From: ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de   
      
   Ross Clark  wrote or quoted:   
   >I remember being told this long ago, that Webster was unable to   
   >trademark his name, or the right lapsed after his death or some such, so   
   >that 20th century dictionaries with "Webster" in the title might have no   
   >connection whatsoever to Noah's work. That some people continued this   
   >deceptive practice is an indication of how much NW had been identified   
   >with the idea of a "definitive dictionary".   
      
     I'm going to share a quote from a 1989 book with this esteemed   
     group for your kind consideration:   
      
   |~%[ W ]%~®   
   |   
   |A GENUINE MERRIAM-WEBSTER   
   |   
   |The name Webster alone is no guarantee of excellence. It is used by   
   |a number of publishers and may serve mainly to mislead an unwary   
   |buyer.   
   |   
   |A Merriam-Webster® is the registered trademark you should look   
   |for when you consider the purchase of dictionaries or other fine   
   |reference books. It carries the reputation of a company that has   
   |been publishing since 1831 and is your assurance of quality and   
   |authority.   
      
     .   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)