The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-11-08
A TRANSPARENT FRAUD.

How Publishers of Cheap Novels Secure
Transportation at Less than Cost.
Special to the indianapolis Journal.
NEW YORK, Nov. THE American Copyright
League held meeting to-day to organize for
winter campaign. Congress will once more be
appealed to, and the authors are hopeful of a
good result. One blow to be struck is Subsidiary
and yet is likely to cause some commotion in
Washington. The pirated editions of foreign
books in the form of 'libraries," are sent
through the mails as periodicals, thus being car
ried at the low rate intended to be exclusive to
journalism. In one day this week four tons of
this book matter was received in the New York
postofice for transmission to far and near points
throughout the country. A package weighing
fifty pounds was bound for San Francisco and all
that the United States would get for the trans
portation was ST, while the actual cost of car
riage would be three times that sum. The
ruling of the Postoffce Department, under
which these novels and other volumes are ac-
cepted as periodicals, was obtained four years
ago by lobby agent who spent an entire winter
in Washington at the job The decision that he
finally obtained was that, if the books
were issued regularly. with a subscrip-
ton price printed on them, and were sent
to regular subscribers, they were technically
periodically publications Since then the line
published weekly at $24 per year" or something
equivalent. has appeared on these libraries.
Lately, when most of the firms printing them
changed from the unbound form to that of
paper bound and trimmed volume, the question
was raised anew, but no alteration in
nd nj
mate of the actual loss to the government in
carrying mail matter of this kind puts it at
5000, 900 year. There is no real regularity of
issuance. fer the biggest concern sometimes
turns out a book a day for week, and in dull
time skps week altogether. The compliance
with the requisition for regular subscribers
is farcical. Each firm keeps list of dozen or
SO friends who have obligingly subscribed, with
money supplied to them for the purpose. The
object is to get next to free transportation of the
goods to the retailers, which would otherwise
have to be done through the railroad companies
at an average Of ten times the present cost. A
memorial has been prepared for presentation to
Postmaster general Villas, whose attention has
already been called to the matter, and reverse
action is confidently expected.
The American Copyright League, which to-
day renews the struggle against literary piracy
will ask Congress this winter to allow foreign
writer's to control their property in this country
confining the protection to citizens of such
countries as reciprocate. The League was
beaten last year in similar effort. The Dors-
heimer bill was beaten by lobby employed by
the pool of library publ shers. President Ar
thur was warm advocate of the measure The
y,,QY hQr in nf fhn Loo toJ =
is over seven hundred, though confined to Amer
ican authors of books The roll bears the names
of Oliver Wendell Holmes, John G. Whittier
William D. Howells. Thomas Bailey Aldrich. Ed
ward Eggleston, Julian Hawthorne George Will
lam Curtis Bishop Potter, Henry Ward Beecher
and many others equally we'll known. all of
whom suffer through the stealing of their works
abroad The women include Harriet Beecher
Stowe, Mrs. Hodgson Burnett Louisa Alcott
and many of the authoresses of popular fiction,
for they suffer serious loss of income by the
plrating Of their stories in England
When editor Richard Watson Glider of The
Century, was in WASHINGTON, in advocacy of the
cause, the late Secretary Frelinghuysen said to
him: Il do not hear very loud demand for
this thing" "You will, was the reply; and it
was this conversation that suggested to the
authors the probable value of agitation. Says
one advocate of the reform: 'We are going to
work this cause exactly as the anti-siavery doc
trine was furthered by the Aboltionists before
the war. We mean to present in their shame
full aspects the robberes under which authors
are down ntrodden and be sure that the loud
popular demand that Freling ghuysen missed will
soon be apparent The publishers of other than
the very cheap books are mostly with US now"
Mr.. Howells has project for some public read
lngs In Washington similar to those that last
year supplied 81, 700 to the League in this city
for the double purpose of raising a fund for
legitimate expenses and interesting the people
and their representatives at time when CON
gressional action will be Immediately possible.