marica the writin ff syngs by the canitersine requirement of a wrimen contrast and regisnan, villa & gire te besouly, à de not mine berween the Ég vegare, and the reproduction of the picture as much; the operence is that for the sale of a picture the orgyrigia a reservel, the artist may, on the one hand, produce my umber of duplicate oppies, and thus impair the vale of the picture; and on the other hand, in case of a stranger doing so, the proprietor of the picture, who is the interested party, has no ground of complaint, but the artist only, who is not interested, or, but remotely: if the copyright is assigned, then the artist is denuded of the profit which legitimately is his, as the inventor of the design, and which may be derived from its publication as an engraving. Therefore, in neither contingency, are the rights and interests of the parties justly apportioned, or duly protected.

There is a matter of practical detail to which, I trust, I may be excused if I make reference, as it ought to be provided for in any measure upon the subject. An artist, in composing a picture, generally makes sketches or studies of the different groups introduced into the composition, and a sketch or picture on a small scale, of the entire work. These have sometimes a value of their own. If produced after the picture was finished, they might possibly be regarded as an infraction of the right of the possessor of the picture. But the publication or sale of the sketches from which the picture is painted does not, I apprehend, derogate from the value of the finished work; and the right of disposing of these sketches might, therefore, as it seems to me, very properly be reserved to the artist.

We come now to sculpture, which stands, in this respect,

on a much securer footing than her sister art. The copyright in a work of sculpture is in its largest sense vested in the author; is unaffected by his parting with the work, and can only be divested out of him by an assignment under seal, attested by two witnesses. The name of the sculptor and the date, must appear upon the work, and upon every copy and cast. The rights of artist and purchaser are the same as in the case of paintings; and ought, therefore, it seems to me, to be placed on the same basis. The complete work in this branch of art, may be considered to be the marble statue; other forms are casts in metal, plaster, or some composition, produced from a mould, and capable of indefinite repetition by mechanical means. The repetition by casts should be reserved to the sculptor, just as the repetition by engraving should be reserved to the painter. The marble statue should not be reproduced except with the consent of the proprietor of it; for by so doing it ceases to be unique, and its value is deteriorated; it should be unique so long as the proprietor of it chooses that it should be so.

The subject of engraving, as an incident to painting, has been already considered; when the copyright in an engraving exists as an independent property, there is no difficulty about it. The existing law affords ample protection (except that it may be doubtful whether copying by photography is an infringement, a matter about which there ought to be no doubt), and a sufficient means of identifying the proprietor. The statutes are however unnecessarily cumbersome and complicated, and might very beneficially be superseded by some more simple and efficacious enactment.

With respect to photography, it seems to me that registration may very properly be enacted as a condition to the enjoyment of copyright, as is done by the Act of last session; and that it should be required, as a further condition (which the Act omits), that every copy should show upon the face of it that it is registered.

To sum up the conclusions which may be drawn from this review of the law of artistic copyright, they seem to me to be these:-First. That the statutes relating to the subject do not rest the right upon a sound or uniform basis, and are unnecessarily complicated. Secondly. That the rights relating to the different branches of the fine arts are similar, and might conveniently be defined in one statute, instead of in various statutes as at present; and the means of acquiring or asserting copyright, and of enforcing and protecting the right when acquired be assimilated, instead of being various, as at present. Thirdly. That the principle upon which the right should be founded, should be by giving to the author the sole right of multiplying the design by all the means and processes which do not derogate from the value of the original work, where it is the property of another; and to protect the proprietor of the work against any piracy of such work.

735

XXXV.-THE CIRCUIT SYSTEM: ITS INFLUENCE ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE AND ON THE INTERESTS OF THE BAR.-BY FREDERICK LAWRENCE, Esq., BARRISTER-AT-LAW.

(Read 1st June, 1863.)

RUMOURS of partial alterations and dismemberments of the circuits have drawn attention in many quarters to the merits and defects of the system as a whole, and I venture to think that at the present juncture the subject is not undeserving of consideration in this society. The England of to-day, it is obvious at the outset, differs very widely indeed from the England for which our present circuit system was devised, and for which it continued for a long period well adapted. It would be marvellous indeed if a plan which satisfied the necessities of more primitive times-which sufficed for the days of the Plantagenets, the Tudors, and the Stuartsshould work equally well in a widely different and more complex state of society. Not only have we to provide for a densely populated commercial and manufacturing nation, in place of a thinly peopled agricultural country, but improved methods of locomotion now render results attainable which, however desirable, must have appeared impracticable to the early lawyer and legislator. At a comparatively recent period one or two of the Northern counties could only be visited by the circuit judges once a year-that is, in the summer time.*

"Till the beginning of the 19th century, the Northern Circuit, in the spring, was confined to Yorkshire and Lancashire. In early times, the distance of the four hyperborean counties from the metropolis, and the badness of the roads, rendered it impossible to hold assizes in any of them during the interval between Hilary and Easter Terms-so that a man committed for murder in Durham, Northumberland, Cumberland, or Westmoreland might lie in gaol over a twelvemonth before he was brought to trial.

Bad roads prevented winter travelling, and hence a man charged with murder or manslaughter at Durham or Carlisle, might linger in captivity nearly twelve months before his trial could come on. I need not point out what facilities are now afforded for the accomplishment of the great aim of our lawimperfectly attained, but always diligently attempted at every period of our history-that of bringing home speedy justice to every man's door.

Having regard therefore, in the first place, to the interests of the public, and in the next place to that of the legal profession, it seems reasonable to inquire whether the time has not arrived for effecting some radical changes in our circuit system, and for adapting it to the altered necessities of modern society.

The administration of criminal justice claims our first consideration. A person accused of crime should be brought to trial at the earliest period compatible with public convenience and the due course of law. If innocent, it is obvious that he ought not to be deprived of liberty or kept in suspense a moment longer than is absolutely necessary. If guilty, his punishment will be all the more efficacious as an example, if it speedily follow the commission of the crime. As far as criminal business is concerned, frequent assizes are therefore preferable to assizes held at long intervals apart.

With regard to the civil business of an assize, it may be fairly assumed that every honest suitor is desirous of bringing his cause to trial at the earliest possible moment. Even the defendant who resists what he believes to be an unfounded or dishonest claim, would rather be relieved by a speedy decision than submit to the torture of the "law's delay." The only

At the accession of George III, there were turnpike trusts in the remotest parts of the kingdom, and post-horses were found wherever they were desired; but the usual superstitious adherence to ancient customs, when the reason for them has ceased, long obstructed every attempt to improve the administration of justice in England."-Lives of Chief Justices, by John Lord Campbell, vol. iii., p. 105.