PART I.

published since that Act, and have not been registered CHAPTER VII. pursuant to its provisions, the proprietor is entitled to protect by action or suit his copyright in so much of the work as appeared in the first edition. (a)

Effect of neglect at Stationers' Hall.

Remedy to persons aggrieved by entries in register.

But where a second edition of a book printed after July 1, 1812, is not a mere reprint of a first edition published before that date, but contains considerable and material alterations and additions, as to those it is a new work; and in order to enable the proprietor to sue in respect of any infringement of his rights in those portions of the second edition which are new, if those only are infringed, he must register the book in which they are contained. (b)

And the extent of the alterations contained in the second edition is immaterial; to whatever extent a new edition is made a new work, the new part cannot be protected by suit until registration. But that effect of the Act of Victoria has no operation as to the old parts: as to them the copyright is left where it was. (c)

The object of registration being to give notice to all other publishers that the publication is protected by the statute, if there be any neglect on the part of the officials at Stationers' Hall as to the registration,.the public is not bound, and the remedy of the publisher must be against the party causing such neglect. It cannot affect those who are thereby kept in ignorance of the existence of the copyright. (d) Sect. 14 of 4 & 5 Vict. c. 45, enacts, "that if any person shall deem himself aggrieved by any entry made under colour of this Act in the said book of registry, it shall be lawful for such person to apply by motion to the Court of Queen's Bench, Court of Common Pleas, or Court of Exchequer, in term time, or to apply by summons to any judge of either of such courts in vacation, for an order that such entry may be expunged or varied; and that upon any such application by motion or summons to either of the said courts, or to a judge as aforesaid, such court or judge shall make such order for expunging, varying, or confirming such entry, either with or without costs, as to such court or judge shall seem just; and the officer appointed by the Stationers' Company for the purposes of this Act shall, on the production to him of any such order for expunging or varying any such entry, expunge or vary the same according to the requisitions of such order."

(a) Murray v. Bogue (1 Drew. 365, 366).

(b) lb. 365.

(e) Ib. 366. The case of Norello v. Sullow (16 Jur. 689) is in no way opposed to the doctrine above laid down, as in that case the work had been duly registered, and the whole argument turned on the construction of sect. 15 of 5 & 6 Vict. c. 45.

(d) Per Wood, V.C., in Cassell v. Stiff (2 K. & J. 287).

vary or

There are not many reported cases of application for relief under this section of the Act. A rule absolute to expunge" at the option of the applicant, an unauthorised entry in the register at Stationers' Hall, was granted by the Court of Common Pleas in ex parte Bastow. (a)

A rather wide discretion was exercised by the Court of Queen's Bench in ex parte Davidson.(b). Robert Cocks brought an action against Davidson for publishing three pieces of music, in which Cocks claimed the copyright. Two of the pieces were registered in the name of Cocks, and the third in the name of a person who had assigned the copyright to him. A rule nisi to expunge or vary the entries was obtained upon an affidavit of Davidson, not asserting a copyright in the airs in himself, but deposing to his belief that the three airs were old, and that the persons who on the entries professed to be the authors were not really the authors. The ground suggested for expunging the entries was that they would be prima facie evidence against Davidson on the trial of the action brought against him. The court declined to expunge the entries, but on the refusal of the counsel for Cocks to consent not to use the entries on the trial, an order was made by the court, proprio rigore, without consent, that the rule should be enlarged till the trial of an issue to determine the question of copyright, in which Cocks should be plaintiff and Davidson defendant, and on the trial of which the entries should not be used.

The Court of Common Pleas in a subsequent case (c) in which the same person applied. for assistance, distinctly disclaimed the power exercised by the Court of Queen's Bench in the preceding case. The Court of Common Pleas refused to expunge an entry of proprietorship unless it was clearly and unequivocally shown to be false, or to vary it unless satisfied by affidavit that in so doing they would make a true entry. "We can only expunge or vary or confirm the entry:" said Crowder, J., "I think we have no power to do that which was done by the Court of Queen's Bench in Ex parte Davidson." The circumstances of the case before the Court of Common Pleas were somewhat peculiar. Mr. Lover, the author of a song called "The Low Back'd Car," being in America, and wishing to secure to himself the copyright in England and in America by a simultaneous publication in both countries, instructed his publishers here to publish it in London, on a certain day. This was done, and the song was registered at Stationers' Hall, but in the entry (a) 14 C. B. 631. (b) 2 El. & Bl. 577.

(c) Ex parte Davidson (18 C. B. 297).

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the publishers described themselves as the proprietors of the CHAPTER VIL Copyright. The song having been published in this country by Davidson, from a copy sent from America, where the publication was alleged to have taken place three days before the publication here, Mr. Lover obtained a judge's order to vary the entry by substituting his name as proprietor, and got an injunction and brought an action for the infringement of his copyright. A rule to expunge or vary the amended entry having been obtained on behalf of Davidson, the Court discharged it with costs, considering that no case had been made out for its interference.

Person

"aggrieved."

To British
Museum.

Whether under the circumstances of the case last referred to Davidson was a person "aggrieved" within the meaning of sect. 14 of 5 & 6 Vict. c. 45, it was not necessary to decide. Jervis, C. J., was of opinion that he was; Crowder, J., was doubtful, and the language of Willes, J. seems to point to an opposite conclusion. He asks, "Has any right of the applicant been interfered with or injuriously affected? I do not see that it has. This is not the case of a contested title: the applicant does not suppose himself to have been the original author of the composition in question: he claims to publish a thing to which he has no right whatever, merely because the person who is the author, and who therefore ought to have the sole right of publishing it here, has happened (it may be) to publish it in America a little too early, or has made an unintentional mistake in the date on the title page, or has incorrectly described his place of abode in the entry in the book at Stationers' Hall. I do not think it is a case in which we ought to interfere." In Graves' case (a) Blackstone, J., used similar language, and Hannen, J., said, "A person to be 'aggrieved' within the meaning of the statute must show that the entry is inconsistent with some right that he sets up in himself or in some other person, or that the entry would really interfere with some intended action on the part of the person making the application."

2. Deposit and delivery of copies.

Sect. 6 of 5 & 6 Vict. c. 45, enacts, "that a printed copy of the whole of every book which shall be published after the passing of this Act, together with all maps, prints, or other engravings belonging thereto, finished and coloured in the same manner as the best copies of the same shall be published, and also of any second or subsequent edition which shall be so published with any additions or alterations, whether the same shall be in letter-press, or in the maps, prints, or (a) L. Rep. 4 Q. B. 721, 724; 20 L. T. N. S. 877; 17 W. R. 1018.

PART I

other engravings belonging thereto, and whether the first edition of such book shall have been published before or CHAPTER VII. after the passing of this Act, and also of any second or subsequent edition of every book of which the first or some preceding edition shall not have been delivered for the use of the British Museum, bound, sewed, or stitched together, and upon the best paper on which the same shall be printed, shall within one calendar month after the day on which any Time. such book shall first be sold, published, or offered for sale within the bills of mortality, or within three calendar months if the same shall first be sold, published, or offered for sale in any other part of the United Kingdom, or within twelve calendar months after the same shall first be sold, published, or offered for sale in any other part of the British dominions, be delivered on behalf of the publisher thereof, at the British Museum."

Museum.

As to the mode of delivering at the British Museum, Mode of deliversect. 7 provides, "that every copy of any book which ing at the British under the provisions of this Act ought to be delivered as aforesaid, shall be delivered at the British Museum between the hours of ten in the forenoon and four in the afternoon

on any day except Sunday, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and Christmas Day, to one of the officers of the said Museum, or to some person authorised by the trustees of the said Museum to receive the same, and such officer or other person receiving such copy is hereby required to give a receipt in writing for the same, and such delivery shall to all intents and purposes be deemed to be good and sufficient delivery under the provisions of this Act."

libraries.

Sect. 8 provides, as to the other libraries, "that a copy To other of the whole of every book and of any second or subsequent edition of every book containing additions and alterations, together with all maps and prints belonging thereto, which after the passing of this Act shall be published, shall on demand thereof in writing, left at the place of abode of the publisher thereof at any time within twelve months next after the publication thereof, under the hand of the officer of the Company of Stationers who shall from time to time be appointed by the said company for the purposes of this Act, or under the hand of any other person thereto authorised by the persons or bodies politic and corporate, proprietors and managers of the libraries following; (videlicet,) the Bodleian library at Oxford, the public library at Cambridge, the library of the faculty of advocates at Edinburgh, the library of the college of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, be delivered, upon the paper

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CHAPTER VII.

Time.

Penalty for default in delivering copies.

Consequence of non-delivery.

of which the largest number of copies of such book or edition shall be printed for sale, in the like condition as the copies prepared for sale by the publisher thereof respectively, within one month after demand made thereof in writing as aforesaid to the said officer of the said Company of Stationers for the time being, which copies the said officer shall and he is hereby required to receive at the hall of the said company, for the use of the library for which such demand shall be made within such twelve months as aforesaid; and the said officer is hereby required to give a receipt in writing for the same, and within one month after any such book shall be so delivered to him as aforesaid to deliver the same for the use of such library.

By sect. 9, "if any publisher shall be desirous of delivering the copy of such book as shall be demanded on behalf of any of the said libraries at such library, it shall be lawful for him to deliver the same at such library, free of expense, to such librarian or other person authorised to receive the same (who is hereby required in such case to receive and give a receipt in writing for the same), and such delivery shall to all intents and purposes of this Act be held as equivalent to a delivery to the said officer of the Stationers' Company." Sect. 10 defines the penalty for non-compliance with the foregoing provisions. It enacts "that if any publisher of any such book or of any second or subsequent edition of any such book shall neglect to deliver the same pursuant to this Act, he shall for every such default forfeit, besides the value of such copy of such book or edition which he ought to have delivered, a sum not exceeding five pounds, to be recovered by the librarian or other officer (properly authorised) of the library for the use whereof such copy should have been delivered, in a summary way, on conviction before two justices of the peace for the county or place where the publisher making default shall reside, or by action of debt or other proceeding of the like nature, at the suit of such librarian or other officer, in any court of record in the United Kingdom, in which action, if the plaintiff shall obtain a verdict, he shall recover his costs reasonably incurred, to be taxed as between attorney and client."

These provisions of the Act require the delivery of every book and of every volume thereof; they do not apply to a part of a volume, and the publishers of such part cannot, therefore, be made liable for non-delivery of it. (a)

It is to be observed that the only consequence of not depositing or delivering the copies is the liability to the (a) British Museum v. Payne (4 Bing. 548).