Show international COPYRIGHT mr brander matthews in two interesting ter te pamphlets published recently by the american copyright league presents a strong argument for international copyright lie ile takes a broad view of the question considering it from the standpoint of both the author and the reading public the writer wipes out effectually the protest against giving copyright protection of foreign literature on the providing poor people with c cheap birs the question is worthy of more con e iteration eide ide ration than it has ever received had lad it been recognized by the public in its true light the american copyright league would never have existed and the newspapers would not a after so many dreary yeara years of agitation tionne be boring for an adjustment of the difficulty the nation whose copyright laws more deeply affect american authors 18 is I 1 of course Un england gland that nation justly refuses to protect the books of other nations from piracy eo so long as those nations refuse the same courtesy to lier her authors but through recent liberal rulings of the english courts there is a means by which Ane american rican a authors may secure protection by english copyright for their works according to the construction now put upon the law two conditions only air are a necessary to secure copyright in england first the book must be published in the english dominions one day in advance of its publication elsewhere in addition to this the author must be able to make affidavit that he is residing in england or some of her provinces when the book makes its appearance the practice with american authors whose reputations have extended to europe is to arrange the day of publication with their english publisher and make it convenient to be on canadian soil at that time the american copyright having been previously asly looked after on the day following the appe app earan arano e of the book in england the american publisher also sends it forth all the leading american mont monthlies lilles are published after this manner the century Cen luvy the north Ante american rican linice eur and mastny others are always published in london a day or so before they are issued here the law of copyright in france is extended to all comers without respect to nationality the second question that touching the interests of the american reader is quite as important we will let mr matthews Matt tell his bid own story I 1 come now to the one class of books the price of which would be increased by the granting of the international copyright this is the large and important class of fiction of course american novels would be no dearer and probably translations from the french german italian spanish and Itus bussian sian would not vary greatly in price but english novels would be sold old for ten ton or fifteen canta cants each we should not see five or ten rival reprints of a single story by the most popular rl english g I 1 II 11 novelists the there re would be but bu 1 a single ingle edition of tile latest novels of 1 the leading british stor etory tellers and thie title would beof berei at whatsoever price the tile authorized publisher might choose to ak so sometimes in arimes much generally little E engliski Engli in glish sli fiction would no longer cost coat less than american fiction the premium of cheapness which n now OW serves to make the american public take imp imported novels instead of native wares would be removed and with it IT would 0 uld be removed the demoralizing influence on americana of a constant diet of Eng english liah fiction that anderl american men and women should re read ad the best that the better E english novelists have to offer ua tie is the lie most moot desirable that our lans laws should encourage the tile reading of E english stories good and bad together Kether to a and d the bad of course in enormous ina majority orlay is to obviously improper P rand and unwise we the evil effet eff ct of this unfortunate is state late of tiling things mark twain has most graphically depicted lie ile asks if it ie Is an advantage to us lie the people of the united li states tates to get all kinds of alien books devoured in these proportions an ounce of wholesome holesome literature to a hundred tons of noxious Is this en an advantage to us he inquire further and he lie answers his own question thus jt it certainly is if poison is an advantage to a pere gereon oil or if to teach one thing et the he hearthstone a rth the political hueting husting j and in a nations pres press and teach tile opposite in the books the tile nation reide reids is profitable or in other words it if to bold hold up a national a aldard lor for admiration and emulation halt of or each day and a foreign standard the other half balf Is krofl profitable babl a the most moat effective way to train an impressible young mind land establish sta blish for all time ia standards utan dards of fine fine and vulgar right and wrong and good and bad is through the imagination and tho the most inai invidious dious manipulator of the imagination ia Is the felicitously felicito written romance the statistics of any public library will 0 I 1 I 1 I 1 A k I 1 that of I 1 every bondred hundred hoke read by our people about devent seventy y fire novels and nine gentha of the them m fore lore agn onee onea they fill the imagination e with an unhealthy fascination of forel oreion irn life with ite its dukes and earls aid wid kingo kings its fuss and feat feathers hers ite its grille fill immoralities ite sugar coated in injustice justice and oppressions oppress ions and thia this aaion breed breedi a more or less die dim satisfaction satir stalle faction with form of 0 and contempt tor for our republican commonplaces and simplicities cities it also bre breeda edill longing for something bot better terl which presently crops out in defea bcd shame and dimits bious tione of that ideal foreign life hence the dude thua thus we have thia this spectacle american statesmen lion glori dying american nationality teaching it preaching ching it urging it building it up with willi their mouths and under tit n in it it and pulling it it down with their acts this ie Is to employ ao in indian to euckle your child and expect it not to drink in the indian nature wi with th the milk it is to eo go christian ing with infidel i tracts in your bans hands our average young person reads scarcely anything but novels the citizenship and morals a and d predilections of the rising benera tion of america are largely under training by foreign teachers this condition of hinge things ie is what the american amerlean stat F men think it wise to protect and preserve by refusing international u dional tr Copyright g I 1 i t w which I 1 i I 1 c it would bring t the lae national teacher to the front and push the foreign teacher to the rear we do get cheap books through the absence of international copyright and any who will consider the matter thoughtfully will arrive at the conclusion that these cheap books are die tile costliest cost liest purchase that ever a nation made mad 0 11 |