- 



COPYRIGHT. 



nil'YHKJIIT. 



HI 



hit Mngni. ahould have the *ole liberty of printing and reprinting 

 inch book for the full term of 28 yean from the day of publication. 

 and. if the author should be living at the end of that period, for the 

 reaidue of hi* natural lid- 



But the Act 6 ft 8 Viet. c. 45 (Lord Mahon'i Act), entitled ' An Act 

 to amend the law of copyright,' and having for it* preamble, " Wherea* 

 it U expedient to amend the law relating to copyright, and to afford 

 greater encouragement to the production of literary work* of laating 

 benefit to the world,' U the Act which now regulate* literary property. 

 It repeal* the 8 Anne, c. 19; 41 Qeo. III. c. 107; 84 Gco III. c. 156; 

 and enact* that in every book published in the life-time of the author, 

 after the pawing uf the Act (lt of July, 1842), the author and hi* 

 a**ign* ah-ill hare copyright for the term of the author's life, and for 

 neven yean after hi* death, or if then* aeven yean expire before the 

 end of forty-two yean from the time of publication, then for such 

 period of forty-two yean ; while for book* previously published, in 

 which copyright (till untwisted at the time of the passing of the Act, 

 the copyright should be continued for the full term provided in tin- 

 run* of book* thereafter published, except in cam where the copyright 

 should belong wholly or in part to a person other than the author, 

 "who shall have acquired it for other consideration than that of 

 natural love and affection." In these excepted cages however the 

 author, or his personal representative, and the proprietor or proprietors 

 of copyright may agree, before the expiration of the subsisting term of 

 copyright, to accept the benefits of the Act : and on a minute of such 

 agreement being entered in a book of registry directed to be kept at 

 Stationers' Hall, the copyright will be continued, as in other cases, for 

 the author's life and seven years after his death, or for forty-two yean 

 from the time of publication, and will be the property of the person 

 or persons specified in the minute. The copyright of a book published 

 after the author's death is to endure for forty-two yean from the time 

 of publication, and to belong to the proprietor of the manuscript from 

 which it is first published, and his assigns. With regard to encyclo- 

 paedias, reviews, magazines, periodical works, or work* published in a 

 wries of book* or parts, or any book in which the publisher or pro- 

 jector shall have employed persons to write, on the terms that the 

 copyright shall belong to himself, the copyright shall be in the pub- 

 lisher or projector, after he has paid for it, in the same manner and 

 for the same term as is given to authon of books, except only in the 

 case of essays, articles, or portions forming part of, and first published 

 in, reviews, magazines, or other periodical works of a like nature, the 

 right of publishing which separately shall revert to the authors at the 

 end of twenty-eight yean after publication, for the remainder of the 

 term given by this Act ; and during these twenty -eight years the pub- 

 lisher or projector shall not have the right to publish any such essay, 

 article, or portion separately, without the consent of the author or his 



The Act provides, at the same time, against the suppression of books 

 of importance to the public, by empowering the judicial committee of 

 the Privy Council, on complaint made to them that the proprietor of 

 the copyright in any book after the death of its author, refuses to 

 republish or allow the re-publication of the same, to license the com- 

 plainant to publish the book, in such manner and subject to such 

 conditions as the Privy Council may think fit. 



The remedies provided by this Act for infringement of copyright are, 

 an action for damages (in which the defendant is required, on pleading, 

 to give notice to the plaintiff of the objections to the plaintiff's title on 

 which he means to rely), and a power given to the officers of customs 

 and excise to seize and destroy all foreign reprints of books in which 

 copyright exist*, with a penalty on the importer (if ho be not the pro- 

 prietor of the copyright) of 10?., and double the value of every copy of 

 any book imported, on conviction before two justices.of the peace; 51. 

 of the penalty to go to the officer of customs or excise who shall pro- 

 cure the conviction, and the remainder to the proprietor of the copy- 

 right. 



The Act provides that a book of registry be kept at Stationers' Hall, 

 where entries may be made of proprietorships of copyright, assignments 

 thereof, licence* of the judicial committee, and agreements as to copy- 

 right* subsisting at the time of the passing of the Act, on p tyment in 

 each case of a fee of 5*. The entry of proprietorship of copyright in 

 this book does not affect copyright ; but no action can be brought for 

 infringement of copyright, nor any other legal proceedings taken, unless 

 the proprietonhip of copyright has been entered. 



The entry of an assignment in the registry book is to all intent* 

 and purpose* an effectual assignment. Certified and stamped copies 

 of entries in the registry book, are to be evidence in nil courts of jus- 

 tice, and are to be taken a* primA facie proof of copyright. The making 

 of a false entry in the registry book, or the production in evidence of 

 any paper falsely purporting to be the copy of an entry therein, is 

 made a misdemeanor. Persons thinking themselves aggrieved by any 

 entry in the registry book, may apply to a court of law in term time, 

 or a judge in vacation, for an order to vary or expunge such entry ; 

 and such court or judge may make an order for varying, expunging, 

 or confirming such entry, with or without cost*. 



With respect to dramatic literary property and the 3 Will. IV. c. 15, 

 which gave dramatic authon certain privilege* and remedies for their 

 infringement, the 5 ft 6 Viet. c. 45, ho* extended the term of the 

 sole liberty of representing dramatic piece* to the period provided by 



that Act for the copyright of books, and gives the same protection to 

 the authon of musical piece* and their asngn*. The remedies pro- 

 vided by the 3 Will. IV. ,-. l. r >. in the case of dramatic pieces are con- 

 firmed by the 5 ft 6 Viet. c. 45, and extended to musical piece*. The 

 5 ft 8 Viet c. 45, also enact* that no assignment of the copyright of 

 any book consisting of a dramatic piece or musical composition shall 

 convey the right of representing or performing such dramatic piece or 

 musical ..!!:]. -iti.ni. unless an entry, expressing the intention that 

 mch right shall pass by the assignment, be made in the registry book 

 at Stationers' Hall. 



The protection given to authors by the Statute of Copyright is 

 coupled with the condition of presenting five copies of every book to 

 certain public libraries. A copy of every work, and of every second 

 or subsequent edition which contains any additions or alterations, 

 bound, sewed, or stitched together, and on the best paper on which tin- 

 same shall be printed, is to be delivered at tin- British Museum within 

 one month after it* first publication, if it U published within the bills 

 of mortality, or within three months if published in any other part of 

 the United Kingdom, or within twelve months if publi*hed in any 

 other part of the British dominions ; and a copy of every work, or 

 second or subsequent edition, containing additions and alterations, on 

 the paper of which the largest number of copies shall be printed for 

 sale, in the like condition as the copies prepared for sale by the pub- 

 lisher, is to be delivered, if demanded, within twelve months after 

 publication, within one month after demand made, at Stationers' H.ill, 

 for the Bodleian Library at Oxford, the Public Library at Cambridge, 

 the Library of the Faculty of Advocates at Edinburgh, and the Library 

 of Trinity College, Dublin, under penalty of forfeiting the value of the 

 copy of each book or edition not delivered, and a sum not exceeding 

 SI., to be recovered by the Librarian, or other officer properly autho- 

 rised, of the library to which the book should have been delivered, on 

 conviction before two justices of the peace for the county or place 

 where the publisher resides, or by action of debt in any Court n{ 

 Record in the United Kingdom, formerly, under the 54 Geo. III. r. 

 156, an author was obliged to give eleven copies of his work to public 

 libraries. 



The strict powers given by the 6 & 6 Viet. c. 45, have been vigo- 

 rously exercised by the Custom-house authorities, and found very 

 effectual to prevent the importation into this country of the Fnnch, 

 Belgian, German, and American reprints of popular English works; 

 but English authors still suffer by the circulation of these reprint* 

 abroad; and a practice so destructive of the fair proliu of mental 

 labour can only be effectually redressed by prevailing on foreign 

 countries to extend the benefits of their own laws against literary 

 piracy to aliens as well as native authors. Two Statutes have been 

 passed in the present reign to enable her Majesty to extend to for. 

 the benefits of our laws of copyright. The first of these, 14^ Viet. 

 c. 59, was repealed by 7 Viet. c. 12, the Statute which is now in force, 

 and which was substituted in consequence of the alterations in our law 

 of copyright. This Act, entitled " An Act to amend the law relating 

 to International Copyright," empowers her Majesty by order in council 

 to enable authors of works first published in foreign countries to have 

 copyright in the British dominions for books, prints, articles of sculp- 

 ture, and the sole liberty of representing dramatic and musical pieces, 

 for periods not exceeding those allowed by the various copyright Act* 

 for the respective classes of works when first published in this country, 

 on conditions of registration and delivering of one copy at Stationers' 

 Hall ; but no such order in council is to have any effect unless it is 

 stated therein, as ground for issuing the same, that reciprocal protec- 

 tion for British authors has been secured in the foreign country to 

 which the order in council refers. Under this Act it convention for 

 the mutual protection of copyrights has been entered into with Krun.v, 

 and its stipulations have been confirmed by the Act 15 & 1'i Y>< t. 

 c. 12. Similar agreements have likewise been entered into witli tin- 

 free town of Hamburg (1853), with Belgium (1854), and with Prus- 

 sia (1855). 



There are certain works exempted from the benefit of the law of 

 copyright from the nature of their contents : such are, all publications 

 injurious to public morality, inimical to Christianity, or stimulating, 

 either as libellous or seditious, to a breach of the peace. This must 

 however be understood of their general tenor, and not of isolated 

 passages. A* far as a rule on the subject can be laid down, it is. t liar 

 any work containing matter for which a public indictment or private 

 prosecution could be sustained is not protected by the law. but may be 

 pirated by other parties at pleasure, who, if sued for penalties under 

 the Act, are allowed to give in evidence the nature of the com] 

 which they have published, in order to defeat the action. This is a 

 ri-ni. ukable exception to the general rule of law, that none shall take 

 advantage of his own wrong ; and its operation is quite as remai 

 the effect of the rule having often been to disseminate more w i.l.-iy 

 that which the law has declared not to merit protection. 



Besides the special copyrights of the universities secured to them, as 

 before mentioned, by Statute, there still exist certain prerogative copy- 

 right* attaching to the owners in perpetuity. Of these the 

 belong to the queen, which were more numerous and considerable 

 formerly than at present. The right to print the authorised transla- 

 tion of the Bible without note or comment belongs to thei-i.un, 

 and of this right the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge and the 



