National and Ediicatioiial Into'csts. 127 



varieties are infringements ? It is extremely doubtful if 

 Congress could ever be persuaded to pass such a law. To 

 this objection some have replied that there is also great diffi- 

 culty in determining merits of new machines, but the patent 

 law is not invalidated for that fact. But this statement does 

 not satisfy the question. A machine is the same in Maine 

 and California, while a variety may be different on adjacent 

 farms. 



"It is possible, it seems to me, to secure protection under 

 existing laws if the registration of varieties is once secured. 

 Trade-marks, trade-names, and brands are now protected. 

 The name of a variety, once used in trade or admitted in a 

 national register, becomes a trade -mark, with inviolable rights. 

 This name could not be used to designate other varieties, and 

 so long as the variety could not be admitted to the register 

 under any other name, the originator would be tolerably 

 secure. 



"This might not prevent the re-naming of the variety by 

 obscure persons, in defiance of the national register, but those 

 who steal varieties need also to steal the best known name as 

 an advertisement. If this scheme would not entirely over- 

 come risks, it would at least reduce them to a minimum and 

 would result in as thorough protection as could possibly be 

 secured by any special law. An organized effort strong enough 

 to effect a registration of plants would find little difficulty in 

 discovering tricksters. The originator should secure a certi- 

 ficate of registration, and the public would very soon learn to 

 buy only of those who hold one. Sale of the right to use the 

 name or trade-mark should be recorded at the office of regis- 

 tration, so that all stock could be traced to its source. This 

 is an imitation of the registration of domestic animals. There 

 is no law to compel one to register an animal, but every 

 breeder knows that it is only through registration that he can 

 advertise, sell and protect blooded stock. And there is no 

 intelligent purchaser who would think of negotiating for such 

 stock without having obtained the testimony of the herd- 

 book. 



"To be sure, this plan would not remove the difficulties 

 concerning the limitations of varieties, but it would place the 

 definition of varieties upon the experts in charge of the na- 

 tional register, rather than carr}^ it into court. In fact, it 



