Statement of the case.-Wright & Fouché's patent.

vessel upon very many substances to decompose them, and upon fats and oils," was, prior to Tilghman's invention, well known to chemists, &c., and was described in printed publications;

Alleged that before the invention of Tilghman "the use of a close vessel of such strength as to resist the pressure of the water when heated, or any needed pressure when using water to decompose other substances, was known to and practiced by men of science and manufacturers in the United States and elsewhere;"

Alleged that the said quality of highly heated water thus used is an elementary principle, and not patentable;

Alleged that the mode and means described in the specification as the best means of carrying the invention into effect was dangerous, owing to the degree of heat required.

It also referred to numerous prior patents, and contained extracts from publications to show that Tilghman's invention had been anticipated. Among the extracts were:

1st. Extracts showing use of digesters, for heating water to high temperature and still retaining it in a liquid state;

2d. Extracts showing use of digesters for rendering raw fat or removing the membranous and cellular matter, and thus purifying it;

3d. Extracts from text-books and writers, stating generally that neutral fats can be decomposed into fat-acids and glycerin, and that in the act of decomposition the elements of the water are taken up by the fat-acids and glycerin ;

4th. Extracts to show that alkaline saponification decomposes neutral fat into soap and glycerin, which soap can afterwards be decomposed into fat-acid; and also to show that the alkaline saponification can be better effected in a close vessel under pressure;

5th. Extracts stating that fats can be distilled in the presence of steam into fat-acids, which are passed over as vapors and condensed in the still.

The patent of Wright & Fouché, dated January 25th, 1859, under which the defendant, Mitchell, in his answer as above condensed, asserted that he was working, was thus:

Statement of the case.-Wright & Fouché's patent.

"TO ALL TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

"Be it known that we, Robert Alfred Wright, civil engineer, and Louis Jules Fouché, steam-boiler maker, of Paris, in the empire of France, have invented a new apparatus, destined to produce chemical decompositions by means of superheated steam and water;' and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed sheet of drawings, making a part of the

same.

"The apparatus, which is the object of the present patent to secure, is susceptible of several industrial applications; but as it is chiefly intended for the decomposition of fatty substances into fatty acids and glycerin, we will describe it as applied to that purpose. "This invention is represented in the annexed drawing, which shows the elevation of the apparatus complete.*

"The dimensions of the apparatus may vary with the various purposes to which it may be applied.

"a is a metal (iron or copper) boiler, of any form whatever, placed in a furnace, in order to be heated by a naked fire; this boiler has sides sufficiently strong to resist a pressure of from ten to twenty atmospheres ;† it is of a variable capacity, according to the requirements of the manufacture, and it may have its interior lined with lead, or by any other metal which will not be attacked by the fatty bodies which are to be introduced and produced therein; b, hearth; c, ashpit; d, dipping-pipe, furnished with a cock to empty the apparatus by pressure; e, e, manhole, serving for cleaning the cylindrical vessel a, and for the introduction of substances, if required; f, metal tube (of iron or copper) connecting the bottom of the boiler a with the bottom of the cylinder h; g, metal tube of ascension, conducting the superheated water from the boiler a to the upper part of cylinder h. This tube is terminated in the interior of the cylin der h by a rose-jet, or, more simply, holes are made in the extremity, so as to distribute the water uniformly in the cylinder h, and to insure a molecular or finely subdivided contact between the superbeated water and the substance submitted to

In the patent itself, there were besides, some descriptions and drawings of parts of the apparatus modified. With neither of these, however, is it necessary to embarrass the reader.-REP.

From 340° to 420° Fahr.

Statement of the case.-Wright & Fouché's patent.

the operation; h, iron or copper upper cylinder, which should, like boiler a, be able to resist a pressure of from ten to twenty atmospheres. The cylinder h receives the substances to be treated; i, funnel, furnished with a tube and with a cock, serving for the introduction of the substances to be treated into the cylinder h; that is, when this substance is of such a nature as

to be introduced through a small aperture; k, manhole, serving for cleaning the cylinder h, and for the introduction of substances to be treated which cannot pass through the funnel i; 7, safetyvalve; m, manometer or pressure-gauge, indicating the pressure

Statement of the case.-Wright & Fouché's patent.

in the whole of the apparatus; n, n, cocks serving to indicate the height and level of the substance and of the water in cylinder h; o, cock serving to empty the cylinder when the operation is completed.

"ACTION OF THE Apparatus.

Supposing everything arranged as shown in the drawing, then, in order to decompose fatty substances into fatty acids and into glycerin, the boiler a is completely filled with water. The cylinder h is filled with water up to one-third of its height, and it is then filled up to the level of the upper cock with the fatty bodies to be decomposed. The introduction of the fatty bodies takes place, as we have said, either through the funnel i or by the manhole k. The boiler a is then gradually heated till the pressure-gauge indicates a pressure of from ten to twenty atmospheres, according to the nature of the substances submitted to the operation, when the following takes place :

"The superheated water in the boiler a acquires an ascending motion on account of the difference in the temperature of the two capacities a and h; a current is thus created, whence it results that the heated water in boiler a ascends through the tube g into the cylinder h, and being forcibly driven out through the holes in the rose-jet, passes through the fatty bodies and descends again through the tube f to the bottom of the boiler a, where it is again warmed, in order to recommence its ascending notion, and so on.

"When this operation has been thus continued during a length of time which may vary from five to eight hours, according to the nature of the fatty bodies operated on, and also according to the variation of pressure (varying from ten to twenty atmospheres) the fatty bodies are decomposed into glycerin, which remains dissolved in the water, and into fatty acids, which float in the cylinder h. The contents are now emptied out and separated from each other at the same time.

"In conclusion, we would remark that we are aware that: Firstly, the decomposition of fatty bodies by water under the influence of heat and of pressure is a well-known scientific fact. Water is substituted for the organic basis. It forms a perfect and fixed combination with the fatty acids, while the glycerin is dissolved in the excess of water. Secondly, that as this chemical action takes place under the influence of a weak

Statement of the case.-Tilghman's positions.

affinity, it is necessary, in addition to the abovenamed physical and chemical conditions, to insure a perfect molecular agitation of the whole mass; and that we wish it to be understood that what we wish to claim and establish as of our invention consists of an apparatus wherein the water and the fatty matters are heated separately in two different boilers. The first boiler is heated by the source of heat, while the second boiler is heated by the first boiler.

"In these boilers the agitation necessary for the chemical action and combination is produced by the pressure of the heated water in the first boiler. This water circulates continuously from this first boiler to the second boiler, and from the second boiler to the first, in a continuous and self-acting or automatic manner, without interruption. The characteristics of our apparatus are, that it produces agitation by circulation alone, a continuous and automatic circulation, produced by the pressure of water.

"Lastly, our apparatus effects its chemical action in a continuous manner, without the aid of any manual or other assistance."

"CLAIMS. Having described the nature of our invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed, we do not claim the application of superheated water for decomposing fatty bodies, nor the form of the apparatus above described, which may vary somewhat according to conditions and circumstances; but what we claim as our invention is, producing a continuous automatic circulation of highly heated water, in a very finely divided state, through the bodies under treatment, by means of an apparatus constructed and employed substantially as herein shown and described."

Tilghman insisted that the use of highly heated water under pressure to decompose neutral fats into fat-acids and glycerin was an infringement of his patent, no matter what particular form of apparatus might be used, or what particular temperature adopted, and no matter what particular device might be adopted to maintain the intimate mechanical mixture of the fat and water during the decomposing operation; these last being obvious matters of detail, susceptible of infinite variety.

He contended that Mitchell's infringement consisted in