chambers I
occupy, and such a gleam was my retention for the Defence in the
cause of _Quicksilver_ v. _Nore_. It was a Patent Case, and one of
the deepest possible interest. It is my good fortune to know the
Defendant, personally, and it was through his kind offices that the
instructions to appear for him were left at my chambers. My friend
and client (who is unjustly said to be eccentric in his habits) has
recently patented and produced a most important invention, which
greatly facilitates the retention of dinner-napkins, after those
useful, nay, necessary articles have been used for the purpose for
which they are manufactured. Like all really valuable inventions, the
patent is simplicity itself, the napkin-ring consisting of the section
of the thicker end of an elephant's tusk cut to an appropriate size
and hollowed out. It is necessary to fold the dinner-napkin in such a
fashion that, when inserted through the ring, its shape is retained
by the adherent properties inseparable from the ivory. The patent can
also be produced in other materials, such as gold, silver and jewels
for the wealthy, and in bone, tin and even glass for purchasers of
smaller means. I must say that when the ring was shown to me I was
greatly struck with the cleverness and simplicity of the idea, and
could not understand how Mr. QUICKSILVER could have allowed himself to
be so badly advised as to bring an action for infringement, merely on
the strength of _his_ patent being also a dinner-napkin-holder with
the ring element so far introduced that it consisted of a circle
closed and opened by a hinge. However, it was no part of my duty
to advise the other side, so I set to work to get up my case (as I
invariably do) _con amore_. I hunted up all the causes in the Digest,
that seemed to be on all-fours with the matter in dispute, and spent
days in the Public Library of the Patent Office searching for patents
having to do with table-napkins. As the specifications were not
consecutively published, I had to wade through a large number of these
interesting documents that treated of other subjects. For instance,
the first specification I would take out of the box in which it was
kept, would perhaps have to do with house-raising without disturbance
to the foundations, the second would prove to be an article half
umbrella, half revolver, while in the third I would perhaps find an
extremely quaint notion for a portable pocket corkscrew. I myself
picked up man