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 royalty, and issued a copyrighted edition, he had the market to himself, and no man might sell a copy of any edition therein.  When the Canadian publisher made an arrangement with an author or copyright owner to bring out a Canadian edition—­a speculation involving considerable pecuniary risk—­he had to pay for the right to do it as the English publisher had, but his market was likely to be interfered with by an influx of copies of a cheap edition from the Old Country, not sold to the public in the United Kingdom, but prepared expressly for exportation to Canada and other possessions and styled a “Colonial Edition.”  A Canadian publisher might have purchased from an English author the right to reproduce a Canadian edition; he might have gone to large expense in advertising and popularizing his purchase, yet, before his books could be placed on the counters of Canadian retail dealers, he as a rule found in the market the cheap Colonial Edition imported to compete with and undersell his own, even although he had contracted as effectually as he could with the English author and publisher for the Canadian market.

In 1899, the third International Congress of Publishers was held in London, at which there was a representative gathering of British and foreign publishers.  The question of Canadian copyright occupied one of the sittings of the Congress.  Professor Mavor, representing the Canadian Authors’ Society was present, and delivered an interesting address, from the official report of which I quote:—­

“Professor Mavor said there was a difference between the law officers of the Crown and the Canadian law officers with respect to the rights of Canada to legislate for copyright in Canada, and there was no doubt that publishers on both sides held extreme views.  When his Society turned their attention to it, they considered whether some middle path might not be arrived at which would satisfy reasonable people on both sides of the water.  They laid down four principles to guide them.  They thought it useless, considering the present population of Canada, to propose a manufacture clause, and therefore set that aside.  In the second place, they thought the system of licensing was far too complicated to be worked out satisfactorily.  Thirdly, they thought it would be a great pity for Canada to do anything to lead to the withdrawal of the Berne Convention; and fourthly, they thought it would be a great pity to disturb the existing relations as regarded copyright between England and the United States.