m.
He cannot secure any protection whatever under our local laws, nor can he
even bring an action to prevent infringement of his rights until after he
has registered his book at Stationers' Hall in London.

The Canadian rights in any American book which is likely to have a
considerable sale in Canada are quickly purchased by some Canadian
publisher, and the book is published simultaneously with the publication
in England and the United States. Mr. Winston Churchill's "Crisis," and
Miss Mary Johnston's "Audrey," are examples of such books. If the English
publication, with consequent delays, could be dispensed with and all the
advantages of the British Copyright Acts could be acquired by printing and
contemporaneous publishing in Canada, as they could be acquired were the
bar against registration at Ottawa removed, a strong inducement would be
offered to copyright American books in Canada.

The importation of American books in sheets into Canada is considerable,
although it is yearly diminishing as our publishing facilities increase
and trade grows. The present duty of 20% is an obstacle to such
importation, and if the facilities I have referred to were afforded in
Canada to the American authors, and the present tedious delays occasioned
by the necessity of obtaining British copyright removed, an end would be
put to the importation in sheets of many books, and an effectual end in
the case of more popular works of fiction, which have a sure market in
Canada.

The principal difficulty which British authors and Canadian publishers had
to contend with prior to 1891, was due to the proximity of the United
States. So long as the Canadian law remained in force which provided for
the collection of the 12-1/2% duty for the benefit of British authors, the
importation of cheap pirated editions of British works could not be
prevented, unless the work was reproduced in Canada, and such reproduction
was impossible chiefly owing to the limited market and unsettled copyright
conditions in this country.

The passage of the Chace Bill by Congress and the President's proclamation
changed the whole aspect of the Canadian Publishing Trade, but the making
of a Canadian edition of a British book still remained a more precarious
speculation for the Canadian publisher, than the making of a British one
was for the British publisher. When the British publisher made an
arrangement with an author either by out-and-out purchase, or by an agreed
ro