The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-07-18
NEWSPAPER COPYRIGHT.
How Gable Messages Are Protected by Pub
fishers, and What 1t Costs.


How Cable Messages Are Protected by Pub
fishers, and What 1t Costs.
Special &c the Indianapolis journal.
WASHINGTON, July 17-Three or four years
ago extraordinary efforts were made by some
and editors throughout the country to induce
Congress TO pass copyright to protect news
articles. or productions in the news columns of
the daily press The idea was to have copy
right law which would protect men who wrote
letters, dispatches and paragraphs in the daily
press and in magazines and other publications.
It was proposed that an entry could be made by
an author or publisher at the Office of the Libra
rian of Congress, under which productions from
his pen or articles published by him were to be
protected against reproduction by other parties.
Il struck members of Congress, who as a gem
eral thing, know little about the works of
authors and publishers, being somewhat in
consistent and strained. They believed that
whatever was current and whatever was dis
eussed by tongue or pen in the daily press should
Be free, and that no one should be hampered in
using it. So the project failed.
About six months ago some of the publishers
OF the great daily newspapers of the East began
to publish over their cabegrams and special
articles line announcing that they were copy
EiRhted. The practice has grown until at present
the choicest productions OF authors in this coun-
try and the old are copyrighted-copyr GIFTED
whether they are transmitted by telegraph or
mail The efforts of the publishers to procure a
copyright for news matter having failed, it is
mystery to many how news articles can be copy
righted under the present laws. Your CORE
spondent has just had an experience which
taught him this information.
To copyright n telegram, cablegram, an edi-
torial. or an article of cay kind produced in the
caily press-say a morning newspaper-it
Ia necessary to clip the title, credit
and date-line from the proof-slips
in the Office on the night before the publication
them in an envelope, addressed to the Librarian
of Congress- Washington, D. c.. and deposit
them in the mail. The publisher then sends
regularly two copies of his publication to the
same address; but there is requirement of
such promptness IN the last instance The pub
licatlon may be mailed several days afterward
but the title of the article copyrighted must be
mailed before they go to press, as the act of GO
ing to press is the act of publication and the fill
ing OF the titles in the mail is equivalent TO FL
ing them with the Librarian of Congress The
cost OF this kind of copyright is 81 day. if q
certificate IS required from the Librarian. If
only entry Is made, and that is as good as a GER
tifcate, to all intents and purposes the expense
years that in procuring copyright of publica-
ton two copies must be filed with the Librarian
before the matter is published. For instance a
book which is to copyrighted must be filed in
duplicate copies with the Librarian before
copy goes to the public. These
two copies are entered by title
page and description, and thus the copyright be-
comes complete. Where there is no title page in
publication, as in a drawing. photograph,
painting, chrome, statue, ETC., title must be
fad Qwr slxr ~snk% x,,sl.
name of claimant for a copyright The style of
type is lmmaterial, and theprint of typewriter
Is sufficient; but separate title is required for
each entry, and each title must be printed on
paper as large as commercial note. And within
ten days after publication for each book or other
article two complete copies Of the best edition
must be sent to perfect the copyright. 1t has
Been by copyright that the bulk of the collection
OF books at the library of Congress, amounting
to traialoads has been made Every publica-
ton that has been copyrighted in the United
States, clear back to the origin OF copyright, is
N the Library Of Congress.