New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1853-02-12

W1ukdn once ~ AVN I'LL cAs "a - =
-. 49,, would have induced bun TO give Us one
80 .IIegory one more hfe OF poe one more Et@
tim "A JuyenaIf firmly believe not ARMY oeAese
~ ,ndred wears ago, when he was wiring our de-
h.,es Sor he Getlenans Msgazine he would very aen
the have had tvopeDcs 70 buy pAte OF chin OF oei
-. ecoL's ,hop undergrog Considered as 6 reward
- I'm the difference between twenty years term,
and sixty years term Of po.thurnous copyright would
lave been rothing next 70 nothing but is ne IN
ference nothing 70 usf can buy Raseas Tor sxPense
mis- BIZ have had 10 give five shings .cr T. can ouy
the DetiOnery-the entire genuine Dicronsry-ior wv
guneas, perhaps for less might have had 70 give ~
or ak guness tor II. Do grudge this 70 man TX
Dr. Johnsoni Not al all Show me that the prOPcSss
this boon roused him 70 any vigorous e1or- or sas'
his spirits under depressing circurns.anees snu -
quite willing pay TIE price Of such an oyecl nee'!
a. that price w. But what do complain OF 10 hs- I'D
cncumstsneee TO be worse and Johnson .oHe .1
better that am TO give Eve pounds or VIZ ~ 80;
was NIT worth farhing. The principe Oh copyiiAs.
IL this II IL tax readers Tor tne prgo.J u $50
bounty 70 writer's The tax u an exceedingly os1 one
II tax On one Of the most innocent ana most suy
Of human pleasures; and never et us io1eet, na' A
on innocent pleasures Is spreHium on VICIOUS Ples
ures admit however, the necessfy OF giving OOuni!
~ yerps and learning In order 20 give SUCH oouny
willingly submit even TO this severe and ourcensonle
tax Nay am ready TO ncrease rhe tax II Il can Dc
shown tist By dong should propornonsbly increase
The bounty. Ny complaint ia, that my honorable and
learned friend doubles triples, quadruples the tax
and makes scarcely any peroepnsie addiuon 70
the bounty To recur to the case Of ~: !oan.on
would have been levied on the pusllc tor Df:
yohnson's works alone, Il my honorable and lear Ded
friends bill bad been the law OF the land nave no data
sufficient 10 form opinion. But am conndenttaat le
taxation on his Dictionary alone would have amounted 10
Inany thousands Of Of pounds In ckoning the whole
additional sum which the holders Of has copyrights
would have taken out OF the pockets Of the pubic dur
ing the last half century at twenty thousand pounds
feel satisfied that very grestly undeTTste IT, Now,
again ssy that think II but fair that we should pay
twenty thousand in consideration o. twenty thousand
pounds worth Of pleasure and encouragement received
y DR. johnson But think il very hard that shOuld
nav twenty thousand pounds for what We would not
have valued al i've shllllngs.
Nv honorable and learned friend dweIs on The
claims Of the poeteriy Of great writer Undoutt-
edy Sir il would be very pleasing TO see descend
ant Of Shskspere living in opuence on the iruts OF
bis great ancestors genius. house maintsined IN
spendor by such paldrnony would be more Interest,
ing and striking object than Blenhem TO- u' or thsn
snaihheldssye will be 70 children. But, unhap-
ply it ia scarcely possible that, under any system such
thing can come to pass. My honorable and learned
friend does not propose that copyright shall descend 10
tie edeeson, shall be bound UP by rrevocaoie CO.
tail IL be merely personal property. IL s there
fore highly improbable that Il WILL descend during
sixty yes or half that term from parent 10 child. The
chance IL that people than will have an inter
ct n it, They will IN all probability eel II and divide
the proceeds. The price which bookseller VIII give
for II viii bear proportion 10 the sum Wnicn ne w
| afterwards draw from the public, Il he speculation
proves successful He viii give Etle anything, more
Tor tenn Of sixty years than for term oil tnry or
five sndiwenty. The present value Of distant average
IL always email but when there Is great room 10 DOUBT
whether distant advantage VIII be airy advantage ri AL
the present value sinks TO smost nothing Such Is the
irconftancy OF public taste, that sensible man VIII
venture pronounce WIKI confidence, what the sale OF
any book publhod ia our days viii be IN the years be-
tween 1890 and 1900. The whole fashion OF thinking
and writing has undergone change IN much shorter
period than that to which my honorable and learned
friend would extend postiumous copyright What would
have been considered the best literary property IN the
earlier p6It Of Charles the Seconds reign imagine
Coweys poems. Overeap sixty years, ami you are IN
the generation q. which Pope asked, who now reads
| CJwey II What works are ever expected with more
iInpaience Is the public than those Of Lord BOngbroke,
which appeared, think IN i7J Ia 1914, no booksel'
Ter would have thanked you for the copyright OF them
! AL if you had offered 1t 10 him for nothing. What
would paterLoser-row give now for the copyright oil
Hayley's TTiumphs Of Temper, 80 much admired with
In the memory Of many people SIN ivngt say mere
fore that from the very OF literary propsry, II
will slmos always pass away from authors family;
bud say, that The price given for 70 the anIy VIII
bear very small proportion TO the tax which the pur-
chaser, his speculation turns out well will in the
OF long seies Of years levy on the public II,
Sir wished 20 md strong and perfect ilustraon Oh
the effects which anticipate from long copyright i
should select-ny honorable and learned friend will Do
surpTised- should select tho case Of Millions grand.
daughter. As oltea THE hiil has been under dscu
sion the fnie OF MilioD's granddaughter has been
brought forward by the advocates Of monopoly. Ny
Honorable and learned friend has repeatedly told the
story with great elCqucDce and effect lie has dilai
on the tuhengs. the seot poverty, OF this nitted
TIE insf 81 ttfC TIC itiH
in the extremity Of her distress, GITch gave Ler ben
! eft, that Johnson wrote a prologue. aud that the
public contributed come hundreds OF pounds. Was
IL NJ, lie ssks that she should receive, In this elee-
I mo,yrary form, a small portion OF what was, In
Truth, debt Why, he asks. instead Of Obtaining
ptsnco from charity did she not live in comfort and
luxury the proceeds Of the sale of her ancestors
worksf But Sir, viii my honorable AMI learned friend
tell that this event. which be hss oiten and pa
tiecGlly described was caused by the shortness OF
eopyIighti Why, at that time the duration at copy
/ LONGER than he II PROPOSES TO
make IT, The monopoly lasted no sixty years but Tor.
ever. At the time al which M.lton's granddaughter
Asked charity Millions works the exclusive prop
eity Of bookseller. Within n few months Of the day
which the benefit given al Garricks Theaer the
holder Of the copyright Of Paradise LOST think was
TCnson-alI piled 10 tie Court Of Equity for lniunc
| ron seainsi bookseller, who had published ehesp
edition o the great epic poem, and obtained hls njuuc
| ton. The representation 0i COimss was n remember
n,htly in l550-the injunction la l752 Here, then, Is
perfect Illustration OF what conceived 20 be the e1ect
q long copyright Nions works arc the property O!
flngic putie err Even body who wants them must buy
item ~ Ionsous shop and ST ToasOn price Whoever
attempts to undorse Ionson IS hsrassed Win legal pro
! CecOings. Thousands who would gladly possess copy
! at Paisde Lost must fUrego that great enjoyment
And what, IN the meantime Is the snuuion OF TIE oly
pcTton for whom suppose that the author pro
tcced such 10 the public, Il ell interesicd
she is reduced % utter desiution. Nltons works
under monopoly. Mtons grsnilauehier IA starving.
The rtedeT IL pllaged but the writers family Is not
Curiclod Society Is Hxed doubly. Ii has % give
eNorbSut price for the poems and has AZ The same
time % give aims % the only surviving descendant OF
q pot But this il not all thiak rl-ht, SIR. . call
/ the atteTtion OF toe Nouse cyl which j. perhaps
r-ore 20 Re sTprchenicd when authors copyright re-
nlsrz IN the hands o; bis family than when i Is trans
! fned q booksellers seriously fear that, II such
urOSsgfc TIN should he adopted msny valuable works
vii be eher totally suppressed or gevogsy motatssl
can prove that this danger j. not chimercal and
ein az Re certain that the danger be real th- safe
guards which my honorable and learned friend las de-
WEED are altogether nugsOry. That the danger = not
| ChmeIicsl may easily be shown Most OF US | am
sure have known persons who, very erroneousy, as
think bG, nom the best motives, would not choose 20
! reprint Fieldinc's novels or Gihhens History OF the
Decline and Fan q the Roman Empire. Some gentle-
may perhaps - Ct oIiSion that would be- well
II ICfn Jones and Ghoons History reprint
! cd viii rot, then. dwell On these or similar cases.
will take respecting which il IL net likely thst there
| VIII Re any difference OF opinion here-csses too in
which the danger of which now speak not matter Of