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AMERICAN CONTEMPORARIES Ernst Twitchell
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RhTSTTWITCHELL was born in Cincinnati, February 26, ment of methods of determining the composition of mixtures 1863. His father, Prof Henry Twitchell, was recognized of fatty acids, and his studies of the eutectics of mixtures of fatty acids to obtain proper crystallizations and separations as an astronomer of superior rank, being for many years are all of lasting importance. assistant astronomer with Prof 0. hl Mitchell a t the Cincinnati Coming from a family of scientists, Doctor Twitchell turned Observatory. He contrived the first chronograph, the rude naturally to chemistry as a vocation. His mind has not been predecessor of one of the most important instruments in modern astronomy, and also invented a hydrometer and an acetimeter. wholly absorbed by science, as his library of several thousand volumes in various languages attests. Besides a diversified He was a noted chemist and in later years became an optician of the highest authority. He was with General hlitchell as con- taste in literature, he has a keen appreciation of the best in music and art. He served his community for a sulting engineer when he projected the line number of years as member of the Board of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad and conof Education. He has ever been fond of tributed much to its successful construction. outdoor sports, and never happier than With such a father it is small wonder when on a fishing trip with his friends or that his son should manifest the scientific shooting ducks along the southern shores. bent. When we learn that his maternal Doctor Twitchell became a member of grandparents came to America from Gerthe AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY in 1892, many in 1850, when so many Germans were the year in which the Chemical Society of leaving their country on account of political Cincinnati and vicinity became affiliated disturbances, we realize that the teutonic with the national society. He served as traits of patience, thoroughness, and keen president of the Cincinnati Section in delight in study and research are Doctor Twitchell’s by right of inheritance. 1896. When he was still quite young his parents Though of a quiet and retiring disposimoved to Home City, a village on the Ohio tion, Doctor Twitchell makes friends easily, River ten miles from Cincinnati. There as he is kind and understanding, having a he spent his early years, commuting to the personality that inspires confidence. city while attending Woodward High School He is very fond of animals and usually and later the Cniversity of Cincinnati, from had a pet cat in the laboratory who dewhich he graduated in 1886 with the degree lighted in curling herself into his favorite of B.S. It was under 1‘. W. Clark and T. H. chair a t his desk; and oftentimes, rather Xorton that he laid the foundation of his than disturb her slumbers, he would pull up Ernst T‘witchell future work. another chair. His mother was left. a widow with meager capital when her A man who has never courted personal publicity, much of boys were still young: and upon Ernst, the oldest, fell a re- his life has been devoted to chemistry, and he has derived a full sponsibility which probably deepened his serious character. measure of pleasure and satisfaction in the accomplishment When the financial strain became too heavy he obtained a posi- of those problems in science that lay closest to his heart. He tion in Atlanta, Ga., and continued his studies on the side. has let his work speak to the world without turning the world’s He returned in the spring for the final examinations and gradu- eye to himself. A man of deep thought, not given to haphazard ated a t the head of his class. experimentation, whose face lights up with a happy glow when In 1886 he accepted a position with the Emery Candle Com- an experiment successfully confirms the theories he has formupany as chemist and general manager, where he remained for lated, mobilized, and carefully constructed. With well-balanced upward of forty years. It was here that he discovered and mentality, he works slowly, carefully, thoroughly, and surely, perfected the process with which his name is identified a t home preparing the advance like a general going forth to battle in and abroad. A company was organized under the name “The taking all prior precaution against failure. A man of great Twitchell Process Company,” and Doctor Twitchell was made works and simple modesty. When in his presence one is imchairman of the board of directors, which position lie held until pressed by the greatness of his simplicity rather than by the 1925 when ill health forced him t o retire from active business. magnitude of his work. ‘Lene stearoThis process of fat splitting by means of naphth.1 We are indebted for much of this characterization of Doctor sulfonic acid would never have been promoted by Doctor TwitchTwitchell t o his close associates in the field of chemistry, some ell, so his associates believe, had not other chemists, who of long standing and others who have been encouraged to carry were his friends, foreseen the financial possibility and urged into the world an inspiration to accomplish something which him to do so. To Doctor Twitchell it was just the culmination would prove worthy of their master, friend, and model. From of his experimental work and keen, active interest in research. the words of one, which is the tone of all, we quote: “My associaIn 1915 his Alma Mater conferred upon him the honorary tion with him left an impression which contributed much to the degree of doctor of science, and in 1917 he was presented with the progress and happiness of my life. Among all men I ever knew, Perkin Medal. Although best known internationally for the I do not know one who is as nearly faultless as he.” Twitchell process, Doctor Twitchell has made many other He keeps his associates’ interest stimulated by informal contributions to the knowledge of the chemistry of fats. His talks about the latest scientific news or scientific speculation. first contribution in 1891, giving his method for the determination He is ready and willing to help any man by sound advice and of rosin in fatty acid mixtures from soaps, his very useful develop- to point the way to betterment. He is easy of approach; even
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the humblest laborer knows he can come to him for counsel. His dealings with’others are marked by his love of honesty and justice, always fair, never taking advantage. When circumstances make it necessary to make an adverse decision, it is always tempered with a good will that breaches the gap. He has been sought by many who regarded him as the master mind in the chemistry of oils and fats. When circumstances were against him, he quietly accepted the inevitable and proceeded to find a way to surmount the difficulty. His acceptance of facts and logical procedure was remarkable. A real scientist, whose work in the laboratory was paramount. At home he spends many hours among his books. His wealth
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of information upon any particular subject is always a source of wonder to those fortunate enough to be associated with him. Never secretive, all his associates knew what he wanted to accomplish and the progress that he made from time to time. His interest never waned and he was a fine instructor. The writer wishes to add his personal testimony to the invariable helpfulness of his contacts with Doctor Twitchell. These were not in business association, but in quiet chats on the train years ago, conferences on welfare work in our industrial community, and personal calls in his home about one affair or another. M. B. GRAFF
NOTES AND CORRESPONDENCE Elements in Patent Law Recently I have heard much of a new doctrine of patent law-the unpatentability of products of nature. It is not new, being just about forty years old; and I am sorry to say it is not law, being but a limber-worded phrase colliding head on with a statute more than twice as old and still going strong. M y regret is because it is a neat, ready-to-kse formula that I could employ occasionally, obviating mental wear and tear to that extent. It is proverbial that thinking between meals is a nuisance. All of which considerations likewise apply to a late syllogisti: extension of the doctrine to the effect that all chemical elements are products of nature and therefore no element is patentable; an extension which now has judicial sanction in the tungsten decisions (see majority opinion, General Electric v . De Forest, 28 Fed. Rep. 641). In a still, small, entirely deferential voice I shall mention that any conclusion is not better than its premises; and that these premises need putty. English is a great and wonderful language and becoming more so as the trade marks multiply. I believe it has 450,000 words already, with vacant places for a lot more, such as the epicene third person pronoun, rhymes for silver and month, a general word for both bull and cow, and one for both horse and mare, and so on. Likewise, there is room for a whole flock of new and definite words to supplement and help out overworked indefinite old ones. “Element” is a word that needs collaborators. We are “slaves of words” and some of our masters are sloppy. Jevons says all English words, except some chemical terms, have several meanings. I don’t know them all; but as far as I have gone, I agree with him except as to the exception. “Nature” has many meanings; so many that it is really a “word of convenience;” a flexible word that means whatever is convenient. “Product” is another abused word; especially in patent matters, where it is quite often the wrong word in the right pew, or the right word in the wrong pew, or something like that-“product patents,” for example. The statute does not mention “products” as patentable. The combination, “products of nature,” sounds better than it means; which is to say, it doesn’t mean much. A pearl is a “product of nature,” and so, I think, is a cherry pie, since the girl who makes it is as much a part in the scheme of nature as an oyster. “Products of nature” made their debut in 1889 in the Patent O$ce Gazette. The syllabus of Commissioner Hall’s decision in ex parte Latimer (46 0. G. 1638) says, “A product of nature * * * (is) * * * not such a patentable invention as is required by the statute.” Hall’s opinion did not carry this language; but some law clerk with the soul of a sloganeer, in digesting the decision, put it in the syllabus. Likely he evolved it from
his inner consciousness, as the Dutchman did his description of a giraffe. The syllabus also quoted a Supreme Court decision as an authority. Mr. Hall decided that a particular fiber made from a particular pine needle was not made patentable as being the product of a certain new process; and that irf a world full of fibers made from all sorts of vegetable sources by retting and the like, he could not grant a patent on every newly produced fiber; and, in detail, not one on fiber from Pinus australis. His point really was that there was no invention in picking out Pinus australis. Hall’s opinion, which was fair and well reasoned, mentioned, but did not rely on, the Supreme Court decision in the wood paper case (American Wood Paper v. Fiber Disintegrating, 23 Wall 566; 1874). In the wood paper decision the court held that a particular cellulose was not patentable because a product of a particular process; and that the evidence did not show it differing in any identifiable way from prior cellulose. It was, therefore, not legally new. The court was not talking “products of nature.” Now, as most of us read syllabi and not decisions, the tradition grew up ( a ) that a product of nature is not patentable, and ( b ) that the Supreme Court had so decided in the wood paper cases. And this alleged doctrine of e x parte Latimer has had a profound influence on patent practice in and out of the Patent Office. In the Patent Office with forty years reiteration it has become somewhat of a dogma; it is deemed axiomatic. And a belief in it has crept into the courts. However, it will not stand analysis. “Products of nature” per se carries no definite meaning, since nature produces a great variety of things and results. Paraphrased t o “something existing in nature,” the onus is thrown on “existing,” which is as broad a word as we have. In much the same sense that Latimer’s fiber existed in the pine needle, the Venus of Milo exists in any block of marble or an axe handle in any stick of hickory. Latimer isolated his fiber by removing its surroundings; and the same can be done in isolating the Venus or the axe handle. Paraphrasing again t o say “something already existing as such in nature,” the formula now becomes nearly true. Its accuracy is increased by changing “already existing” to “already known to be existing” since the statute (R. S., Sec. 9430, formerly 4886) makes knowledge of existence, rather than existence, the bar to patentability. But in so doing, “nature” can be thrown overboard as excess baggage. The statute says, in part: Any person who has invented or discovered any new and useful * * * manufacture or composition of matter * * * not known or used by others in this country * * * and not patented or
