The Arkansaw traveler., 1886-01-30
A TALE OF DRY PLATE.


 am a junior partner in large mer- cantile house. Certain irregularities had occurred in our Singapore branch, and I was despatched by the firm to investigate them, and to place matters on more satisfactory footing. need not go into details on this point, as they are irrele- want to my story.
 sailed by the "Kaiser-i-Hind" from Tilbury, accompanied by my valet. At the Liverpool street terminus, an elderly lady in widows mourning asked me some questions as to the conveyance of luggage from the Tilbury station to the ship. She should have sent her luggage to the dock, but had omitted to do so. As re- piled to her questions, saw that she was accompanied by very beautiful girl of eighteen. There is no need to beat about the bush-l fell in love with her, there and then. It is commonplace way of putting it, but don't know that could make matters clearer by more elaborate method of expression. AS they and travelled to Tilbury in the same compart- ment, we entered into conversation, as people will readily do who know that they are about to travel many thousand miles together. learned that the lady was a Mrs. Selby, widow of Colonel Seloy, who had died about six months since Broken in health, and weakened by long weeping, she had been advised to take sea voyage, in the belief that change of scene and beneficent sea air would do much to restore her to health if not to happiness. As happened to have met Colonel Selby on two occasions-once in London and once in country house. my acquaintance with his widow and daughter rapidly ripened into friendship. We sailed on a fine October afternoon, and by the time we were of the Start" 1 had almost established myself on the footing of an old friend.
 Pass over the voyage. It lasted five weeks, but it seemed like five days. l lived but in Clara's presence. scarcely spoke to any one on board except to Clara and her mother. People see more of each other, if they care to do so, in a few weeks voyage than in lifetime on shore, and before we reached Colombo had declared my love to Clara and she had accepted it. If there is unalloyed happiness on earth, it was given to us as we neared Ceylon.
 Unalloyed, save by the thought that we were about to part for time for Clara was to go on to Calcutta, where her late fathers brother was quartered, 1, whereas was to remain in Singapore for three months. We were to return to England at about the same date, and it was arranged that as soon as possible after our arrival we were to be married.
 have some little skill in photography, and had brought with me camera and some dry plates, intending to photograph any striking scenes that might come across during the journey. By the aid of dry plates, photography, and espec- tally travelling photography, is much sim pli6ed. The traveller can take photo- graph, shut the plate in tight box, and develop it twelve months afterward if he pleases. There is no need to cucumber oneself with chemicals; all the messy portion of the process can be done at home, in the seclusion of ones own dark photographs on the voyage, for dry plates are extraordinarily sensitive to the action of the faintest ray of light, and it was practically impossible to make any cabin dark enough to allow Of my transferring plates from the dark box to the slides without absolutely spelling them. But happened to have left two plates in one of the slides, and before we reached our destination l devoted one of these to Clara and one to Mrs. Selby.
 We parted tearfully but not uuhap. oily. We were to meet in three months time, and our lives were then to be passed together. believe we were too full of happiness in this prospect to grieve very much over our parting. AS the Kaiser steamed away for Penang, l kept the hap piness of our next meeting steadily before me, and it served me in good stead.
 The time passed slowly, but it passed. had received two letters from Clara, written from Calcutta, full of life and hope, and joy at the prospect before us. She was going to spend month at Allaha- bad, and fortnight at Bombay, and then she was to return to Marseilles by a Messageries ship, the captain of which was an intimate friend of the uncle with whom she had been staying at Calcutta. By this arrangement she would arrive in England about month before me.
 At length my sailing orders came, and on one of the happiest days of my life l set foot on board the good ship Mira pore," which was to convey me to Alex. andra, on my way home via Brindisi. had written to Mrs. Selby, begging her to bring Clara to meet me in Paris Her doing so would but shorten our period of separation by seme ten or twelve hours, but knew that those hours were golden to her as well as to me, and l was selfish for both of us. After stormy voyage l reached Brindisi in due course hurried to the post restan.e, for had asked her to reply me there, but there was nothing fnr ma If wag @videaf that rr,v lefter