The Express.
London, England, 1862-12-13 00:00:00

COURT OF QUEEN'S BENCH.—Dze. 12.

Sittings at Nisi Prim after Term at GolldhalL—(Before
Lord Chief Justice Cockburn and ► Special Jury.)

KOTTULA V. PALL= AND °THIRD.

This was an action for the alleged infringement of two
patents for the manufacture of imp. The cue occupied
the whole of Thursday and Friday, and resulted in the
plaintiff being non-suited.

SECOND COURT.

(Before Mr. Justice Crompton and • Common Jury.)

The farther hearing of this ow was resumed this morn-
ing. The jury, after upwards of two hours' deliberation, re-
turned a verdict for the plaintiff—damages 1801., including
the two bills for 301. due from him to the defendant on ac-
count of the purchase.

WPM, M.P., V. WILD!, JUL
This wu ►n action brought by the plaintiff against the de-
fondant, the proprietor of the Alhambra, to recover 651.
for certain dioramas that were in the Great Globe, pur-
chased for the defendant.. The defendant disputed has
liability.
The case was not concluded when the court role.

COURT OF COMMON PLEAS.—Dac. 12.

SECOND COURT.

Sittiap at NW Pries in Loudon.— (More Mr. Justin
Willis and a Common Jusy.)
GAIIIBAIT V. BALL—COPYRIGHT llf MMUS.

Both the parties to this suit were printeellers, the plaintiff
being in business at Pall-mall and in Parte, and the defend-
ant in Holborn. The action wes to recover denier s for an
alleged infringement of the plaintiff's copyright by photo-
graphing his pictures.
Mr. Collier, Mr. Prentice. and Mr. Thompson, appeared
for the plaintiff ; and Mr. Coleridge and Mr. Itew for the
defendant.

Mr. Collier, in opening the plaintiff's case, said that his
client, like many other picture dealers, was in the habit of
purchasing original pictures at large prices, and afterwards
of engaging—also at gnat expeuse—engravers, for the
purpose of producing engravings of those pictures. He
was the owner of the celebrated pictures, The Horse
Fair," by Mdlle. Rosa Bonheur ; and "The Light of the
World. For "The Horse Fair" he gave the artist 1,6001.,
he having outbid the French government ; and he also en-
gorged Mr. Thomas Landseer to engrave it, and paid him 800
garner for so doing. He purchased the copyright in "The
Light of the World" for 2101., and paid the owner 1301. for
the loan of it ; and in addition Mr. Symms& had 3001. for
engraving it. The engravings were thus obtained at an
enormous expense. The present action was founded upon
the 17 Geo. 111., cap. 57, which gave the owner of a
copyright in a picture • right of action against any person
who infringed it, and the circumstances which he should
prove against the defendant were that he had exposed for
sale in his window, and had sold photographic copies of the
pictures which he had mentioned, and this without having
the permission of the plaintiff to do so. When applied to
he refused to give the name of the photographer, and he
also declined to give any information as to the number of
copies which he had sold.
Mr. Gunbart in his evidence said—l am the plaintiff in
this case. I purchased the copyright of " The Light of
the World," of Mr. H. Hunt for 2101., and I paid Mr.
Coombe, of Oxford, 1301, for the loan of the picture. I
likewise paid Mr. Symonds 3001. for engraving it. The
plate is not destoyed. The publication hoe is on the plate;
it wason the plate before any copies were struck off. The
photograph produced (a small one shout four inches long
and three wide) was purchased at the defendant's shop. It
le a oopy of my angrartng, and moat have been photographed
from it. There is no other engraving but my own in exis-
tence. The painting is still in the pomesaion of Mr. Coombe.
A photograph could not have been taken from the
ori-
ginal because it is too dark. If the photograph had been
taken from the original the colour' would be different, be-
cause there are some dark colour, in it which must have
have come out ligh., if it were photographed from the
painting. I never gave the defendant or any other person
permission to copy the engraving. I purchased "The
Hone Fair" of Rosa Boulteur, and I have sold it since to an
American gentleman, reserving to myself the copyright.
There were two pictures' of "The Hone Fair," one I sold,
and one is still in my custody. I purchased the picture for
1,6001., and I paid Mr. Landaser 800 guineas for engraving
it. The date of the publication line in that picture is the
'7oth February, 1857. The photograph produced (the same
sine as the other) must have been taken from my engraving ;
it could not have been photographed from anything else.
never gave the defendant or soy other person permission to
copy the engraving. "The Horse Fair. and " The Light
of the World," were very successful pictures. They am
worth 1,0001. a year to me as long as I live. I lose money
by ninety out of a hundred pictures I publish, and therefore
when I get a trump like these two pictures I make them pay.
Mr. Collier—So you lose by the other cards and win by
the trumps 'I (Laughter.)
Witness—Yes ; the sale of these engravings was very
successful down to the time that the photographs were
published.
Mr. Collier—To what extent did the sale fall off after the
photographs were taken!
Mr. Coleridge objected to this question being put, inas-
much as the plaintiff could only recover for the loss which
he had sustained at the hands of the defendant ; and not
for losses through other people selling photographs. The
defendant did not himself photograph the pictures, but
bought the photographs of a traveller who came round to
sell them to stationers and print/ans. It was probable
that hundreds of miter people had sold the photographs, and
the defendant was not to be affected by what they bad done.
Mr. Justice Wilke suggested that the parties should
arrange the amount for which the verdict should be taken
in the event of the plaintiff recovering, and that the ques-
tion whether the plaintiff ought to succeed should be reserved
for the court.

Some discussion took place, which resulted in MX being
agreed upon u the amount of damages..
Mr. Justice Willes expressed his opinion that s verdict
should be entered for the plaintiff for this amount, and that
the defendant should have leave to move the full court to
set that verdict aside and enter one for himself upon two
points ; first, that what he bad done amounted to no in-
fringement of copyright ; and secondly, that photography
from an engravicg was not a thing which was a violation of
the statute. .

Mr. Collier said that the plaintiff had oonsented to the
damages being fixed at la, beanies this was the first action
which bad been brought ; but if any one photographed
from pictures in which be had copyright in future he
would press for the full amount which be could recover.
A verdict was then taken for the plaintiff for 101., sub-
ject to the °pinkie of the copra