Christian Science v. Senators

When the Vestal Copyright Revision Bill was choked to death (along with much other legislation) at the filibustered end of the 71st Congress (TIME, March 16), much regret was felt by all persons interested in bringing U. S. Copyright into line with that of the rest of the civilized world as embodied in the International Copyright Union (Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary & Artistic Works). A group which had special reason to resent the filibusterings of Senators King (Utah), Dill (Washington) and Thomas (Oklahoma), was the First Church of Christ, Scientist.

If the vestal bill, as amended by the Senate, had become effective on June i, the copyright of the first (1875) edition of Science & Health would have been protected until 1945. As it now stands that crude, compromising edition of Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy's masterpiece will fall into the public domain in June.

Christian Scientist headquarters characterize the 1875 edition as "archaic" and so describe the 57 other varieties which were issued between that date and 1906. The standard edition, which was copy- righted in 1906, is protected by U. S. copyright law until 1962, and is looked upon as the true gospel of Mrs. Eddy.

Not the first, but the second and third editions of Science & Health, upon which the copyrights are good until 1934 and 1938, respectively, are the ones which contain the material Mrs. Eddy's sharpest critics (including Mark Twain) have used against her, and which the First Church of Christ, Scientist now disavows. Most notable part of this material is a chapter expounding an almost voodoo theory of malicious animal magnetism, written by Mrs. Eddy in a moment of anger at former pupils whom she suspected of working against her.

Early editions of Science & Health have long commanded high prices from sensa-tion-mongers who have been planning to circulate the more startling passages. Photostat departments at public libraries com- plain that they are overwhelmed by the demand. Meanwhile Christian Science spokesmen declare that their chief interest in the vestal bill was their desire to protect their newspapers and magazines throughout the world.

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