THE AUTHOR.
1. The word author, in a general sense, is used to express the originator or efficient cause of a thing; but, in the restricted sense in which it is applied in this article, it signifies the first writer of a book, or a writer in general. The indispensable qualifications to make a writer are—a talent for literary composition, an accurate knowledge of language, and an acquaintance with the subject to be treated.
2. Very few persons are educated with the view to their becoming authors. They generally write on subjects pertaining to the profession or business in which they have been practically engaged: a clergyman writes on divinity; a physician, on medicine; a lawyer, on jurisprudence; a teacher, on education; and a mechanic, on his particular trade. There are subjects, however, which occupy common ground, on which individuals of various professions often write.
3. Authorship is founded upon the invention of letters, and the art of combining them into words. In the earliest ages of the world, the increase of knowledge was opposed by many formidable obstacles. Tradition was the first means of transmitting information to posterity; and this, depending upon the memory and will of individuals, was exceedingly precarious.
4. The chief adventitious aids in the perpetuation of the memory of facts by tradition, were the erection of monuments, the periodical celebration of days or years, the use of poetry, and, finally, symbolical drawings and hieroglyphical sketches. Nevertheless, history must have remained uncertain and fabulous, and science in a state of perpetual infancy, had it not been for the invention of written characters.
5. The credit of the invention of letters was claimed by the Egyptians, Phœnicians, and Jews, as well as by some other nations; but as their origin preceded all authentic history not inspired, and as the book of inspiration is silent in regard to it, no satisfactory conclusion can be formed on this point. Some antiquarians are of opinion, that the strongest claims are presented by the Phœnicians.
6. The Pentateuch embraces the earliest specimen of phonetic or alphabetic writing now extant, and this was written about 1500 years before Christ. Many persons suppose that, as the Deity himself inscribed the ten commandments on the two tables of stone, he taught Moses the use of letters; and, on this supposition, is founded the claim of the Jewish nation to the honor of the first human application of them.
7. If we may believe Pliny, sixteen characters of the alphabet were introduced into Greece by Cadmus, the Phœnician, in the days of Moses; four more were added by Palamedes during the Trojan war, and four afterwards, by Simonides. Alphabetical writing evidently sprung from successive improvements in the hieroglyphical system, since a great part of the latter has been lately discovered to be syllabic or alphabetic.
8. A considerable number of very ancient alphabets still exist on the monumental remains of some of the first post-diluvian cities, and several of later date, in manuscripts which have descended to our times. The letters employed in different languages have ever been subject to great changes in their conformation. This was especially the case before the introduction of the art of printing, which has contributed greatly towards permanency in this respect.
9. The mode of arranging the letters in writing has, also, varied considerably. Some nations have written in perpendicular lines, as the Chinese and ancient Egyptians; others from right to left, as the Jews; and others, again, alternately from left to right, as was the method at one period among the Greeks. The mode of writing from left to right now generally practised, is preferable to any other, since it leaves uncovered that portion of the page upon which writing has been made.
10. In ancient times, literary productions were considered public property; and, consequently, as soon as a work was published, transcribers assumed the right to multiply copies at pleasure, without making the authors the least remuneration. They, however, were sometimes rewarded with great liberality, by princes or wealthy patrons. This literary piracy continued, until a long time after the introduction of the art of printing.
11. In almost every kingdom of Europe, and in the United States, the exclusive right of authors to publish their own productions, is now secured to them by law, at least for a specified number of years. The first legislative proceeding on this subject in England, took place in 1662, when the publication of any book was prohibited, except through the permission of the lord-chamberlain. The title of the book, and the name of the proprietor, were, also, required to be entered in the record of the Stationers' Company.
12. This and some subsequent acts having been repealed in 1691, literary property was left to the protection of the common law, by which the amount of damages which could be proved to have actually occurred in case of infringement, could be recovered, and no more. New applications were, therefore, made to parliament; and, in 1709, a statute was passed, by which the property of copyright was guarded for fourteen years, with severe penalties. This privilege was connected with the condition, that a copy of the work be deposited in nine public libraries specified in the act.
13. In 1774, the Parliament decided that, at the end of fourteen years, the copyright might be renewed, in case the author were still living. The law continued on this footing until 1814, when the contingency with regard to the last fourteen years was removed; and, if the author still survived, the privilege of publication was extended to the close of his life.
14. In the United States, the jurisdiction of this subject is vested by the Constitution in the Federal Government; and, in 1790, a law was passed by Congress, securing to the authors of books, charts, maps, engravings, &c., being citizens of the United States or resident therein, privileges like those granted in England, in 1774. In 1831, the law was altered, and again made to conform to that of England in regard to the period of the privileges. The English and American laws differ in no essential provision. Until the year 1839, foreigners were permitted to hold copyrights in England.
15. In France, the first statute regarding literary property was passed in 1793, when the right of authors to their works was secured to them during their lives, and to their heirs for ten years after their decease. The decree of 1810 extended the right of the heirs to twenty years. In Russia, the period of copyright is the same as in France, and the property is not liable for the payment of the author's debts.
16. In some of the German states, the right is given for the lifetime of the author; in others, it is made perpetual, like any other property; but then the work may be printed with impunity in any of the other states in which a right has not been secured. In Germany and Italy, especially, authors are very poorly remunerated; and in Spain, the book trade has been so much oppressed by a merciless censorship, that authors are compelled to publish their works on their own account.
17. From the preceding statement it appears, that few legislators have been willing to place the productions of intellectual labor on the same honorable footing with other kinds of property. No reason, however, can be assigned for the distinction, except the unjust and piratical usage of two or three thousand years.
18. Authors seldom publish their own works. They generally find it expedient, and, in fact, necessary, to intrust this part of the business to booksellers and publishers, from whom they usually receive a specified amount for the entire copyright, or a certain sum for each and every copy which may be sold during the term of years which may be agreed upon. The compensation is commonly insufficient to pay them for preparing the works for the press; but they are as well paid in this country as in any other. In this particular, however, there has been a manifest improvement within the last ten years.
