Arguments before the Committee on Patents of the House of Representatives, conjointly with the Senate Committee on Patents, on H.R. 19853, to amend and consolidate the acts respecting copyright: June 6, 7, 8, and 9, 1906.United States. Congress. House. Committee on Patents
History
Arguments before the Committee on Patents of the House of Representatives, conjointly with the Senate Committee on Patents, on H.R. 19853, to amend and consolidate the acts respecting copyright: June 6, 7, 8, and 9, 1906.
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Patents
Copyright -- United States
The old law is very vague and unsatisfactory. The proposed new law
would help music publishers and composers very much.
There has been a great deal of piracy going on and their best
"hits" have been copied and pirated.
The new law makes such piracy a criminal offense, punishable by
fine or a year imprisonment. If passed, as we hereby most humbly
pray that it should be so, it will punish the pirates, because the
fine alone can not stop their unjust deeds, and they laugh and pay
their fine, but a year of imprisonment will certainly change all
for the best. The said pirate would not risk a year of prison at
all times.
Then again, the new law provides that no phonograph company or any
makers of musical instruments, as well as makers of self-playing
pianos, can deliberately use the work of the brain of the composer
as well as the property of the publisher without permission to do
so or paying some remuneration for the same.
Imagine the injustice of the thing. A composer writes a song or an
opera. A publisher buys at great expense the rights to the same
and copyrights it.
Along comes the phonographic companies and companies who cut music
rolls and deliberately steal the work of the brain of the composer
and publisher without any regard for the said publisher's or
composer's rights.
They sell thousands and thousands of the "hits" of the publisher,
which he has worked hard to make, without paying, as stated
before, a cent of royalty for them.
The new law proposed remedies this, but of course the phonographic
companies are fighting the new bill tooth and nail.
In this brief outline I shall include another important statement
to show how much work, and anxiety of the brain a composer must
use to write something in poetry or music, and what anxiety and
worry he endures until the said "hit" is an accomplished fact.
Sometimes his entire family depends upon the publishing of this
brain work, and when it is accepted and the publisher issues the
same for the public's appreciation, behold, in the next few days
every sort of instrument is playing this man's composition.
I for one have suffered this injustice and piracy. Therefore I
feel how dreadful it is in general to suffer and to be deprived of
remuneration for the just and intelligent inventive brain work
which a man produces by his genius.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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