[The Constitutional Provision. - The Congress shall have power * * * (3) to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian tribes. Art. I, sec. 8.] the statute of 1876.

Chapter 274

An Act to Punish the Counterfeiting of Trade-Mark Goods and the Sale or Dealing in of Counterfeit Trade-Mark Goods.

Be it enacted, etc. [Section 1], That every person who shall, with intent to defraud, deal in or sell, or keep or offer for sale, or cause or procure the sale of, any goods of substantially the same descriptive properties as those referred to in the registration of any trade-mark, pursuant to the statutes of the United States, to which, or to the package in which the same are put up, is fraudulently affixed said trade-mark, or any colorable imitation thereof, calculated to deceive the public, knowing the same to be counterfeit or not the genuine goods referred to in said registration, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished by fine not exceeding $1,000 dollars, or imprisonment not more than two years, or both such fine and imprisonment.

Sec. 2. That every person who fraudulently affixes, or causes or procures to be fraudulently affixed, any trade-mark registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, or any colorable imitation thereof, calculated to deceive the public, to any goods, of substantially the same descriptive properties as those referred to in said registration, or to the package in which they are put up, knowing the same to be counterfeit, or not the genuine goods, referred to in said registration, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished as prescribed in the first section of this act.

Sec. 3. That every person who fraudulently fills, or causes or procures to be fraudulently filled, any package to which is affixed any trademark, registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, or any colorable imitation thereof, calculated to deceive the public, with any goods of substantially the same descriptive properties as those referred to in said registration, knowing the same to be counterfeit, or not the genuine goods referred to in said registration, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished as prescribed in the first section of this act.

Sec. 4. That any person or persons who shall, with intent to defraud any person or persons, knowingly and wilfully cast, engrave, or manufacture, or have in his, her, or their possession, or buy, sell, offer for sale, or deal in, any die or dies, plate or plates, brand or brands, engraving or engravings, on wood, stone, metal, or other substance, moulds, or any false representation, likeness, copy, or colorable imitation of any die plate, brand, engraving, or mould of any private label, brand, stamp, wrapper, engraving on paper or other substance, or trade-mark, registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished as prescribed in the first section of this act.

Sec. 5. That any person or persons who shall, with intent to defraud any person or persons, knowingly and wilfully make, forge, or counterfeit, or have in his, her, or their possession, or buy, sell, offer for sale or deal in, any representation, likeness, similitude, copy, or colorable imitation of any private label, brand, stamp, wrapper, engraving, mould, or trade-mark, registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished as prescribed in the first section of this act.

Sec. G. That any person who shall, with intent to injure or defraud the owner of any trade-mark, or any other person lawfully entitled to use or protect the same, buy, sell, offer for sale, deal in or have in his possession any used or empty box, envelope, wrapper, case, bottle, or other package to which is affixed, so that the same may be obliterated without substantial injury to such box or other thing aforesaid, any trade-mark, registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, not so defaced, erased, obliterated, and destroyed as to prevent its fraudulent use, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished as prescribed in the first section of this act.

Sec. 7. That if the owner of any trade-mark, registered pursuant to the statutes of the United States, or his agent, make oath, in writing, that he has reason to believe, and does believe, that any counterfeit dies, plates, brands, engravings on wood, stone, metal, or other substance, or moulds of his said registered trade-mark, are in the possession of any person, with intent to use the same for the purpose of deception and fraud, or make such oaths that any counterfeits or colorable imitations of his said trade-mark, label, brand, stamp, wrapper, engravings on paper or other substance, or empty box, envelope, wrapper, case, bottle, or other package, to which is affixed said registered trade-mark not so defaced, erased, obliterated, and destroyed as to prevent its fraudulent use, are in the possession of any person, with intent to use the same for the purpose of deception and fraud, then the several judges of the circuit and district courts of the United States, and the commissioners of the circuit courts may, within their respective jurisdictions, proceed under the law relating to search-warrants, and may issue a search-warrant authorizing and directing the marshal of the United States for the proper district to search for and seize all said counterfeit dies, plates, brands, engravings on wood, stone, metal, or other substance, moulds, and said counterfeit trademarks, colorable imitations thereof, labels, brands, stamps, wrappers, engravings on paper, or other substance, and said empty boxes, envelopes, wrappers, cases, bottles, or other packages that can be found; and upon satisfactory proof being made that said counterfeit dies, plates, brands, engravings on wood, stone, metal, or other substance, moulds, counterfeit trademarks, colorable imitations thereof, labels, brands, stamps, wrappers, engravings on paper or other substance, empty boxes, envelopes, wrappers, cases, bottles, or other packages, are to be used by the holder or owner for the purposes of deception and fraud, that any of said judges shall have full power to order all said counterfeit dies, plates, brands, engravings on wood, stone, metal, or other substance, moulds, counterfeit trade-marks, colorable imitations thereof, labels, brands, stamps, wrappers, engravings on paper or other substance, empty boxes, envelopes, wrappers, cases, bottles, or other packages, to be publicly destroyed.

Sec. 8. That any person who shall, with intent to defraud any person or persons, knowingly and wilfully aid or abet in the violation of any of the provisions of this act, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, or imprisonment not more than one year, or both such fine and imprisonment.

[August 14, 1876.]