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United States Circuit Conrt.Eastern District oC Pennsylvania. SEWING MACHINE COMPANY VS. FRAME. PATENT CUTTING AND TRIMMING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES. Butler, J.: A change made ill an old device which, though simple, is effective, and produces a new and useful result, held to in. volve the exercise of iuvention. The correction of a patent by means of a reissue where invalid or inoperative for want of a full and clear descrip. tion of the invention is proper. Where there is a doubt as to whether the description in a patent will be misunderstood, the judgment of the Patent Office as to the necessity of a reissue is entitled to great weight. A structural difference in form and size does not avoid infringement if the same work is done by substantially the same means. The manner of using it does not characterize a machine. This is effected by its structure and capabilities. Carbonated Beverages. The Board of Health of Brooklyn, N. Y., having found that waler from some of the many badly contaminated wells of that, city was being used in the making of carbonated water for the supply of soda fountains, siphons, etc., an inquiry has been set on foot relative to the possible danger to health (rom this source in New York city. As the firm of John Matthws supplies over three thousand such fountains in New YorK regularly, they anticipated such mqUlry by inviting Dr. Ed son, of the New York Health Board. to make a thorough inspection of their large establishment, not only to examine the water used, but also the processes and materials employed in making sirups, and the construction of their fouutains and sirup holders, to prove that there was no possibility of metallic poisonin.g in the. use of their apparatus. All the water they use IS the city Croton, but thiS ISles thoroughly filtered in a large double apparatus hy passing it through sand, ebarcoal, and gravel. The firm expended some $8,000 in putting down a well some 800 feet, but the water obtained therefrom was so impregnated with iron and sulphur as to be unavailable, and the well wasfilledup without ever being used. The sirup holders in their soda fountains are of glass, and the fountains themselves are of steel, but have a complete water and"gas tight lining of pureblock tin, put in by a process originated by the house. The firm use none of the old style copper fountains, which, in conV nection with the soda water as well as the faucets for the sirups, have undoubtedly caused a great deal of mineral poisoning. They annuaIly receive and cut up many tons of such material for use as old copper, substituting therefor their own improved apparatus. The hrass and copper fixtures they are thus receiving daily and consigning to the'hei waste beap almost iuvariably have large deposits of verdigris, especially about the discharge opeuings of the multiple cocks for sirup holders. Could some of the old soda water drinkers see the condition of the inside of these fountains and their fixtures, the flue finish and the silver plating on their outsides would not much diminish their alarm, A representative of the Scientific' AmeRican, who saw the t proof of what is here stated, also drew half a glass of what looked like pure soda water from a copper fountain received only a few hours previous, when the application of a simple reagent for copper instant,ly turned it to a dark red. The last glass drawn before thiS had presumably been drunk by 80me customer. The amount of metallic poisoning it is possible in this way to inflict upon the public is not a pleasant subjeet to contemplate. Pure carbonated waters are certainly cheap enough, and thl're should be no excuse for dealers who neglect to furnish themselves with apparatus by which such beverages can be furllished with a certainty tilat they will be nonpoisonous. Petroleum Springe In India. The Government of India ha"e rEceived reports of the preliminary examination of the oil b!aring strata which ex1St in the neighborhood of Slb1- The professional reports are of a character so decidedly encouraging that the Gov ernment have determined to procure from England the necessary machinery for boring operations. These will begin next winter. and will he condueted on an extensive scale. If the results justify the sanguine hopes entertained, the discovery will be one of no trifling importance.
