The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1885-07-09

| This neglect inhicts great Injustice on
| American citizens engaged in author
ship,
Nearly fifty years have passed since in.
| ternational copyright was first pressed
upon Congress, IL has received the sup
port of Webster, Clay, Everett, sumner
| and other statesmen, Ii has been recon-
mended In Presidential messages, Yet
| bills, petitions, executive recommendn.
/ tons, have all failed to procure action by
our lawmakers, Clay and Webster in
1881 made report, saying;
Authors and inventors are among the
greatest beneiactors OF mankind "a y
| 1t being established that literary property
| is entitled to protection, II results that this
! protection ought to be afforded wherever
| the property is situated, We
should all be shocked ii the law tolerated
! the least invasion OF the rights of property
| in the case of merchandise whilst those
which justly belong to the works of au-
thors are exposed TO daily violation"
We are not working for scheme to
make books dear. In France, where liter
AIRY property is selulously guarded and
the greatest liberality is shown to foreign
authors, the system of cheap books flour
| ishcs, But the price is regulated fairly, by
the law Of supply and demand, rs in the
| case or other commodities,
| We are not working in favor OF Il mon.
opoly. The only question of monopoly in
| Nolved Is that of the men who are now
allowed to mOnopoli2e without cost the
work of other mems brains and hands.
Our object is not to iniure any industry
-eithertype making, parer-nl3kng, print
| ing, or publishing. II is simply to defend
mot by taxation, but by proper safeSuardsJ
that form of industry which produces
| written works, pictures, and musical com
positions. American authorship struggles
against Il rUinous competition with foreign
works that are not paid for.
| How would day-laborerS like it, if they
We're forced to compete with other labor, rs
kidnapped from abroad and obliged to
work here gratis, without even bting pur-
| chased, as slaves were What would type
! founders and paper makers think of the
situation, if tyre metal and papcrstCoi;
were stolen from abroad and sold here,
against goods which they had bought
| honestly How would Senators and he
representatives. relish the notion that their
speeches and services, being merely the
expression of ideas, ought not to be PAID
for What would lawyers and p!iySicinns
say il told that their knowledge, rut in q
the form of written Or spoken opinions,
was public property and not em,it.e to
| pecuniary reward
Congress excludes Chimes, labor, le-
cause 1t interiors; with white labor. Eut
Congress still compels The American WHO
writes II book 10 offer his labor in the
market against labor which is not merely
cheap, but is actually unpaid.
| Tie property of foreign p%tenteeS is de-
| Tended in this country; the torsign p,ar-
wright is allowed Il perpetual lrleity
here, in his acted play. But the fore N
author of book is condemned to Il s.;tus
worse than the slaves; lie is the vict!m
of public plundering.
By permitting such an outrage, the
| United States isGcstroyingits own anth rs
at home, and leaves them exposed to cX-
| tensive piracy abroad. Such n policy,
based upon dishonesty and injustice, must
undermine all the sup o ;ed benefit to
| popular intelligence, drrivablc from the
coniiscation of foreign literature
We call upon every one who cares for
national honor and dignity, for fair play,
public morality, or the spread of American
ideas in Il free and vigorous American
literature, to aid in agitating this subject,
and in securing at least full discussion
OF it from the Forty ninth Congress. Ne
believe that the people will heartily APP
prove the suppression of Il pity meanncSs
towards foreign and American authors,
which is unworthy OF any enlightened
nation especially II nation that assumes
to be great and liberal, Is well ms rich