The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-01-20

absolute subjugation of the South, or the main
effect Of the adoption or rejection of the Kansas
Lecompton constitution will extend beyond the
preservation or loss of half a dozen other slave
States. Southern men, therefore, VIII have been
such sticklers heretofore for Southern abstrac-
tons, have here an abstraction which covers the
whole ground of Southern equality.or Southern
submission.
international Copyright-Mr. Morris Bill.
A few days since we published a copy q
the bill introduced on Monday last in the House
of Representatives by Mr.. Morris, of Pennsyi-
vania, for the protection of the property Of
foreign authors. Although objections mag be
taken to some of the details of this bill, we
of protection to foreign worka-no matter how
imperfect-would be preferable to the present
disgraceful state Of things. 1t Is a crying il
Justice and an anomaly, that whilst scientific
and mechanical discoveries are surrounded
with all the security that the law can confer,
literary property should be exposed to ~piraticai
Entertainments. 1t is not because the works of
- ASpS CSAuA VI I'LL lCSS Dcucut -
the world than those of inventors that they are
thus left open to invasion; it is, on the con-
trary, because they are more general and
cosmopolitan in their interest and value. The
unfairness of according to genius which ia
partial in its influences, a protection
which is denied to that which is universal.
has been so frequently exposed that it is unne-
cessary for us to travel again over that ground.
The justice and equity of protection to literary
men are, in fact, no longer debated by the op-
ponents of an international copyright. They
now cOnfine themselves to the consideration Of
the magnitude of the commercial interests in
volved in it, and are content to rest the policy
of their resistance on that ground alone.
1t is a fact but little creditable to Congress
that it should have allowed a narrow and pro-.
fessedly selfish view like this, emanating from
some half dozen monopolist publishing houses,
to postpone for so long a period a measure of
such manifest justice and expediency. Could it
have been proved by anything more reliable
than mere assertion that the continuance of the
present shameful system of literary piracy was
beneficial to the public, to American literature,
or to the publishers themselves, we might UNI
derstand the fierceness of the opposition with
which this measure has always been met; but
when we find the literary market inundated with
trash, native literary talent unable to obtain q
fair price for its productions, and the great
publishing monopolists themselves failing to
sustain their commercial credit, then we say
that the free trade system of publishing is bene-
Ecial 40 No o1acc on intaraot WLar 10
are told by Mr.. Thackeray, in his" statement at
the Commercial Travellers dinner in London
the other day, our first rank publishing houses
are compelled to send out touters on the Euro
pean highways to entrap wandering authors,
we are forced to add that it is imperative on
Congress at once to offer to foreign genius the
security and protection the failure of which ne
c~essitates such humiliating shifts. Had we an
International copyright, the immense market
which this country would afford for productions
Of merit would soon crush out the spurious
literature with which the public taste and mo-
rails are vitiated. Native as well as exotic
genius would find full encouragement for its
Development, and there would soon spring up
amongst us a multitude of writers like Prescott,
Bancroft and Washington Irving, who would
shed a halo of glory around the literary repu-
tation of the country.
Whilst, however, we attribute to the selfish
and narrow minded opposition of the American
publishers the long postponement of an ~interna-
tional copyright act, it is but fair to state that
part d the blame Of this delay is due to the in
discretion of foreign authors themselves.
Mr.. Dickens came to this country professedly
with a view to pave the way for a literary
treaty between Great Britain and the United
States. Whatever progress he made whilst
here he completely neutralized by the publica-
ton of his American Notes" The feelings OF
disappointment and indignation which that
work aroused rendered the public mind indis-
posed, for the moment, to consider favorably any
measures having the interests of foreign authors
in view. 1t was this Indifference which enabled
a few of the large publishing houses to prevent
the convention made by Mr.. Everett, when Secrc:
tary of State, with Mr.. Champion from being
ratified in the Senate. Had the current of pub
lie feeling run then as strongly in favor Of
measures of protection as il does now, there il
no doubt that Mr.. Everett's treaty, backed a. IL
was by the influence of government. would have
passed into law.
One Of the first tasks undertaken by Lord
Napier or. his arrival here was the preparation of
an international copyright treaty likely to meet
with the approval and support of the two go
vernments. He has been in a measure antici-
pated by Mr.. Is. Joy Morris, of Pennsylvania,
himself an author. and whose hill 10 now beforc