 Although the elements specified in Nicholson's claims were not new, there was nothing in the prior art to suggest his particular combination of these elements.As to the question of whether Nicholson abandoned his rights by his public use of the claimed invention, Bradley examined the circumstances surrounding the public use.Nicholson put down a section of his new pavement on a turnpike in Boston, Massachusetts in 1848 in order to test its durability and the public's response to it.