WEDGWOOD OPPOSES THE PATENT. 239 



tion of the term granted by the Patent for making porcelain, he 

 built his hopes of success on two circumstances : the first, the 

 apparent utility resulting from such a manufacture carried to a 

 perfection equal to that of the Dresden and Asiatic. The second 

 circumstance on which he grounded his expectation was the sense 

 which he hoped the House would entertain of the justice of com- 

 pensating, by some reasonable privilege, the great labour, expense, 

 and risque which had been incurred, not only in the invention of 

 the material and composition, but in the improvement of this 

 important manufacture. He was also almost certain that no person 

 whatsoever in this kingdom could, on a supposition of their being 

 prejudiced in their rights in a similar property, have had any cause 

 of complaint, or pretence to interfere with him, or to oppose the 

 prayer of his petition. 



"Mr. Champion however finds, with some surprise, that Mr. 

 Wedgwood, who has never hitherto undertaken any similar manu- 

 facture, conceives himself likely to be injured by the indulgence 

 which Mr. Champion has solicited. He has accordingly printed a 

 memorial containing his reasons against the granting the prayer of 

 Mr. Champion's petition, and is now actually gone in person into 

 Staffordshire in order to solicit others to prefer a petition to Parlia- 

 ment against Mr. Champion's Bill. 



"Before Mr. Champion replies to Mr. "Wedgwood's observations 

 or complaints, he begs leave to remark on the time when Mr. 

 Wedgwood introduces them. Mr. Champion presented his petition 

 to the Honourable House of Commons on the twenty-second day of 

 February. The committee to which that petition was referred did 

 not sit until the twenty-eighth day of April, during which time 

 Mr. Wedgwood neither made any public application against Mr. 

 Champion, or gave him any sort of private information of intended 

 opposition. Neither did any manufacturers in Staffordshire or 

 elsewhere express any uneasiness or make any complaint of Mr. 

 Champion's application, though it is not improbable that Mr. 

 Wedgwood's journey thither may be productive of both. 



"Mr. Champion forbore to bring forward his petition before the 

 committee until he had prepared such specimens of his manufacture 

 as might give the committee the most striking proofs of the truths 

 of his allegations, and this could not be done sooner in a manu- 

 facture so very lately, and with such incredible difficulty, brought 

 to its present perfection. He trusts that the specimens which he 

 has produced in various kinds will show that he has been usefully 

 employed, and merits the public protection. 



