PATENT 



1524 



PATERSON 



matter; or BOl iiul useful impn>\. inent 



of the same. Kvery one of tlu-r \\ords has 

 been carefully defined by court rulings. A ma- 

 chine is not new .-imply because it differs in 

 or shape from another similar mechanism, or 

 because it presents a different arrangement of 

 parts of an old machine. Some new principle 

 must have been introduced to make it patent- 

 It must be useful, but a child's toy can 

 be as readily patented as a steam engine. 



It must be an invention, but every little im- 

 provt im nt is not an invention. It will not be 

 id for such an alteration in device as 

 would naturally and spontaneously occur to any 

 skilled mechanic or operator. An invention 

 :is the finding out, the contriving, the crea- 

 tion of something that did not previously exist. 

 Originality is the test of inventions. Whether 

 an invention is the result of a fortunate discov- 

 ery, or comes as the reward of years of careful 

 experiments, is immaterial; patents will be 

 granted as readily in the one case as in the 

 other. Novelty and utility must go hand in 

 hand to constitute a patentable invention. 

 only a few of the many points that 

 must be considered by the Patent Office before 

 rmining whether a patent shall be issued 

 or denied. 



When a person desires a patent, specifications 

 must be prepared stating clearly the nature of 

 the invention and setting forth what he claims 

 as new. This last is extremely important. When- 

 possible a drawing of the invention must 

 accompany the specifications, and sometimes a 

 working model is required. The specifications 

 and drawings must be signed by the applicant 

 and attested by two witnesses. Appended to 

 the specifications, there must be an affidavit 

 from the applicant setting forth the fact that 

 he believes liiiust If to be the original inventor. 

 Accompanying these papers must be a writing 

 in the form of a petition to the Commissioner 

 of Patents, stating the general nature of his 

 invention and the object of his application. 



When such papers reach the Patent Office, they 

 are carefully examined by an expert. All the 

 points mentioned above will be considered; the 

 claims set forth will be scrutinized; search will 

 be made in the archives to see if the invention 

 in any way conflicts with previous invention-, 

 or if there is a patent pending for an invention 

 containing the same principle. This examina- 

 tion may end in the rejection of the applica- 

 tion. In such a case the specifications and 

 claims may be amended, and a second examina- 

 tion may be requested. If still rejected, ap- 



pr:d. may In- taken, til>l to ihe ollicial board of 

 examiner.-, next to the Commissioner of Pat- 

 ents, then to ihr (.\rnrt of Appeals of the Di>- 

 trict of Columbia. 



If the patent is granted, the inventor has a 

 monopoly on his invention for seventeen years, 

 with renewal privilege for a like period. The 

 nece>sary fees an si.'), which must accompany 

 the application, and $20 additional when the 

 patent is iued. The fee fur a reissued patent, 

 10. It occasionally happens that by reason 

 of mistakes in specifications or claims a <l 

 tive patent has been granted. In such c 

 the original patent may be surrendered and a 

 new one applied for. 



The total number of patents issued in the 

 civilized world has reached enormous propor- 

 tions. In the United States alone 44,934 pat- 

 ents were issued in 1915, nearly eight tiin> 

 many as were issued by the rest of the world. 

 The total number of patents issued by the 

 United States at the close of 1871 was 120,573; 

 this number had increased to exactly 1,000,000 

 on August 8, 1911. It had required 120 year.- 

 to reach the million mark, but at the present 

 rate of application the second million patent* 

 in the United States will be granted within a 

 period covering only about thirty years. 



Canada had issued 4,081 patents at the close 

 of 1870, and from that time to 1911 had granted 

 137,325, showing a remarkable increase. See 

 COPYRIGHT; TRADE-MARK. C.H.H. 



Consult Macomber's Fixed Laws of Patents; 

 Singer's Patent and Trade Mark Laws of the 

 World. 



PATERSON, WILLIAM (1839-1914), a Cana- 

 dian statesman, Minister of Customs from 1897 

 to 1911, and for forty years one of the leading 

 members of the Liberal party. He was born 

 and educated at Hamilton, Out., where, also he 

 later engaged in business and became a suc- 

 cessful manufacturer. In 1872, having in the 

 meantime removed to Brantford, In- was elected 

 mayor of the latter city, and in 187)5 was elected 

 to the Dominion House of Commons. His in- 

 terest and ability in financial affairs soon made 

 him a conspicuous figure. In 1896 he was ap- 

 pointed controller of customs, and in the fol- 

 lowing year, when that department was raised 

 to the rank of a Ministry, was appointed first 

 Dominion Minister of Customs. 



This position he filled with distinction until 

 the fall of the Laurier Ministry in 1911. He 

 was on several occasions acting Minister of 

 Finance, took a prominent part in framing the 

 tariff laws of 1877 and 1907, was a delegate to 



