48 Beekman Street

New York, Jan. 3. 1854

Lysander Spooner Esq.

Dear Sir.

Yours of 1^st is before me. This, as well as your former letter, finds me exceedingly busy, and I must now write as I wrote before, in much haste. I am happy to say that, in neither of your letters have I found anything discourteous or unfriendly, so far as the manner is concerned, and hope their will have been nothing in of mine that will be offensive to you. I trust I have not written to you as to “an enemy or rival” and that I shall have no occasion to do so. The only thing I regret and wonder at, is, that you should think I have trespassed upon your rights, and that you do not seem to appreciate the benefits of having me refer to your work as I had proposed to do, in the National Era. Since I wrote you, I have snatched time to look over the “five numbers” (now six) that have already appeared, and I see the mention of your name has not yet occurred, nor any extract, reference, or “idea” that would seem to require it. One number is in the hands of [?]DuBaily[?] and is probably in type before now, if not “worked off.”# The rest is in my hands, and I would gladly revise them in any way that could reasonably be expected of my to meet you wishes. I suggested, in my last, that I could leave out all extracts, references, etc. to your work if you wished it. But from your letter I cannot be certain whether you wish to have me do so, or otherwise.

I regret that I am unable to forward you a copy of my works, having only one with me here. I suppose I have three or four other copies packed up with other books, in the country, where I cannot now get access to them. I therefore return you your stamps. If I can get hold of a copy I will send it to you.

I will also _______  the first opportunity to comply with your reasonable request to “specify” some of the “remarkable coincidences” between your book and mine. I shall also do what I can to procure and examine “Curtiss on Copy Right.” But I see that judge Grier, in deciding on the case of Mrs. Stowe vs. the Publishere [sic] of the German Uncle Tom, has laid down the principle that the Copy Right does not extend to the “ideas” but only to the words etc. expressing them.

[Letter ends]