The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-06-14
From The ". Y. Sun
A NATIONAL LlTERATURE-TH HE LAW
OF COPYRIGHT.

These subjects are brought wildly before us by a
card which find upon table from the editors OF
"Arcturus," announcing the di continuance of that
| excellent journal In this parting communication
they Justly admonish any one who may be ambitious
of engaging in the publication of an original or other
Journal this city, any where on this North Anne
rican Continent, that it would be well worth his while
consider that he brings himself by that act, in I'M
mediate competition with journals like the Edinburgh
| Review, the London Quarterly, Black " Gods and
the Dublin University Magazine, containing much
larger amounts of matter than he possibly fur
nish, with liberal fund for contributors, and spread
| through the American market at price which makes
| the odds against him little less than triumphant.
This is undeniaby true. These celebrated and
long established periodicals. sustained by the best tai
ens of England, are furnished in market at cheap
er rates than similar American journals can possibly
be published. The effect is in the language of the
late editors of Arcurus, to leave the young literature
OF America struggling single handed against the lit
| erature Of all the world
The mpoverishing of literary men, the frustra-
ton Of their plans and the breaking up of their pub
locations, are consequences which follow as matter
of But these not the most deplorabe
sequences they not the evils which plead loudest
for reform. The loss of our national lterature-or
rather the failure of all efforts to establish such lit
erature is what appeals to every American heart with
force that should be irresistible The people of this
country read more than any other people in the world
and their opinions their tastes and feelings will be
insensibly influenced by what they read la no 9TH
er country is it important that the literature should
be in accordance with the principles and breathe the
spirit of the existing political institutions for by the
purity, the uniformity, and the force public opnon
our Institutions must stand or fall.
What then must be the effect of our having nc
standard literature of our own, but Introducing in
stead thereof that Of England with medley OF
French and German We answer, in the concise
but strong and true language of Mr.. Matthews
g anarchy of opinion and national ESTABLISHMENT
We do not deny the great abilities of the foreign pc
riodicals which we have named We know they are
able, learned, brilliant and profound we read them
with deep interests but still they radically oppos.
ed to our form of government; they have no faith in
mankind; they cling to the worn out monarchies OF
the old world affording the only practicable sys
TENS of human government; they scout the idea OF
the durability of republic, and rldicule the popular
principles and the new order of things which the he
roes and sages of the American revolution fought and
toiled to establish. Is such literature proper to be-
come the exclusive food of the American mind
We would not however wish to deprive any one oil
the many good things be found scattered here and
there among these anti American sentiments We
would not wholly drive away foreign periodicals, but
we would adopt such measures as to enable American
authors TO compete successfully with them, and 10
tabsh nau nal literature, moulding the American
mind in conformity with the spirit of our institutions
and giving orm, compa and dignity to American
opinion. When this is done, we need have no fear
OF the foreign political hereses which come to us
mingled with the sparkling gems of foreign literature
The first ste towards achieving object desi-
rabe, and, may say Indispensable is the passage
of the International Law of Copyright 1t ought to be
su fficient argument in favor of this measure that
simple justice to eminent authors, at home and abroad
demands it.
But the more we reflect upon the subject the more
decided becomes our conviction that our true policy
as nation requires it, and that too in much higher
degree than the policy OF the European governments
requires it of them We earnestly hope that Con.
gress will yet do something satisfactory in reference
to this measure-that men high in authority will
give their candid attention to it, and take a correct
view OF it. How nation with reading people
keep the public mind pure and uncontaminated when
il is fed almost exclusively with literature hostile in
principle and spirit, to its institutions 7 And how
can hope to establish national literature when
we force our authors into such competition with pi-
ruin upon them 7 We ask American statesmen to
think Of these questions, and answer them by prompt
and right action