Uriah Boyden, Plaintiff In Error v. Edmund Burke

• Decision Date: 01 December 1852
• Citation: 14 L.Ed. 548,55 U.S. 575,14 How. 575
• Parties: URIAH A. BOYDEN, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR, v. EDMUND BURKE
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

55 U.S. 575

14 How. 575

14 L.Ed. 548

URIAH A. BOYDEN, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR, v. EDMUND BURKE.

December Term, 1852

THIS case was brought up by writ of error from the Circuit Court of the United States for the District of Columbia, holden in and for the county of Washington.

Boyden was a citizen of Massachusetts, and Burke was Commissioner of Patents at the time when the transactions took place which were the subject of the suit.

The ground of the action was, that Burke wilfully, maliciously, and corruptly, and with intent to injure Boyden, had refused to give copies of certain patents.

The bills of exceptions referred to certain letters, which will be mentioned chronologically.

On the 14th December, 1847, Boyden wrote a long letter to Burke, too long to be inserted. The following extract from it will be sufficient:

'If, in your letter of August 10, 1847, you mean by the 'office' yourself, or the author of the letters which I have received from you, you prescribe two conditions in said letter which are inconsistent, viz., that may letters to you, or to the author of those letters subscribed by you, should be both respectful and proper. It is improper to treat a person respectfully while it is known that he is unworthy of respect; therefore, it is impossible to comply with your prescriptions. The claim of unworthy office-holders to have people, as they say, respect the offices they hold, while it is known that the incumbents are unworthy of respect, is absurd. Do you mean, when you urge people to respect 'the office,' to have them respect you merely because you hold the office, while it is known that you are unworthy of respect? This is a free country!' &c. &c.

On the same day Mr. Boyden wrote to Mr. Greenough, in Washington, as follows:

BOSTON, MASS., December 14, 1847.

SIR,—Your letter of the 23d ult. was duly received. I wrote to Mr. Burke to-day, criticizing his conduct, and informing him that I wish him to deliver to you a certified copy of each of the following patents, including drawings, specifications, and claims, or of all of them which are recorded in the Patent-Office: George W. Henderson and John E. Cayford's patent, dated April 14, 1830, Charles Kenzie's patent, dated July 1, 1836, and J. K. Millard's patent, dated May 9, 1846.

You will oblige by tendering the fees for those copies if he declines furnishing them; and if you obtain them, I wish you to send them by mail to me at Boston. Respectfully,

(Signed) URIAH A. BOYDEN.

Test: JOHN A. SMITH, Clk.

Mr. Greenough, accordingly, called upon Mr. Burke, who declined to cause the copies to be prepared for him, as the agent of Mr. Boyden, and addressed to Mr. Greenough an explanatory letter, from which the following is an extract:

'Of these reasons, for declining to cause the copies to be made for him, which you requested, you were duly apprised. And you were also informed, as Mr. Boyden himself has been informed, that, until he comes to the conclusion to treat this office with the civility which the customs and rules of official intercourse require, this office will have no intercourse with him, directly or through the agency of others. When he concludes to conduct his intercourse with this office with decency and propriety, his business will be attended to.'

On the 20th of January, 1848, Mr. Burke made the following memorandum, which he handed to Mr. Laskey, who had called for the same papers:

PATENT-OFFICE, January 20, 1848.

Mr. R. H. Laskey, as the agent of Uriah A. Boyden, calls for the following copies of patents, including drawings, specifications, and claims, or of all of them, which are recorded in the Patent-Office, viz., George W. Henderson and John E. Cayford's patent, dated April 14, 1830; Charles Kenzie's patent, dated July 1, 1846; and J. K. Millard's patent, dated May 9, 1846; for which he officers to pay the usual fees required by law for copies.

I hereby refuse to give him the copies called for for Mr. Boyden, or to transact any other business for Mr. Boyden with Mr. Laskey. I do not refuse copies of any patents or other papers which Mr. Laskey requires for himself or for any other person, except Mr. Boyden. I refuse to do any business for Mr. Boyden, whether he applies for the same personally or by agent, until he comes to the conclusion to observe, in his commonications with this office, or its official head, the proprieties usually observed in official intercourse. When he comes to the conclusion to address this office, or its head in respectful language, any business which he may have with it will be done as it is done for other persons, whether he applies in person or by agent.

EDMUND BURKE.

Mr. Boyden soon afterwards brought his action against Burke, as above stated.

On the trial of the cause, the plaintiff's counsel took four bills of exceptions; the first three of which related to evidence, and the fourth an exception to a general instruction, that the plaintiff was not entitled to recover.

They were as follows:

First Exception.

On the trial of the issue in this cause, the plaintiff, to maintain the issue on his part joined, offered to give evidence tending to show that he is a citizen of the United States, residing in Boston, in the State of Massachusetts; that he is a civil engineer and machinist, and as such was, in the month of January, 1848, engaged in making improvements in 'Turbines' and 'water-wheels;' that this fact was known to the defend ant; that the defendant was at the same time Commissioner of Patents; that the plaintiff, in order to see what machinery having in view the same purpose, had been therefore patented, as well to guard himself against any suit by such previous patentees, for any alleged infringement of their said patents, as also to avoid any infringement thereof, and to save himself time, labor, and expense, required copies of certain patents then of record in the Patent-Office, and which had been theretofore issued to the persons mentioned in the memorandum of January 20th; that, on the 20th day of January, 1848, the said plaintiff applied to the said defendant, as Commissioner of Patents, as aforesaid, for copies of the said patents, and tendered himself ready, and 'offered to pay the usual fees required by law for copies,' and the defendant thereupon, as Commissioner, as aforesaid, answered the said application in writing, as follows.

To all which evidence, so as aforesaid offered by the plaintiff, and to every part thereof, except the said memorandum last above mentioned, the defendant by his counsel objects, as inadmissible upon the issue joined, and the court refused to permit the said evidence, so objected to, to be given; and thereupon, the plaintiff, by his counsel, excepts thereto.

Second Exception.

The plaintiff then read in evidence, without objection, the memorandum made by the defendant, dated 20th January, 1848, and then gave evidence tending to show that, on or about the 22d day of December, 1847, J. J. Greenough, by authority of the plaintiff, called at the Patent-Office to obtain for him copies of three several patents, which had therefore been issued by said office for 'Turbines' or 'water-wheels;' that he was referred by the clerk, to whom he applied, to the defendant, and informed defendant, that he had been requested by the plaintiff to obtain for him copies of those patents, and defendant refused, saying he would not have any thing to do with Mr. Boyden, directly or indirectly, or words to that effect; and, upon his cross-examination, witness stated, that he asked Mr. Burke to give him in writing his reasons for so refusing, which he then and there promised to do; and some days after the witness received a letter from the defendant containing those reasons, which letter he had transmitted to the plaintiff; and then, upon cross-examination, the counsel for the defendant called upon the plaintiff to produce said letter, and the plaintiff, admitting he had said letter then in court, refuses to produce the same, on the ground that the said letter, if produced, would not be evidence; but the court, overruling the objection of the defendant, ordered the same to be produced, and thereupon the said letter was produced by the plaintiff; and the defendant, by his counsel, offers to read the same in evidence, and the plaintiff, by his counsel, objects thereto, but the court permits the same to be read in evidence, and it is read accordingly, as follows; and the plaintiff, by his counsel, excepts thereto, &c. &c.

Third Exception.

And here the plaintiff rested; and thereupon the defendant offered to read, in evidence, a letter addressed to him by the plaintiff, dated 14th December, 1847, and also a letter from plaintiff to J. J. Greenough, which it is admitted is the same letter referred to in the testimony of said Greenough, as containing the authority under which he applied for the copies of patents, as testified by him in his examination by the plaintiff, which letter bears date the 14th December, 1847, to the admissibility of which said letters, or either of them, as evidence in this cause, the plaintiff, by his counsel, objects, and the court overrules the said objection, and permits both of said letters to be read in evidence; and the handwriting of the plaintiff thereto being admitted; the same are read accordingly, and the plaintiff, by his counsel, excepts thereto, &c. &c.

Fourth Exception.

And thereupon, and upon the whole evidence aforesaid, the defendant prayed the court to instruct the jury that upon the evidence aforesaid, if the same is believed by the jury, the plaintiff is not entitled to recover in this action; which instruction the court gave, and the plaintiff, by his couns...