1030
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 30TH OCTOBER, 1886.
M. Droz expressed himself highly gratified with this communication, and he reiterated what he had already expressed to me in writing when I was in London, that some of the principal States of Europe were looking particularly to the action of Great Britain, whose probable adhesion to the Union would be of much weight with them.
I asked him whether any official answers had been, sent from different Governments expressing their determination to join the Convention.
He answered that, from having been absent for some time, he could not speak positively, especially as such communications were' first received by the Federal Chancery, but he would inquire. He, however, instanced France, Germany, Italy, and Belgium among the countries from which he had received very favourable accounts.
My dear Mr. Bramston,
No. 8.
Mr. Bryce to Mr. Bramston.* †
Foreign Office, April 8, 1886.
IT seems desirable to convey to your Office, for the information of the colonial authorities and Agents-General, the reasons which have led to the introduction of the International and Colonial Copyright Bill in its present form.
The Memorandum herewith inclosed so clearly explains the objects and legal effect of the measure, that I need.only advert shortly to what may be called its policy.
Y.
Her Majesty was represented at the International Conferences held at Berne în 1884 and 1885 for the establishment of an International Copyright Union, and it now becomes important, in view of declarations made by the late and present Government, that the Convention should be signed next September, so as to bring Her dominions whithin the union.
When the Bill necessary to enable Her Majesty to do this was being prepared, the question arose, for which of Her colonial and Indian possessions should She enter the union? They are all included in the existing Copyright Treaties, and it was therefore thought proper to give them the opportunity of entering, and thereby securing protection for their own authors. In case, however, any Colony should prefer to be excepted from the Convention, it is proposed to permit it to stand aloof, and clause 9 has been drawn to enable it to do so if so minded, while clause 10 would give the means of its retiring at any later time.
The question next arose, whether it was not desirable to take this opportunity of dealing with copyright as between different parts of Her Majesty's dominions. It appeared inconsistent to create. reciprocal rights between Great Britain and foreign countries, and not to provide for such rights as between different Colonies; and it was thought important to remedy at once an injustice in the law which had long been complained of, viz., that which denies copyright in the United Kingdom to an author who first publishes his book in a Colony, while allowing it throughout the whole British Empire to an author who first publishes in the United Kingdom.
This suggested the framing of clause 8 (sub-sections 1 and 2), which gives to the author of a book first produced anywhere in the Queen's dominions copyright throughout the whole Empire, and which will therefore prevent the growth of any intercolonial piracy, whereby an author publishing in one Colony might be deprived by a publisher in the United Kingdom or some other Colony of the reason- able reward of his labours.
Another part of this clause (sub-section 3), however, enables special provision to be made for the case of a Colony which has already legislated on copyright; and the last part (sub-section 4) secures to a Colony the right of legislating for the copyright within its own limits of books first published
therein.
It has been suggested that possibly some Colonies might prefer to have the now subsisting Imperial Copyright (ie., the Acts which give a British author copyright in the Colonies as well as in the United Kingdom) repealed, so that every Colony should, as respects copyright, be in the position of a foreign State towards the mother country and all sister Colonies.
Whether this would be the wish of any Colony we do not know. It seems rather opposed to the tendency, which has happily grown stronger of late years, for every part of the English-speaking race to draw closer to every other part. But in any case, such a change in the law could not now be made. Both Parliament and public opinion would refuse to extinguish the existing copyright rights of British authors.
As the policy of the earlier part of the Bill is to enlarge the area of protection of literary property as between different independent States, it would be a contradiction to proceed in the latter part to narrow this area and destroy literary property which already exists; and such a course would be in direct opposition to the claim Britain has so often urged on the United States, that there should be reciprocal copyright between the two countries. We should have cut the ground from under our feet as regards all further appeals to the honesty and good feeling of the Americans if we suggested to India or the Colonies to do the very thing which British authors complain of America for permitting.
* A similar letter was addressed to the India Office.
† Copy to Board of Trade, April 9, 1886.
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