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THE
new comedy: "Little Moo Zoo May,"
"Keep Your Eye On the Girl Just Out," "I
Am, Yours Truly," "Flutter Little Bird,"
"Love, You Must Be Blind," "Wisteria, My
Bride," "Crime Is Merely a Disease," "Your
Honey Moon Will Last," "The Games We
Used to Play," "She's Just a Little Different
From the Others That I Know," "The
Kackie" and "The Irrepressible Yank."
These titles sound good, and reports say the
music sounds even better.
PROTECTION TO EXHIBITORS.
The Act of January 7, 1904, Granting Temporary
Copyright Protection to Exhibitors of Foreign
Literary, Artistic, or Musical Works At the
Louisiana Purchase Exposition, Also Suspends
Operations of All Statutes Inconsistent With
Said Act During the Period of the Temporary
Copyright Protection Therein Enacted.
[Special to The Review.]
Washington, D. C, March 21, 1904.
In reply to some inquiries made by the
German ambassador as to whether the act
approved Jan. 7, 1904, for the protection of
foreign, literary, artistic or musical works,
exhibited at the Louisiana Purchase Expo-
sition also removes the interdiction of im-
portation of those articles, Leslie M. Shaw,
Secretary of the Treasury, expresses his
views on the subject as follows:
The act referred to is entitled "An Act to
afford protection to exhibitors of foreign lit-
erary, artistic, or musical works at the Loui-
siana Purchase Exposition," and grants to
the author of any book, map, chart, dramatic
composition, musical composition, engraving,
cut, print, chromo, lithograph, or photograph
published abroad prior to Nov. 30, 1904, but
rot registered for copyright protection in the
United States, and intended for exhibition
at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, or the
heirs and assigns of such author, the sole
liberty of printing, reprinting, publishing,
copying and vending the same within the lim-
its of the United States for the term of two
years from the date of the receipt of the book
or other article in the copyright office at
Washington.
The act further provides that if at any time
during the term of copyright protection there-
in granted, two copies of the original text of
any such book, or of a translation of it in the
English language, printed from type set within
the limits of the United States, or from plates
made therefrom, or two copies of any such
photograph, chromo, or lithograph printed
from negatives or drawings on stone made
within the limits of the United States or from
transfers made therefrom, are deposited in
the copyright office at Washington, such de-
posit shall be held to extend the term of copy-
right protection to such book, photograph,
chromo, or lithograph for the full terms pro-
vided for in title 60, chapter 3, of the Re-
vised Statutes, computed from the date of the
receipt of the article at the copyright office.
In the case of an original work of the fine
arts (a painting, drawing, statue, statuary,
and a model or design intended to be per-
fected as a work of the fine arts), which has
been produced without the limits of the
United States prior to the 30th day of No-
vember, 1904, and is intended for exhibition
at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, the act
grants to the author, or his heirs and assigns,
copyright protection therefor during a period
of two years from the date of filing in the
copyright office of a description of the said
work of art and a photograph of it.
Except in so far as it authorizes and pro-
vides for temporary copyright protection
during the period and for the purposes pro-
vided therein, the act is not to be "construed
or held to in any manner affect or repeal any
MUSIC TRADE
41
REVIEW
biguous, and there would be no occasion for
the inquiry of the German ambassador but
for the further provision in the act that, ex-
cept in so far as it authorizes and provides
for temporary copyright protection, it shall
not be construed or held to in any manner
affect or repeal any of the provisions of the
statutes relating to copyrights. Therefore,
construction becomes necessary in order to
determine whether there are inconsistencies
between this later and former statutes re-
specting importations, and, being in pari
materia, they are to be construed together.
The cardinal rule of all statutory construc-
tion is that the meaning and intention of the
legislature are to be sought for, and supposed
repugnances must be reconciled, if possible,
to effectuate that meaning and intention. We
then proceed to determine what is meant by
the term "copyright protection." The statute
itself (act of Jan. 7, 1904) defines it as "the
sole liberty of printing, reprinting, publish-
ing, copying and vending" the copyrighted
article, and it is so denominated in all the
laws. "Copyright under the statutes is an
exclusive right to publish a literary or artis-
tic work." Pierce & Bushnell Manufacturing
Company v. Werchmeister (72 Fed. Rep.,
54). Copyright protection, then, is the ex-
clusive right to produce, reproduce and vend
the copyrighted article. But, while the latter
statute grants copyright protection in the
United States on books, chromos, lithographs
and photographs produced or manufactured
abroad, there exists a prior statute (section
4956, supra) which requires the production
or manufacture of the articles in the United
States as a condition precedent to obtaining
a valid copyright, and which also prohibits
importation of such articles not so produced
or manufactured. Does the later act suspend
operation of section 4956 (ante) with respect
to importation during the temporary copy-
right protection, or is the provision in said
act, to the effect that former statutes relating
to copyrights are not repealed or affected, to
operate so as to deprive the proprietor of the
copyright of the very essence of the protec-
of the provisions of the Revised Statutes re-
lating to copyrights and the Acts amendatory
thereof," and no registration under the act
shall be made after the 30th day of November,
1904.
Under the provisions of section 4956 of the
Revised Statutes, as amended by the act of
March 3, 1891, it is necessary, in order to ob-
tain a valid copyright in the United States for
a book, chromo, lithograph, or photograph,
that the article or articles deposited with the
Librarian of Congress shall be produced or
manufactured in this country, and during the
existence of such copyright the importation
is prohibited of any book, chromo, lithograph
or photograph, so copyrighted, or any edition
or editions thereof, or any plates of the same
not made from type set, negatives or draw-
ings on stone made within the limits of the
United States.
Section 4963 of the Revised Statutes, as
amended by the act of March 3, 1897, pro-
hibits importation into the United States of
any article, whether subject to copyright or
otherwise, bearing the statutory notice of
copyright, which has not been copyrighted in
this country.
The main question in the case is whether
the prohibition in section 4956, as amended,
operates so as to defeat the protection of
copyright granted by the act approved Jan.
7, 1904. There can be no question with refer-
ence to the prohibition in section 4963 of the
Revised Statutes, as amended, regarding false
notice of copyright, as the proprietor of the
copyright, for self protection, would have a
perfect right to insert or impress abroad a
notice of copyright in or upon the copyrighted
article; not the statutory notice alone, but, in
addition, words showing the act under which
the protection is granted.
The protection afforded an author, his
heirs and assigns, by the act of Jan. 7, 1904,
is "the sole liberty of printing, reprinting,
publishing, copying and vending" the copy
righted article "within the limits of the
United States" for the term provided for in
said act. This language is plain and unam-
"THE WITMARK CORNER"
LOOK FOR BI-MONTHLY CHANGE I
KEEP "POSTED" ON OUR "GOOD THINGS"!
THREE POPULAR NUMBERS
FROM MUSICAL PRODUCTIONS.
From "The Tenderfoot."
it
HOP L E E "
CHINESE DANCE
H. L. HEARTZ
From "Peggy from Paris."
" FRANCO-AMERICAN DANCE "
WILLIAM LORAINE
From "The Yankee Consul."
"SAN
DOMINGO"
INTERMEZZO
ALFRED C. ROBYN
These Instrumental Novelties should be on sale everywhere.
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I. WITMARK AND SONS, "'*•""" »•""•* NEW YORK CITY
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