The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1906-12-08
MARK TWAIN
IN FLANNELS
Congress Committee Laughs
at Ills Satire Speech.
TALKS OF COPYRIGHT.
Appeared in Airy Costume Of Sum
mer- Scores Publisher, and
Their III Gotten Wealth.

WASHINGTON. Dec s.-Samucl l.
Clemens Mark Twain brought 20 u
close with laughter day OF argu
mcntatlvc strife over the terms OF the
copyright bill. now the subject OF hear
ings before the senate and house com
mlttees on patents.
Mr.. Clemens was attlrcd In n suit OF
white flannel lie followed brief
statement by Rev. Edward Everett
Hale, chaplain Of the senate. Mr.
Clemens commented on the impossi
Olllty OF understanding the legal
phruseology OF the copyright bill and
said he allowed all credit 20 "the train
cd legislators" who were wrestling
with IL.
~ am particularly interested In the
portion OF the measure which concerns
my tradc.' he continued. II like that
extension from the present limit OF the
life OF copyright from forty-two years
TO the life OF the author and ffty years
thereafter. | think that ought 10 salts
~ any reasonable author, because II
will take care Of his children. Let the
grandchildren take care OF themselves
II will satisfy me because II will cna
BILE me 60 take care OF my daughters.
After that I don't care. | have long
been out OF the struggle. Independent
OF II and indifferent TO IL.
at Is not Objectionable TO me-" he
continued. "that all the trades and In.
Gustries OF the United States are In the
bill and protected by II. | should like
20 have the oyster culture added and
anything else that might need protec.
ton. have no III feeling. ! think II n
Just and righteous measure and should
like TO see IL passed"
Mr.. Clemens argued that there was
really 10 legislative ground for making
any limitation to the life OF copy
right. But" he added, II understand
Il must have a limit. because that Is
required 10y the constitution Of the
United States, which sets aside that
prior constitution we call the deca-
logue. The decalogue says you shall
not take away from any man his prop
erty. | win not use that harsher word
But the laws of England and America
do take away the property from the
author. They all talk handsomely Of
the literature OF the land, then they
turn around TO crush and wipe II out
OF existence"
The expiration Of n copyright, he ex.
planned, did not inure to the benefit OF
the public, but TO the publisher "who
lives forever and rears families In af-
iluencc and enjoys from generation TO
generation these Ill gotten gains"
Mr. Clemens added: my copyrights
produce to me great deal more mon
ey than can spend. However, II l did
not have them / could take care of
myself. / know half a dozen trades,
and If those ran out would invent q
half dozen others. But for my daugh-
tiers hope congress will extend TO
them the charity which they have
failed to get from me.
You cannot name twenty persons In
the whole United States" he declared,
"who in the past hundred years have
produced books which have outlived
the copyright limit"
Richard r. Bowker, vice president,
and Robert Underwood Johnson, sec
rotary OF the American Copyright
league, advocated the bill, as did
Thomas Nelson Page, the author; +.
d. Mlllet, the artist, and w. A. Living
ston, representing the Print publishers.