Opinion of the Court. to fully anticipate the Olin patent, are important in their bearing upon the construction of this patent and upon the alleged infringement by the defendants. Thus the patent to Elward of July 6, 1875, exhibits two rollers mounted in front of the horizontal belt. These rollers carry a short belt or apron, whose face, like that of the Olin patent, is perpendicular to the face of the horizontal belt. It is stated in the patent that one of these rollers may be driven by proper gearing, and it is so represented in the model. The face of this small belt moves in the same direction as the horizontal belt, and is set at an angle with the line of direction. or travel of the grain. The specifications state that this belt or apron “may be operated either by the friction of the passing butts of the grain, or it may be given a positive movement by gears or belts and pulleys from any convenient driving shaft, the movement of the apron in either case serving to move or shove backwards the butts of the grain projecting over the finger-bar." This auxiliary belt of Elward's acts much in the same way in relation to grain moved by and on the horizontal apron that the auxiliary belt of Olin does upon grain carried upward by the main horizontal belt, shoving the grain endwise toward the rear of the machine while it is being carried along. No method is stated, however, by which the canvas may be rotated, and even if it were, it would still be incompetent to perform the office of the Olin belt, because it is not adjustable at either end. The patent to George F. Green of March 6, 1877, also shows an adjustable butter, which he designates as a grain guide, pivoted at the lower front corner of the elevator frame, on the grain side, and provided at its upper end with a handle convenient to the driver sitting in his seat. This so-called grain guide is much like that of Olin's in shape and location, though apparently not provided with a movable belt, and hence not adapted to hasten the ascent of the butts, but only to shove back the butts of the shorter stalks. Instead of operating to hasten the butts, it can only operate to retard them to the extent of the friction between the butts and the surface of the board. Opinion of the Court. The patent to C. W. and W. W. Marsh of January 5, 1864, shows alongside of the main belt, an auxiliary belt, mounted on the same rollers as the main belt, and therefore proceeding at the same speed. The horizontal belt carrying the grain over the harvester platform is described as travelling faster than the main elevator, so as to operate to straighten the grain, or bring the stalks parallel to each other before beginning their ascent. The auxiliary belt, however, is not arranged on vertical rollers as in the Olin patent, but upon the same rollers as those carrying the main belt; neither is it pivoted at its lower end, nor capable of being shifted at its upper end, and hence is incapable of moving the grain endwise to even the butts. There are two or three other patents, which appear to have a somewhat remoter bearing upon the Olin patent, but are not necessary to be noticed in the consideration of this case. The gist of Olin's invention seems to be in his taking the grain guide used by Green, providing it with a belt and teeth somewhat upon the principle of the independent belt or bands used by the Marshes, travelling faster than the main belt, and for the purpose of keeping the butts in line with the heads of the stalks. The important feature, however, connected with all these prior patents is found in the fact that the devices described in them were all located on the grain side of the elevator, and were designed to secure parallelism in the stalks, as they mounted the main belt, and before they reached its apex. Olin proceeded upon the same theory, and located his swinging elevator or auxiliary belt upon the same side of the main elevator, and described it in his claim as pivoted at its lower end, with suitable devices for shifting its upper end. In defendants' device, the grain is carried up upon the main belt or elevator, as in the Olin patent, without, however, any means whatever for hastening the butts or moving the stalks endwise upon the harvester elevator; but, after having been lifted or carried over the apex of the main belt, and while descending upon the stubble side to the binder, they are adjusted in position by a travelling belt or apron almost identical in principle with that of the Olin patent, but pivoted at upper end and swinging at its lower end. This device is its Opinion of the Court. shown in a patent to Bullock & Appleby of October 31, 1882, in which the prior use of the plain face deflector board or surface was recognized, but was said not to be a sufficient means for effecting the desired adjustment of the grain stalks end wise. "The butt ends of the stream of grain will lag by contact with the stationary surface of such a designed deflector or adjuster, and the grain will not be properly guided to the binder or the point at which the binding is to be done." Their invention consists, as they state, essentially in the employment of an adjuster and deflector composed of a travelling surface, mounted in an adjustable frame, and provided with suitable means for operating it, by which the cut grain, while passing from the delivery end of the conveyer to the binder, shall be perfectly adjusted lengthwise of its stalks and to an extent corresponding to the length of the grain, so as to effect a presentation of the grain always in a given relative position to the binder devices of the machine and in proper condition for binding. The third and most important claim of that patent was for "an endless belt moving in the direction of the grain delivery and operating in contact with the stubble end of the grain on its passage from the elevator to deliver it to a binding mechanism, substantially as set forth." The real question in this case as between these two devices is, whether the first claim of the Olin patent describing a swinging elevator located upon the grain or ascending side of the main belt, pivoted at its lower end and movable at its upper end, can be construed to cover a similar device located upon the stubble side, pivoted at its upper end and swinging at its lower end. We are of opinion that it cannot. Plaintiff claims in this connection that, by the lower end of the swinging elevator is in reality meant the receiving end, and that, as the defendants' device (which can hardly be called an elevator at all, since it facilitates the descent of the grain) is pivoted at its receiving end, which happens to be its upper end, it is within the spirit though not within the letter of the claim. But of whatever elasticity of construction this claim might have been susceptible, if it had been a pioneer patent, it is Opinion of the Court. clear that, in view of the prior devices, of which it was only an improvement, and of the explicit language of the specification and claims, the patentee had only in view an auxiliary belt located upon the grain or ascending side of the elevator. Indeed, from the statement in the introduction of the specification through all the description and in each of the claims, care is taken to emphasize the fact that the invention relates to the combination, with the ordinary harvester elevator, of a butt elevator which operates upon the butts of the grain while the grain is being lifted upon the main belt, so as to hasten the ascent of the butts, and move the stalks back upon the harvester elevator. In no one of the six claims of the patent is there a suggestion that the elevator or belt Q could be located upon the stubble side, although this belt is made an element in all but one of the claims. If Olin had been the first to devise a contrivance of this description for adjusting the flow of grain upon the main elevator, it is possible that, under the cases of Ives v. Hamilton, 92 U. S. 426, and Hoyt v. Horne, 145 U. S. 302, a construction broad enough to include defendants' device might have been sustained. But in view, not only of the prior devices, but of the fact that his invention was of doubtful utility and never went into practical use, the construction claimed would operate rather to the discouragement than the promotion of inventive talent. Not only does it appear that the device described in this patent did not go into general use, but that the mechanism set forth in the patent to Bullock & Appleby of October 31, 1882, under which the defendants manufactured their machines, was extensively sold throughout the country for about eight years before any assertion of adverse right under the Olin patent, and that the plaintiff himself became a licensee under the Appleby patent, and manufactured his own machines in accordance therewith. Another fact is deserving of consideration. While the application for the Olin patent was pending, another application was made by McGregor & Flennekin, showing a grain adjusting device similar to that used by the defendants; that is, a butt-adjuster like that of Olin's, but located upon the descend ing line of grain Opinion of the Court. travel, and pivoted at its upper end instead of its lower end. This application was thrown into interference with that of Olin the examiner holding the subjectmatter involved in the interference to be "an endless belt moving in the direction of the grain delivery, operating in contact with the end of the grain to deliver it to a binding mechanism." This interference seems to have been decided in Olin's favor, since a patent was subsequently issued to him; but inasmuch as he thus was warned of the claim of McGregor & Flennekin, and of its extent, it is somewhat singular that he did not at least endeavor to obtain an enlargement of his claim, to cover an endless belt moving in the direction of the delivery, whether such belt were located upon the grain or stubble side of the elevator, and thus anticipate McGregor & Flennekin. His failure to make an effort in that direction indicates a consciousness on his part that he had limited himself to an endless belt upon the grain side, and the fact that the McGregor & Flennekin patent was subsequently issued, with the broad claim of the endless belt moving in the direction of the grain delivery, indicates that, notwithstanding the interference, it was not considered as anticipated by the Olin patent previously granted. In the meantime, and during the pendency of the Olin application, Bullock & Appleby applied for a patent upon the combination of the travelling apron with the table of the grain binder, as used by these defendants, and a patent was issued to them October 31, 1882. If Olin were entitled to all that plaintiff now claims, it would seem that the patent to McGregor & Flennekin, as well as that to Bullock & Appleby, are infringements upon his own. It is possible that Olin was entitled to a broader claim than that to which he limited himself; but if he described and claimed only a part of his invention, he is presumed to have abandoned the residue to the public. McClain v. Ortmayer, 141 U. S. 419. There was no error in holding that the Olin patent had not been infringed. 2. There are twenty-one claims in the Steward patent, the last two of which only are involved in this controversy. These claims are as follows: "20. The combination, in a grain binder, of moving butt |