The law provides that deposit copies shall be sent _promptly_ after publication, and that _two complete_ copies of the _best_ edition then published (or one copy in case of a contribution to a periodical or for identification of a work not reproduced for sale) shall be deposited; and if a work is published with notice of copyright, and copies are not promptly deposited, the copyright is voided and the proprietor becomes subject to penalty three months (or in case of outlying possessions or foreign countries six months) after formal demand by the Register of Copyrights for deposit copies. The word "promptly" is indefinite and has been vaguely construed to mean "without unnecessary delay," but this does not mean the very day of publication (C. O. Rule 22). The status of undeposited works published with copyright notice and not formally demanded by the Register of Copyrights, is also not defined by the law. In such case the copyright has not been perfected by the completing act, and it would be impracticable to proceed against an infringer, and the proprietor might be liable to penalty for false notice of copyright. In the event of such a case arising, through carelessness or otherwise, the courts would have to decide the question by definition of the word "promptly" and an interpretation of the implication that copyright is voided, meaning that the right to obtain copyright lapses, if the process is not completed without undue delay. {Sidenote: Fragment not depositable} The deposit copy must be the complete work; a fragment is not a work, and a part of a work cannot be copyrighted, especially as this would nullify the manufacturing clause, as set forth in the opinion of the Attorney-General, February 9, 1910. {Sidenote: Typewriting publication and deposit} A work may be published and deposited in typewriting copies, as set forth in the opinion of the Attorney-General of May 2, 1910, but this will not operate to avoid the manufacturing clause when the work is published in print. {Sidenote: Legal provisions}