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Pope's Bill of Complaint, and Curl's Answer, London (1741)
Source: The National Archives: c.11 1569/29
Citation:
Pope's Bill of Complaint, and Curl's Answer, London (1741), Primary Sources on Copyright (1450-1900), eds L. Bently & M. Kretschmer, www.copyrighthistory.org
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No Translation available.
Sworn at the publick office} Bridges by F. W. Osbaldeston, 15 June 1741
the 13th June 1741} The Answer of Edmund Curll Bookseller to the Bill of Complaint of Alexander Pope Complainant
Fran Eld
This Defendant now & all times hereafter saving & resolving to himself all and all manner of Benefit and Advantage of Exception that may
be had & taken to ^the^ many untruths uncertainties and other Insufficiencies in the Complainants said bill of Complaint conteined for
Answer thereunto or unto so much thereof as he is advised is material for him to make answer unto He answereth and saith That he admits
by an Act of Parliament made in the Eighth year of the Reign of her late Majesty Queen Ann Intitled an Act for the Encouragement of
Learning by Vesting the Copies of printed Books in the Authors or purchasors of such Copies during the times therein mentioned
It was among other Things enacted to the Intent and purport for that purpose set forth in the Complainants said bill And this Defendant
further Answereth & saith that he does not of his own Knowledge know nor can set forth whether the Complainant was not or is the sole
Author and proprietor of such part of the Book in the Complainants said Bill mencioned as purports to be letters written by the Complainant
& Addressed to the Reverend Doctor Swift Dean of Saint Patricks in the Kingdom of Ireland in the said Bill named bearing date the
respective dates in the said Bill mentioned And this Defendant saith he doth not know nor can set forth otherwise than as hereinafter is
mentioned whether ^the^ Commplainant has ever disposed of his Right therein to any Person or Persons or whether the Complainant hath
the sole and absolute Right of Printing and Reprinting vending or Selling such letters But this Defendant saith that all the letters mentioned
in the Complainants said Bill of Complaint were as this Defendant verily believes Actually sent & delivered by and to the several
Persons by whom & to whom they severally Purport to have been written & Addressed & therefore this Defendant is Advised and Humbly
Insists that the Complainant is not to be Considered as the Author & Proprietor of all or any of the said letters And this Defendant is also
advised & Humbly Insists that the said letters are not a work of that nature & sole Right of Printing whereof was Intended to be Preserved
by the said Statute to the Author and his Assignee or Assigns But this Defendant doth Admitt that he has Printed or Caused to be Printed
five hundred Copies only of the said letters together with several other Papers under the Title of Dean Swifts Literary Correspondance for
Twenty four years from One Thousand seven hundred and fourteen to One Thousand seven hundred and Thirty Eight Consisting of Original
letters to and from Mr Pope, Doctor Swift, Mr Gay, Lord Bolingbroke & letters from Dean Swift to the Duke and Dutchess of Queensbury
Illustrated with Explanatory notes and a Key Throughout To which are subjoyned first Philosophical letters between Doctor Arburthnot &
Doctor Wotton, concerning the Deluge & the case of Marine Bodies dug out of the Earth second Classical letters written in Exile, from
Bishop Atterbury to Doctor Friend Third a letter from Doctor Crichton at Guiney concerning the Climate of that Country foarth a letter from
the late Barnham Goode Esquire to a Lady who had great Faith in fortune Telling fifth Dean Swifts present Case in verse Sixth Epitaph for
him self By Mr Pope printed for E Curll, in Rose Street Covent Garden J Jackson in Saint James Street H Chappelle in Grosvenor
Street & E Cooke under the Royal Exchange of which he has sold but sixteen Copies which were sold at the price of four shillings each to
Gentleman Purchasors and Three shillings and six pence to Booksellers But this Defendant hath been stayed in the sale of the rest of them
by the Injunction of this Honourable Court and this Defendant further Answereth and saith that he never had any expresse Lycence or
Authority to print of publish any of the Complainants said letters or any of the said letters sent by the said Doctor Swift to the Complainant
But this Defendant saith he is Informed & verily beleives that the said letters were first printed at Dublin in the Kingdom of Ireland by Mr
George Faulkener Bookseller there & as it said by the direction of the said Doctor Swift to whom the said Letters written by the
Complainant were addressed & by whom the said letters addressed to the Complainant were written as this Defendant beleives and this
Defendant is advised & humbly Insists that all persons in this Kingdom have a Right to reprint such books as are first published
in Ireland & that such as are first published here may be lawfully reprinted in that Kingdom & this Defendant is Informed & beleives that
the practice of Booksellers in both Kingdoms hath been Agreeable thereto & as this Defendant hath only reprinted the said letters from the
said Dublin Edition He is advised & Humbly Insists he hath done nothing but what was lawfull for him to do And this Defendant saith that
one Third part of this Defendants said Book consists of peices not before published composed by Doctor Arbuthnot Doctor Wotton Doctor
Atterbury the late Bishop of Rochester Barnam Goode Esquire & Doctor Crichton some of which were given to & others purchased by this
Defendant & in which this Defendant hath the Sole property and that part of the said Book which the Complainant claims property in is no
more than one fifth part of the said Book being but four sheets out of Twenty of which the book printed by this Defendant consists and this
Defendant does deny that he has made any Agreement with any person or persons in relation to the printings the said Edition of this
Defendants Book of the Profitts arising thereby except the Agreement made by this Defendant with the Person who printed the same for this
Defendant And this Defendant saith that the Complainant is not Intitled as he Humbly Apprehends and Insists to have any Account
of Profitts from this Defendant for the reasons aforesaid But Humbly hopes that he shall be permitted to sell his said Book reprinted from
the Dublin Edition of the said letters as aforesaid And this Defendant denyes all unlawfull Combination & Confederacy as the said Bill
Charged against him without that that there is any other matter or thing in the Complainants said bill of Complaint Conteined material or
Effectuall for this Defendant to make Answer unto & not herewith and hereby Sufficiently Answered unto Confessed or Avoided Traversed
or denyed is true to the Knowledge & beleif of this Defendant all which matters and things this Defendant is ready to averr and prove as this
Honourable Court shall Award And Humbly prays to be hence dismissed with his reasonable Costs and Charges in this behalf unjustly by
him susteined
John Browning
Osbaldeston Edmd Curll
J:B:
Source: The National Archives: c.11 1569/29
Citation:
Pope's Bill of Complaint, and Curl's Answer, London (1741), Primary Sources on Copyright (1450-1900), eds L. Bently & M. Kretschmer, www.copyrighthistory.org
Back | Record | Images | No Commentaries
Translation only | Transcription only | Show all | Bundled images as pdf
No Translation available.
Sworn at the publick office} Bridges by F. W. Osbaldeston, 15 June 1741
the 13th June 1741} The Answer of Edmund Curll Bookseller to the Bill of Complaint of Alexander Pope Complainant
Fran Eld
This Defendant now & all times hereafter saving & resolving to himself all and all manner of Benefit and Advantage of Exception that may
be had & taken to ^the^ many untruths uncertainties and other Insufficiencies in the Complainants said bill of Complaint conteined for
Answer thereunto or unto so much thereof as he is advised is material for him to make answer unto He answereth and saith That he admits
by an Act of Parliament made in the Eighth year of the Reign of her late Majesty Queen Ann Intitled an Act for the Encouragement of
Learning by Vesting the Copies of printed Books in the Authors or purchasors of such Copies during the times therein mentioned
It was among other Things enacted to the Intent and purport for that purpose set forth in the Complainants said bill And this Defendant
further Answereth & saith that he does not of his own Knowledge know nor can set forth whether the Complainant was not or is the sole
Author and proprietor of such part of the Book in the Complainants said Bill mencioned as purports to be letters written by the Complainant
& Addressed to the Reverend Doctor Swift Dean of Saint Patricks in the Kingdom of Ireland in the said Bill named bearing date the
respective dates in the said Bill mentioned And this Defendant saith he doth not know nor can set forth otherwise than as hereinafter is
mentioned whether ^the^ Commplainant has ever disposed of his Right therein to any Person or Persons or whether the Complainant hath
the sole and absolute Right of Printing and Reprinting vending or Selling such letters But this Defendant saith that all the letters mentioned
in the Complainants said Bill of Complaint were as this Defendant verily believes Actually sent & delivered by and to the several
Persons by whom & to whom they severally Purport to have been written & Addressed & therefore this Defendant is Advised and Humbly
Insists that the Complainant is not to be Considered as the Author & Proprietor of all or any of the said letters And this Defendant is also
advised & Humbly Insists that the said letters are not a work of that nature & sole Right of Printing whereof was Intended to be Preserved
by the said Statute to the Author and his Assignee or Assigns But this Defendant doth Admitt that he has Printed or Caused to be Printed
five hundred Copies only of the said letters together with several other Papers under the Title of Dean Swifts Literary Correspondance for
Twenty four years from One Thousand seven hundred and fourteen to One Thousand seven hundred and Thirty Eight Consisting of Original
letters to and from Mr Pope, Doctor Swift, Mr Gay, Lord Bolingbroke & letters from Dean Swift to the Duke and Dutchess of Queensbury
Illustrated with Explanatory notes and a Key Throughout To which are subjoyned first Philosophical letters between Doctor Arburthnot &
Doctor Wotton, concerning the Deluge & the case of Marine Bodies dug out of the Earth second Classical letters written in Exile, from
Bishop Atterbury to Doctor Friend Third a letter from Doctor Crichton at Guiney concerning the Climate of that Country foarth a letter from
the late Barnham Goode Esquire to a Lady who had great Faith in fortune Telling fifth Dean Swifts present Case in verse Sixth Epitaph for
him self By Mr Pope printed for E Curll, in Rose Street Covent Garden J Jackson in Saint James Street H Chappelle in Grosvenor
Street & E Cooke under the Royal Exchange of which he has sold but sixteen Copies which were sold at the price of four shillings each to
Gentleman Purchasors and Three shillings and six pence to Booksellers But this Defendant hath been stayed in the sale of the rest of them
by the Injunction of this Honourable Court and this Defendant further Answereth and saith that he never had any expresse Lycence or
Authority to print of publish any of the Complainants said letters or any of the said letters sent by the said Doctor Swift to the Complainant
But this Defendant saith he is Informed & verily beleives that the said letters were first printed at Dublin in the Kingdom of Ireland by Mr
George Faulkener Bookseller there & as it said by the direction of the said Doctor Swift to whom the said Letters written by the
Complainant were addressed & by whom the said letters addressed to the Complainant were written as this Defendant beleives and this
Defendant is advised & humbly Insists that all persons in this Kingdom have a Right to reprint such books as are first published
in Ireland & that such as are first published here may be lawfully reprinted in that Kingdom & this Defendant is Informed & beleives that
the practice of Booksellers in both Kingdoms hath been Agreeable thereto & as this Defendant hath only reprinted the said letters from the
said Dublin Edition He is advised & Humbly Insists he hath done nothing but what was lawfull for him to do And this Defendant saith that
one Third part of this Defendants said Book consists of peices not before published composed by Doctor Arbuthnot Doctor Wotton Doctor
Atterbury the late Bishop of Rochester Barnam Goode Esquire & Doctor Crichton some of which were given to & others purchased by this
Defendant & in which this Defendant hath the Sole property and that part of the said Book which the Complainant claims property in is no
more than one fifth part of the said Book being but four sheets out of Twenty of which the book printed by this Defendant consists and this
Defendant does deny that he has made any Agreement with any person or persons in relation to the printings the said Edition of this
Defendants Book of the Profitts arising thereby except the Agreement made by this Defendant with the Person who printed the same for this
Defendant And this Defendant saith that the Complainant is not Intitled as he Humbly Apprehends and Insists to have any Account
of Profitts from this Defendant for the reasons aforesaid But Humbly hopes that he shall be permitted to sell his said Book reprinted from
the Dublin Edition of the said letters as aforesaid And this Defendant denyes all unlawfull Combination & Confederacy as the said Bill
Charged against him without that that there is any other matter or thing in the Complainants said bill of Complaint Conteined material or
Effectuall for this Defendant to make Answer unto & not herewith and hereby Sufficiently Answered unto Confessed or Avoided Traversed
or denyed is true to the Knowledge & beleif of this Defendant all which matters and things this Defendant is ready to averr and prove as this
Honourable Court shall Award And Humbly prays to be hence dismissed with his reasonable Costs and Charges in this behalf unjustly by
him susteined
John Browning
Osbaldeston Edmd Curll
J:B: