any age or in any clime has been so prolific with valuable inventions as this. 

 Next after this country must we rank England, a country possessing a patent 

 system even more liberal than ours. I am not prepared to admit what has 

 often been claimed that our advanced state of civilization, the prosperity of 

 our manufacturers, our commerce itself, all depend upon the existence of the 

 patent system. Neither am I fully convinced but that we should have pos- 

 sessed the most valuable of our inventions, even had we no patent system. It 

 is not, however, probable that our country would have possessed all those great 

 inventions which have so nearly revolutionized our manner of living during 

 the last fifty years, had she no patent system. No matter what may be the 

 enthusiasm of the inventor, no matter how much may be his desire to benefit 

 humanity, he does not look forward cheerfully to a life of poverty and possible 

 starvation. He desires pay for his work and is not willing to work without 

 some incentive. Were there no patent system in existence, his only incentive 

 •svould be the gain from secret manufacturers. He would work with closed 

 doors as did Guttenberg with the first printing press. No one knows how 

 many secret inventions have been in successful operation during the life of the 

 inventor, only to be lost entirely to the world upon his death. No one knows 

 how much earlier the light of civilization would have spread over the entire 

 •world had every invention been made for a limited time the absolute property 

 of the inventor. It is certain that in the ancient past were buried many valua- 

 ble inventions which were not made public, and for ages laid dormant. 



It is plainly to be seen that our patent system is of benefit, not only to the 

 inventor, but to every citizen of our countr3\ But as usual with every good 

 thing, there are some bad ones; with the sweet comes the bitter. The evils 

 of our patent system have been, I think, quite fully pointed out. Now let us 

 not, I beg of you, unduly magnify these evils. Do not decry the whole patent 

 system because swindlers have been able to abuse the power granted by that 

 system. Because the old laws have a few defects do not conclude that they 

 have no value and demand an entire new code. Kather should be demanded 

 the amendment of the present laws where time has shown them to be defective. 

 The patent law has no business to exist if it protects swindlers at the expense 

 of honest men — if it grants protection to spurious inventors, and renders the 

 whole country liable for damages for the use of articles which are not new 

 inventions. These evils have crept into our patent law, and tlie people may 

 rightfully demand their correction. Happily this can be done without destroy- 

 ing our patent system. And since the rights of every citizen depend upon these 

 corrections, it becomes the duty to unite in demanding that they shall be 

 made. 



