Pope Manufacturing Company v. Gormully (144 U.S. 238)

STATEMENT BY MR. JUSTICE BROWN.

This was a bill in equity for the infringement of eight patents granted to different parties for devices used in the manufacture of bicycles and velocipedes. Upon a hearing in the court below the bill was dismissed, and the plaintiff appealed to this court. 34 Fed. Rep. 885.

The assignment of errors covers only five patents:

(1) Patent No. 252,280, issued January 10, 1882, to Curtis H. Veeder, for 'a seat for bicycles,' which the court below held to be limited by previous patents to Lamplugh and Brown, to Shire, and to Fowler, and, as so limited, not to have been infringed by the defendants.

(2) Patent No. 197,289, issued November 20, 1877, to A. L., G. M., and O. E. Peters, for an anti-friction journal-box, which was held to be anticipated, and, if not anticipated, not to have been infringed.

(3) Patent No. 245,542, issued August 9, 1881, to Thomas W. Moran, for handles for velocipedes, which the court held did not involve invention, and was void.

(4) Patent No. 310,776, issued January 13, 1885, to William P. Benham, for improvements in velocipedes, which the court held had not been infringed by the defendants.

(5) Patent No. 323,162, issued July 28, 1885, to Emmit G. Latta, for an improvement in velocipedes, which the court, in view of the state of the art, held to be void for want of novelty.

L. L. Coburn and Edmund Wetmore, for appellant.

C. K. Offield, for appellees.

Mr. Justice BROWN, after stating the facts in the foregoing language, delivered the opinion of the court.