The Sun.
London, England, 1842-02-08 00:00:00

COPYRIGHT OF DESIGNS.

Mr. EMERSON TENNENT, liavin-g—moved that
the House should resolve itself into a Committee of the
whole House, to take into consideration the laws affect-
ing the Copyright of Designs for the ornament of arti-
cles of manufacture,
Mr. WILLIAMS said that it was not his intention to
take up the time of the House at that stage of its proceed-
ings; but as he had during the last session taken a
very decided course in opposition to any alteration of
the pre .ent law, he could not allow that opportunity to
pass without stating that he still entertained the same
'aostility to such a change. He was persuaded that the
Hon. Member for Belfast, if he had been thoroughly ac-
quainted with the subject, or if he had been a man of
business,would never have interfered with the existing law.
For forty years no change had taken place, and it was
very remarkable that during the depression of last year
this branch was the one in which the exports for the
last year exceeded those of the preceding. He should
not be so anxious if the Bill of the Hon. Member only
affected the home trade, but he feared his proposition
would strike at the root of the foreign trade also. He
believed that the Bill would have that effect, if it resem-
bled, as he was led to think it did, the Bill which the
Hon. Gentleman introduced last Session.
The House then resolved itself into a Committee of
the whole House.

Mr. E. TENNENT said that present Bill- was the
same in effect as the one of last Session. There were,
however, some alterations, for he meant to'extend the
time of the continuance of the copyright to nine months,
and not a twelvemonth, as in the former Bill. Some
alterations in the details, as suggested by` the Board of
Trade, would also take place. The Hon. Member con-
cluded by moving for leave to bring in a Bill to amend
and consolidate the law relating to the Copyright of
Designs.

An
HON. MEMBER, whose name we could not
learn, objected to the Bill as being injurious to the manu-
facturers who lived at a distance from the registry-office.
After a few words from Mr. GREEN, which were in-
audible in the.gallery,
Dr. BOWRING said there were many difficulties in
this country which did not exist in other places. In.
France, for example, the Prudhommes undertook the re-
gistration of designs. It had been found in this country
that the cost of obtaining redress for those whose inven-
tions had been interfered with was so great as to render
italmost impossible for designers to obtain redress. He
(Dr. Bowring) wished to have two evils remedied—first,
that there should be a means of general registration;
and, second, that there should be economical means of
redress in cases where inventions had been invaded.
Mr. MARK PHILLIPS stated that he had been on
the Committee last year, and he could only say to his
Honourable Friend that time and reflection had con-
firmed him in the justness of the views which he then en-
tertained. He should offer no objections to his intro-
duction of the bill—he could only hope that a question of
so much importance should be fairly brought before the
House.

Mr. EMMERSON TENNENT, in reply; stated that
he thought it would be the most convenient course to
postpone all discussion as to the details of the measure
until the second reading of the Bill.

The resolution was then agreed to.
The House resumed, and leave was given to brille in
the Bill, which was accordingly brought in, and read a
first time.