fUk'if'-: '.,."' 



1861. 



'THE ILLINOIS FAEMEE. 



179 



our beau ideal of what a plow should be, 

 with its attendant apparatus. The prairies 

 of the "West demand these implements, and 

 we must and will have them. 



The above was written for the May num- 

 ber, but crowded out ; though out of season, 

 we place it on record as containing some 

 suggestions for consideration. 



-••»- 



[For the Citintry Gent'eman and CnltlTator.] 



Patents on Bee-Hives. 



In the Country Gent of May 9th, J. W., after 

 referring to patents which have been granted on 

 hives using movable frames, says — " If these are 

 infringements, " (meaning upon Langstroth's pat- 

 ent, "> " why were patents granted for these hives ?" 



J. W. does not seem to be nware that patents 

 are constantly issuing which use the patented 

 features of previous inventors. If an application 

 contains any patentable feature, the Patent Of- 

 fice cannot reject it, even if it uses what has been 

 patented to other parties — provided that the claim 

 is confined to what is original with the applicant. 

 For the oiEce to reject any such invention on the 

 ground that it uses the patented features of 

 other inventors, would be illegal, even if they 

 know that the applicant intends to defraud those 

 inventors by neglecting to procure a proper li- 

 cense from them. 



To make this plain : — Suppose that A. patents 

 an invention, and that B. makes an improvement 

 which the office regards as new and valuable — 

 then a patent must issue to B., even although he 

 must use the patented features of A.'s inven- 

 tion to introduce his own. If B. neglects to pro- 

 cure a license from A., it is not the business 

 of the office to protect A., who must seek his 

 remedy in the courts of law. 



The case stands thus : — A. can always use his 

 own invention, without let or hindrance from any 

 one ; but he cannot use it as improved by B. 

 without permission from B. — while B. cannot le- 

 gally use his own improvement without the pre- 

 vious consent of A. 



Now if B. is a dishonest man, he may sell h s 

 patent to parties who are ignorant that they can- 

 not use it without a license from A. ; but he can 

 convey to them no rights which he did not him- 

 self possess. 



If B. believes that his invention does not use 

 any teature wtkh is, or of right ought to have 

 been patented to A., ho may honestly use and sell 

 it without a license from A. In this case the only 

 appeal is to the courts appointed to decide such 

 questions. L. L. LAifasTHOxn, Oxford, Ohio. 



In the above our farmers will find some 

 useful hints, applicable to other as well as to 

 bee-hives. Our people have been cheated 

 about enough to put them on their guard 

 against run out patents and improvements. 



The truth is, patent swindling has been a 

 rich placer, and most thoroughly worked. 



Ed. 



Cash MoauT. — This sounds musical after en- 

 during all sorts of paper money for the past 

 twenty years ; in this State we are at last to have 

 a specie standard in all transactions. We are 

 now done singing the old song of Pope — 



" Blest paper credit. 



Last and best supply, 

 It lends corruption 



Higher wings to fly ; 

 A leaf from thee 



Shall waft an army o'er, 

 Or ship off Senates 



To some distant shore." 



Good-bye to the trash — fifty, sixty or seventy 

 cents are no longer a dollar. We advise farmers 

 to demand the solid, it will do to sleep on. A 

 large number of our friends have grown so nerv- 

 ous with " stump-tail" that the physicians have 

 had to prescribe soothing opiates, but the most 

 marked effect was produced on a collapsed pa- 

 tient by placing in his naked palm a gold dollar ; 

 since that he has sold off his " stumptail," and 

 is rapidly improving. We have a small pile salt- 

 ed down to show our grand children. We now 

 have the felicity to know that a dollar is wortk 

 ten dimes, or one hundred cents. 



Action of the Board of Trade of Chicago. — 



Wherbas, The recent events in the commercial 

 affairs of Chicago have culminated in a return to 

 a standard of gold and silver ; therefore 



Resolved, That in the opinion of the Board of 

 Trade of Chicago, all pales of property and daily 

 quotations thereof should hereafter be made in 

 funds equal to specie. 



From the Chicago Tribune. 



Faibbanks' Scales. — It is a significant fact, 

 which the public will appreciate, that whenever 

 new scales are put upon the market, as large 

 numbers have been from time to time, during 

 the last thirty years, it seems to be the first 

 chief aim of the maker to show that they are 

 the same as Fairbanks', or like them, or are im- 

 provements upon them, thus recognizing the lat- 

 ter as the standard for excellence, and showing 

 the strong hold they have upon the public con- 

 fidence. It is a well known fact that while 

 most of these scales have, after more or less tri- 

 al, passed mainly out of use, Fairbanks' have 

 gone steadily forward, increasing in public fa- 

 vor year after year, and are now much more 

 generally used than all others, not only in this 

 country, but wherever American commerce has 

 been carried. This could not be so if they were 

 not all that is claimed for them in respect to 

 their durability, as well as convenience and 'ac- 

 curacy. 



