, 1885-04-15
WAR PICTURES.
COLLECTION or THE MAssAcHu-
sETTs LOYAL LEGION.
How brady. OF Now York. Gathsrs His
Negatives During the war-sher-
mans March to the sea-A
Valuable Suggestion

lBoston HcraldI
One OF the finest collections Of war pictures
LIN fact, tho amplest and most satisfactory
in sxistence-is that OF the commandery Of
the Loyal Legion Of Massachusetts,. At the
suggestion OF Col. Albert A Pope Of this
city, seconded by other gentlemen, the
Loyal Legion began in earnest some time ago
70 collect authentic pictorial representations
of the great war. A great deal OF money
was spent ON this remarkable collection In
the war department Mt Washington were
stored the negatives OF the Brady and the
Gardener collections. made during the war
by photographers who followed the armies
Brady, the famous New York photog-
rapher, kept four mon In the field during the
whole of the war. These sun artists fol-
lowed the armies everywhere, making pict-
unes OF camp lifo. battle scenes, hospital
life. etc. The result was an incompatible
collection of negatives. These, some $500
or more in number, were bought by the gov
ernment for s2J, 900, and together with other
collections purchased at high rates, deposited
In the archives OF the war department
When tho Massachusetts commandory of
the Loyal Legion took hold OF this work. II
had 70 spend a great deal OF money in re-
touching negatives and getting them ready
for use. Thousands Of dollars were lpent in
this work. Pictures that to-day could be
made for 10 cents cost the Loyal Legion 81
and 50 each
The results of this great labor OF love for
Il was not performed for proft-are to-day
to be found in tho library OF the command
cry. The photographs are mounted care
fully, even elegantly, in great albums, and
placed In cabinets made for them In q
word, the commandery possesses a wonder
full pictorial history OF the war. One OF the
most arduous parts OF the work of making
the collection was the identification Of the
photographs In many hundred cases, the
proofs had to be ssnt all over the country
for comparison with localities
To the Massachusetts ~commandery OF the
Loyal Legion Is undoubtedly due a great
deb Of national gratitude. 1t did not pursue
its object for reward or fame. In the search
for the collection Illustrating Sherman's
march to the soa, Col Arnold A Rand
trRversed the land from one end TO the other,
acting almost the role OF n detective. The
reward OF his dillgent quest was the finding
OF the march to the sea collection in an al.
bum used by a photographer 70 amuse Gus
toners while waiting in his rooms. This is
n really magnificent set OF views, tho value
Of which cannot BE- pecuniarily estimated.
About a year ago Col Pope sug-
gested TO The Century 10 get leading
oficerr ON both sides In tho war
10 write sketches Of their battles and cam
paigBs, and give these sketches profuse illus
tration and that use might be made Of the
great collection OF the Maasachusett com
mandery. A member Of tho magazi ne's ART
department soon after visited the 70 oms Of
the commandery, was allowed TO look oven
the collection and selected some 12a views
for reproduction. Estimating tho direc
profit OF the series, together with
that OF the book to DO made from them,
t2O0.00O Is not a high guess at the ~pecunlary
value OF Col. Pope's casual suggestion.