112 Literary Property and International Copyright. 



own mental labors for the means of subsistence ; and are frequently, 

 from the nature of their pursuits or the constitution of their minds, 

 incapable of applying that provident care to worldly affairs which other 

 classes of society are in the habit of bestowing. These considerations 

 give additional strength to their just title to the protection of the law. 



"It being established that literary property is entitled to legal protec- 

 tion, it results that this protection ought to be afforded wherever the 

 property is situated. A British merchant brings or transmits to the 

 United States a bale of merchandise, and the moment it comes within 

 the jurisdiction of our laws they throw around it effectual security. 

 But, if the work of a British author is brought to the United States, it 

 may be appropriated here, and re-published, without any compensation 

 whatever being made to the author. We should be all shocked if the 

 law tolerated the least invasion of the rights of property in the case of 

 the merchandise, whilst those which justly belong to the works of 

 authors are exposed to daily violation, without the possibility of their 

 invoking the aid of the laws." , 



The direct and immediate effect of the delinquency of our govern- 

 ment in this matter is, not only to deny justice to foreign authors, hut 

 to deprive American authors of all protection for their works beyond 

 the limits of their own country. It is said upon reliable authority 

 that, according to the statistics of 1878, ten per cent of the works 

 issued in England in that year were American reprints. 



There are, also, incidental evils of a serious nature resulting from 

 the want of an international copyright law. Under the present status 

 there is very little encouragement for young and unknown American 

 authors. Publishers find it much cheaper to steal and reprint works 

 of popular foreign authors, than to pay this class of American authors 

 even a moderate compensation for their productions. Mr. Charles 

 Reade says that he is informed by American authors, "that the pub- 

 lishers keep copying machines, and the rejected manuscript often 

 bears the marks of the machine; and the subject-matter is, in due 

 course, piratically used." In his nervous style' he draws a graphic 

 picture of the young victimized author, which, unfortunately, wears 

 too many lineaments of truth. He says : "It becomes the old to feel 

 for the young ; let me trace that poor young author's heart. He is 

 young, and the young are sanguine ; he is young, and the young are 

 slow to suspect cold-blooded villainy and greed in men that are rich, 

 and need not cheat to live, and live in luxury. He takes his manu- 

 script in good faith to a respectable man. He is told that it shall be 

 read. There are delays. The poor young man, or young woman, is 

 hot and cold by turns; but does not like to show too much impatience. 



