Evening Star Newspaper, June 25, 1933, Page 69

originally sold at $50 a share, and afterward was quoted and sold as high as $1,000 a share. The stock has been watered since, and the company is now in the market borrowing money. No dividend ever has been paid. The ocompeny has made and is making immense sums of money, but as all this and the money they are borrowing has gone into the plant, which rapidly increases in extent and value, the original stock is probably now worth $1,000 a share or more. They spent a large sum of money, too, in buying patents for im- provements on the instrument. ““The People’s Telephone Co., against which the Bell Telephone Co. have suit in the United States Circuit Court in New York, is com- posed of a number of gentlemen who formed a company and purchased the interest of Daniel Drawbaugh of Eberlys Mills, Cumber- land Colinty, Pa. Drawbaugh, as is proven by about a hundred living witnesses, neighbors and others, invented, and had in practical opera- tion, a speaking telephone in the years 1870, 1871, 1872, 1873 and 1874, the result of an James R. Sands, a retired pioneer em- ploye of the telephone company. acknowledged invention of his in 1868. He was very poor, in debt, with a large and help- Jess family dependent upon him for support, and was from this cause unable to patent or caveat his invention or manufacture or market it, and it is claimed that he never aban- doned his claim to his invention to anybody. The men composing the People’s Telephone Co. bought his claim and some patents that completed the instrument and made application for Drawbaugh in 1880, and proposed to furnish telephones for about one-third the cost of the Bell telephone.” “Presuming upon the validity of their claims they pooled the company’'s stock, spent about $50,000 and started into the beginning of work, with plenty of capital to go shead on. The originators were wild with great hopes. But the Bell company caused an injunction and suit, the best of lawyers were engaged on both sides, and the Drawbaugh patent was rejected about two months ago, on the grounds that patents had been granted to others, and printed descripticns, published by others, prior to the date of Drawbaugh’s application; that tele- phones were in use more than two years before Drawbaugh’s application. “The rehearing process now comes in by the doings yesterday, and is presented on these questions of law: First, the defendants claim that an application is not barred by a patent granted, or description published, more than two years befoye the application, provided appli- cant’s invention was prior to the patent or printed publication. Second, that the applica- tion of the first inventor is not barred by two years’ public use or sale of another made subse- quent, without the consent or allowance of the first inventor, except under such circumstances as prove a voluntary abandonment of the inven- tion to the public. Third, that the commissioner of patents cannot lawfully allow anybody to ocontest the application except by interference proceedings. These points are upheld by high legal authority and pointed judicial decisions, and the belief is that either Drawbaugh will get a patent or the inventicn be given to the public.” Eventually this case reached the Supreme Court of the United States, and its decision said: “We do not doubt that Drawbsugh may have conceived that speech could be transmitted to a disiance by electricity and that he was experimenting on that subject, but to hold that he had discovered the art of doing it before Bell did would be to construe testimony with- out regard to ‘the ordinary laws that govern human conduct.’ “Without pursuing the subject further, we decide that the Drawbsugh defense has not been made out.” ON August 24, 1922, 127 old-timers of the telephone company met together and or- ganized the Telephone Pioneers of America (which includes employes of the company who have completed 21 years of service), and out of this grew the Alexander Graham Bell Chapter, which includes the pionecers of the District of Columbia and those of Maryland and Virginia. Section 3 of the constitution of this organiza- tion outlines its aims as follows: “This associaticn is formed for the purpose of the promotion, renewal and continuance of the friendships and feilowships made during the progress of the telephone industry, between THE SUNDAY STAR, \!ASHING‘I_’ON. D. C, JUNE 25 1933. s those interested therein, recalling and perpet- uating the facts, traditions, and memories at- taching to the development of the telephone industry and the telephone system; preserving the names and records of the participants in the establishment and extention of this great system of electrical intercommunication; and the encouragement of such other meritorious objects consistent with the foregoing as may be desirable.” The original membership has increased, and today the total number of members is 804, of whom 210 are residents of Washington. Most interesting, no doubt, are the charter members from this city, of which the list includes: Albert E. Barry, Burdette Stryker, Walter B. Clarkson, Paul G. Burtcn, James R. Sands, James W. Talbot, Horace M. Craven, John H. Miller, Graham M. Hill, Joel H. Carpenter, William Wallace, James J. Cahill, Harvey J. Wright, John Salzman, John V. Sutton, William G. Fowler, John L. Harrington, William A. Tower, John T. Graff, Bessie M. Glass, Harold B. Stabler, John R. Tenley, William M. Beall, Walter P. Blamire and Carclyn H. Martin, The present officers of the association are: John A. Remon, president, general manager of the Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Co. (Washington); Carolyn H. Martin, secretary (Washington); H. C. Ross, vice president (Baltimore); G. I. Berkeley, vice president (Richmond); J. W. Latham, vice president (Charleston, W. Va.); C. S. Albert, Executive Committee (Washington); R. N. Keller, Execu- tive Committee (Salisbury, Md.); G. G. James, Executive Committee (Norfolk, Va.), and Mary M. Kirk, Executive Committee (Washington). EVERAL weeks ago the writer, in his story about M street, mentioned the old Farn- ham house, and shortly afterward he received a letter which, no doubt, will be quite inter- BY MARGERY RICE. LD Fort Frederick stands on the banks of the Potomac, 15 miles west of Hagerstown, Md., the best preserved of a famous chain of forts, which in pre-Revolutionary War days stretched from Ticon- " derago on the north through Southern Virginia. Save for a few breaks in the stone walls, it looks today much as it must have looked to the frontiersmen who took their women and children there for protection from Indian at- tacks 175 years ago. About the middle of the eighteenth century the outposts of English civilisation in America lay along the eastern slopes of the Alleghany Mountains. The pioneers found themselves most uncomfortable, for the Prench from their base at Fort Duquesne and the Indians made periodic raids on whatever settlements they tried to establish. Massacres were frequent, but even more usual was the practice of the Indians of driving the whites out of their dwellings by setting fire to them. The Mary- land Gazette, an early Annapolis paper, said in 1775 that “many persons in Prederick County have been murdered. . . . It is necessary to arm and fortify, for the Indians and the French are making raids within 100 miles of Annapolis.” After Braddock’s defeat in 1755 Gov. Horatio Sharpe of Maryland left Annapolis for the Frederick country and, gathering recruits as he went, personally supervised the building of a number of block houses. However, the wooden block houses were of no more avail against the Indians than any other building which could be burned, and after a struggle with the Maryland Legislature over the neces- sity of constructing some more expensive fortifications of stone, he persuaded that body in May, 1756, to give him 6,000 pounds, part of which was for a new fortress on North Mountain. Gov. Sharpe’s correspondence during that year gave a graphic description of the problems which confronted his people. He said: “I am preparing to set off for the frontier to put this province in the best position of defense that the bill will permit me, and construct a strong fort on North Mountain. I have been some weeks at this place with 150 men, constructing a fort and block houses for the protection of the frontier. My presence here will, I ap- prehend, be absolutely necessary till the work is pretty far advanced, all our men being raw and undisciplined and 2all our officers ignorant of everything that relates to fortifications or places of defense. While I was at Fort Frederick Col. Washington paid me a visit) and informed me that he also was raising a strong fort at Winchester. We already have 200 men near and about Port Prederick under Col. John Dagworthy. Since I left Fort Prederick we have received advice that a party of French and Indians have reduced and burned Fort Granville, on the Juniata 20 miles from Susquehanna. My people see the expediency of my building Fort Prederick of stone.” The fort was made sufficlently large to con- tain about one and a half acres of ground within its walls. It was built in the form of a square, with its corner bastions each guarded by a canncn. The walls, made of sandstone held together with clay, were 17 feet high, 2 feet thick at the top and 4 feet thick at the base. The entrance was in the south side, toward the river, and the heavy gates, it'is recorded, were hung with hinges, which weighed 42 pounds each. Within the shelter of the walls a number of wooden buildings were erected to house the headquarters of the commanding officers and the women and chil- dren who were forced to take refuge there from time to time. The buildings have disappeared, but stones mark their former location. The old well has been recently restored and is provided with a rope, which winds around a stout log and brings up the brimming bucket as the handle is turned. A number of cherry and apple trees cast their shade around the well and the supposition is that they are de- scendants of the fruit trees planted by frontiers- esting to many familiar with this dwelling and the family which lived there for 90 years or more, The letter follows: “56 Fisher avenue, “Newton Highlands, Mass., “May 23, 1933. “Mr. John Clagett Proctor, “Washington, D. C. “Dear Sir: “Your article in the magazine section of Sunday’s Star about the old houses on M street was sent me from Washington and I was much interested in reading it and recalling some of the old names you mention in the neighborhood. I am es- pecially interested, since I am the daugh- ter of Dr. Robert Farnham and grand- daughter of the Robert Farnham who bought 1103 M street, probably in the 1830s, as my father (not the oldest of the children) was born there in 1843. I always understood that when my grandfahter bought that square—and was considered to be going ‘away out in the country to live’—the house, then only two stories in height, was about 10 years old, but just how true that is I can't tell. According to that the house is around a hundred years old. “Just one or two things I might add as to dates if it is interesting to you. Robert Farnham, the elder, died in 1854, his widow in 1890. Robert Parnham, jr. (my father) lived at 1242 Eleventh street (where I was born) from about 1878- 1891, when we moved to 1103 M street, to live until 1902, when it was sold to Mrs. Somers. Robert Farnham, 3d (my brother) lives in Philadelphia and has a son, Robert the fourth. The William L. Farnham you spoke of is my second eldest brother, who now lives in New York, and the youngest son, my brother, their farming, vilization were afraid and Cols. Washing- there and gathered men. The expedition ; after the French were driven Monongahela the Indians also re- from the warpath temporarily. So peace- did the section become that in 1762 the land around the fort was leased to a farmer, the State only tHe right to use the buildings whenever it might be necessary. It became necessary the very next year, when the powerful Ottawa chief, Pontiac, led a large band of Indians in a surprise massacre in the vicinity of Fort Frederick. Over a fell victims to their were driven from fort sheltered about 700 people, in addition to the garrison. Pontiac spread terror and destruction over a wide area, but his savages were beaten nevertheless, and with their with- drawal the Indian wars in the vicinity came to an end. The road to Ohio was opened permanently and settlements moved West, leav- ing Fort Frederick far from the frontier. During the Revolution the fort was some distance from the centers of action, but the colonists found it useful as a stronghold, to which they could send their prisoners. Many Hessian soldiers were confined there from time to time and for a few years it was the practice of those in command to let out their prisoners to neighboring farmers, who could use their help in the fields. The English wanted to control the fort and a plot was perfected for an uprising against the Continental forces, in which the prisoners were expected to join. The plan went awry when a messenger was sent to meet a disguised British officer on a certain street corner in Prederick and deliver to him some papers, giv- ing details of the plot. By chance a loyal American was standing at the spot where the British officer was scheduled to be and tire papers were given into his hands. For 80 years after the close of the Revolution the fort served no military purpose. With the outbreak of the Civil War, however, when the territory immediately south of the Potomac, between Rock Creek and Hancock, Md., was in dispute, it again assumed a position of im- portance. Union troops, under command of Gen. John R. Kenly, occupied it. They cut a round breach in the south wall and mounted & cannon there so that it commanded the Potomac River, with a railroad on the north bank and a wagon road to the south. The fort remained in the hands of the Union forces to the end of the war, in spite of spirited as- saults on it by the Confederates. Today Fort Prederick belongs to the State of Maryland and, with the land around it, is part of a forest reserve. It stands in the midst of a quiet farming community, and the broad, still Potomac adds to the tranquillity of its setting. On a grassy slope north of the river & number of the soldiers who died there le buried, and across the stream are the hills of West Virginia. Like many old landmarks, it is steeped in tradition. One of its prettiest stories is that of “The Angel of Fort Frederick,” who, in the person of Miss Cecelia Markham, came to America from London to marry her lover, a young surveyor named Bledsoe. When she landed at Baltimore, so the story goes, friends e Maurice Otterback, early telephone operator, now President of .the And- costia Bank. Arthur B. Farnham, is the only Famn- ham now living in Washington. * * * “We all like to go back to old times, and it was a pleasure to read your article about our old house and the neighbor- m. L “Very sincerely, “MARGARET FARNHAM MASON." Bledsoe told her that he was somewhere in vicinity of Port Frederick and she set out find him, apparently alone. By some error crossed the Potomac, so that when, after many hardships along the way, she finally came within sight of the fort, she found herself separated from it by a broad expanse of water. Nothing daunted, she waded into the stream and swam across. Miss Markham was kindly received at the fort, which was then the refuge of & number of women and children, who had been driven from their homes by the Indians. She im- mediately began to endear herself to them by her efficiency in caring for the sick and her continually cheerful disposition. She was well educated and started to teach the children what she knew of reading, writing and music. Scouts were sent out to locate Bledsoe, and when he was found a minister was summoned also, and the two were married in the fort. Later they returned to England. Too Much to Pop TH!: tendency in these days to explore mew fields to derive income is accompanied by the danger of oversupply of the new markets. There is, for instance, the case of the pop corm raisers. Pop corn sells at considerably higher prices than other corn and serves as a tempt- ing field for those not growing corn of this type. However, the pop corn market is already well supplied and threatened new plantings would only serve to bring about the production of large crops which will never see the inside of a popper. When used for stock feed, pop- corn’ is very fancy diet, usually beyond the means of most feed purchasers. The only alternative is sale at a loss. Shetland Islands Numerous THE Shetland Islands, north of Scotland, com- pose & group of about 100 islands, only a third of which are inhabited. The islands are practically devoid of trees, but a small agricul- tural development occurs on the inhabited is- lands. The principal industry of the islands, however, is fishing. The coast lines are dotted with harbors and bays. In. fact, 30 broken is the coast line, no part of any of the islands is more than three miles distant from the sea. They were formerly a possession of Scan- dinavia, but changed ownership in 1468, when they came under Scotch domination, 4 Mold Defies Research HE tobacco raiser of the South is forced to carry on a survival of the fittest battle against a disease which appears to have ob- tained a firm foothold. The disease, designated by the rather poetic names of blue mold or mwmfldew,uuchmeplmummmd Despite years of research, no effective meth- ods of direct attack on the disease have been perfected. The only method left to the to- bacco grower js to plant so much of the seed that enough survivors for transplanting may be obtained despite the disease. - Should Read Labels HE Federal Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning to those who use some kinds of candy-coated laxatives that care be taken in reading the labels before use. Some of these preprations are far stronger than others, and careless use, particularly by children, who might be attracted by thelr agreeable flavor, may well lead to serious results, according to Dr. F. J. Cullen, who has carried on an in+ 3