داع ITS LAW AND ITS LITERATURE BEING A SUMMARY OF THE PRINCIPLES AND LAW OF COPY- LONDON: SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE & RIVINGTON 1886 PREFATORY NOTE. THE present work is an attempt to give in brief and simple shape a comprehensive viewsuch as did not exist, despite an evident need-of the principles, history, and present law of copyright, domestic and international. It was first published, in chapters, as editorial articles in the PUBLISHERS' WEEKLY, July to October, 1885; it has since been revised and extended to the spring of 1886. Its preparation has involved careful study, not only of the leading copyright authorities, such as Copinger on the Law of Copyright (2d edition, London, 1881), and Drone on Copyright (Boston, 1879), respectively the foremost English and American legal treatises on the subject, but of numerous other sources of information, such as the early Parliamentary law reports; the Morrill report to Congress in 1873, and the valuable Report, with digest and Evidence, of the British Royal Copyright Commission to Parliament in 1878; the papers of Mr. H. D. Macleod and Mr. G. H. Putnam in Lalor's "Cyclopædia of Political Science;" Griswold's Synopsis of Copyright Decisions (Bangor, 1883), and Spalding's handy alphabetical abridgment of the Law of Copyright (Philadelphia, 1878); besides many volumes, reports, magazine articles, and newspaper clippings, contained in the copyright collection of the PUBLISHERS' WEEKLY office or reprinted in its columns. Mr. A. R. Spofford, Librarian of Congress, has kindly gone over the proofs critically and made valuable corrections, and I am indebted also to Mr. S. E. Dawson, of Montreal, for revision of the portion relating to Canadian law and practice. It has been impracticable, within the compass of the work, to give references to authorities; but these can largely be supplied from the tables of cases and indexes of Copinger and Drone; and most of the bills, reports, etc., of recent years will be found in full in the volumes of the PUBLISHERS' WEEKLY. I have tried, however, to present a summary which will be found trustworthy as well as readable, which carefully discriminates between settled principles of law, judicial constructions, and mooted points, and which, except in the preliminary chapter, where the theory of copyright is discussed, and in the last, on copyright reform, avoids for the most part the interpolation of the writer's personal opinions. The frequent use of the word “probably” or its equivalent suggests how unsettled is the condition of copyright law. I trust this summary may be of service as well in the reform of domestic copyright as in the promotion of international copyright. The completeness and efficiency of the protection of property by a State is a chief test of its civilization, and it is to be hoped that the United States will not long remain almost the only exception among civilized nations in rejecting international copyright. This national disgrace should be blotted out. Only those who know by hard experience the difficulties of bibliographical work can appreciate fully the invaluable bibliography of literary property, compiled by Mr. Thorvald Solberg, which complements this little treatise. NEW YORK, February, 1886. R. R. BOWKER. |