APRIL 26, 1901.] 
terested in the invention, that the reasonable 
requirements of the public have not been satis- 
fied, by reason of the refusal or neglect of the 
patentee to work, or to grant licenses to work, 
the patent, and that the court, if the assertions 
of the claimant appear to be -justified by the 
facts, shall make an order conferring a license 
upon the applicant on terms found by the court 
itself to be just and reasonable. 
Reciprocity in patent matters is advised as be- 
tween Great Britain and other countries pre- 
pared to offer similar facilities and protection 
for the foreign patentee. It would be an ex- 
cellent reform could a real international reci- 
procity, based on the best practice of the United 
States, be arranged to include Germany ; which 
country has illustrated some very objectionable 
and inequitable patent law methods. 
Shouldthe recommendations of the commis- 
sion be accepted and the British Office be recon- 
structed as proposed, it will provide as practi- 
cally satisfactory a system of protection as does 
that of the United States; changing thus from 
one of the most useless to one of the best of 
patent systems of the time. It will be interest- 
ing to note whether Great Britain, after all, 
will ultimately provide a more equitable system 
in regard to purposely delayed issues and un- 
worked patents—the two main defects and 
abuses of the existing law of the United States— 
than our ‘ pioneer’ code now offers. It will be 
most discreditable if our committees of Con- 
gress and our Commissioners of Patents do 
not initiate, and Congress perfect, remedies for 
these two radical and inexcusable defectsin our 
own patent law. 
R. H. THURSTON. 
A MINERAL SURVEY IN TEXAS. 
THE Legislature of the State of Texas has 
recently passed an act (House Bill 135), ap- 
proved by the Governor, March 28, 1901, pro- 
viding for ‘‘a mineral survey of the lands be- 
longing to the public schools, university and 
asylum, or of the State, and to make appropria- 
tion therefor, and to provide a penalty for un- 
lawfully disclosing information obtained by such 
survey ; and to loan and authorize the removal 
to the University of the geological and scien- 
tific equipments, collections, specimens and 
SCLENCE. 
671 
publications now in charge of the Commissioner 
of Agriculture, Insurance, Statistics and His- 
tory ; and also declaring an emergency.’’ 
By Section 1 the ‘‘ Board of Regents of the 
University of Texas are authorized and directed, 
as soon as practicable, to have made a mineral 
survey of all lands belonging to the public 
schools, university, asylums, or of the State.”’ 
Section 2 requires that ‘‘said Board shall 
employ for that purpose persons skilled, who 
have had at least five years’ experience, in the 
science of mineralogy, geology and chemistry, 
who shall conduct said survey. * * *”’ 
Section.3 relates to the publication annually 
‘for free distribution among the people of the 
State [of] all practical information collected in 
the prosecution of said survey as it progresses.’ 
It provides, asa penalty, a fine ‘not exceeding 
one thousand dollars or two years in jail’ for 
divulging information concerning the public 
school, university, asylum or State lands in 
advance of publication. 
In Section 4 provision is made ‘for assays, 
analyses and other scientific examinations of 
specimens of mineral substances found in the 
State, and for the collection and distribution of 
statistics relating to the mineral production of 
the State. * * *’ For the assays, etc., a 
‘uniform and reasonable charge shall be fixed,’ 
except at the request of the Governor or Com- 
missioner of the General Land Office the ex- 
amination of specimens found upon any of the 
public lands shall be made free of charge. 
Section 5 provides for instruction in the Uni- 
versity of Texas ‘in practical economic and 
field geology and mineralogy,’ and for the dis- 
tribution of duplicate specimens to the A. and 
M. College. 
Section 6 authorizes the removal of the 
specimens, books, and equipment (brought to- 
gether by the Dumble Survey ) now in charge 
of the Commissioner of Agriculture, Insurance, 
Statistics and History, to the University. These 
materials are ‘loaned to said board, until such 
time as the State may desire to otherwise use 
them.’ 
Section 7 reads as follows: ‘‘ For the purpose 
of carrying out the provisions of this Act, the 
sum of ten thousand dollars per annum for two 
years, or so much thereof as may be necessary, 
