St. Paul daily globe., 1888-08-20
Boston Snacial.


young girl, laughingly.
Very easily" replied her male
cousin. mo one who employs the ser
vices of the most respectable phOtog-
raphers is secure against a misfortune
of that sort. The likeneSs-if pleasing
to the eye-is always apt to be secured
by some enterprising manufacturer of
cigarette art products, who employs
agents to travel about and gather up
new materials"
But no decent Photographic artist
Will sell his customers pictureS-cer-
tainly not for so digusting a purpose"
That is true enough in theory, bnt
not in practice. The cigarette portrait
maker is acquainted with methods by
which he is able to secure for his own
use the photograph of nearly every one
he chooses. In his pay are men who go
about i'll the guise of canvasserS from
one Photographic studio to anther, offer
ing to buy club and other tickets and sell
them on commission. Now, the selling of
tickets in this way has become well-nigh
universal among sun-picture makers,
who are not accustomed to refuse the
gift of samples to anybody who will
agree to drum up custom for them. This
rule even applies to concerns Of the first
class. In good faith, the pretended can
vasser is supplied with number of the
prettieSt cabinets, ETC., in stock. which
are subsequently turned over to his em-
plOyer for consideration. Very likely,
two or three particularly charming ones
are found in the lot. and these are re-
produced without Scruple, to serve as
an advertisement for the Dudes De-
light" or Crooked Cut" brands of
Opium-loaded paper. If the pirates are
not successful in obtaining the like
nesses they want by such methods, they
do not hesitate to secure them by brib-
| ing employees in the studios. Not
long ago the photographs of an
entire young ladies' school near
Boston were gotten hold of in
this manner and published. Fifty
cents or 81 apiece for copies of eXcep-
tionally seductive negatives will furnish
a big temptation to SubaSSiStant Oper-
ator on dry plates. Thus, no one who
can take pretty picture" is safe
against the danger of being mounted in
counterfeit preSentment OH cigarette
packages in company with Mile. Leila,
of the Bouffes Parisiennes; Mike Kelly.
of the Boston base ball club; the queen
of the New York demi-mOnde, and other
like celebrities"
THAT Is ALL QUITE TRUE"
reluctantly admitted Boston'S crack
fashionable photographer yesterday, to
whom the above remarks were quoted.
I'VE have small means OF defense
against these INSCRIPTIONS people, who
will stop at nothing in their efforts to
secure what they want The portraits
of private individuals are, as rule, too
commonplace for their use: but, when
they can find one that is exceptionally
pretty or attractive, they are always
eager to get it. No young woman who
has a pleasing picture taken in any
Photographic studio in the United States
can be certain that she will not SubSe-
quently appear as cigarette advertise
ment, though the chances in an individ-
ual case of such an accident are neces-
sarily small. If the likeness is exposed
in the window or seen i'll any other way
by the cigarette agents. they will surely
try to obtain tiff it takes an eye by
bribery or otherwise. Such cases
have given rise lately to suits
against the producers in several in
stances, but it is almost impossible TO
get any legal satisfaction out of them
Under the circumstances it is advisable
for young women who sit for their pic
lures to avoid theatrical attitudes and
lOW-necked dresses, which may render
their counterfeit presentments more
available from the cigarette fiend's point
of view. Sooner or later l hope to see a
law passed that will hold these Scoun-
NtiSIo Nio pooo oUoP W eiiil
business"
'.Will you not tell me- inquired the
writer, something of the method by
which these cigarette pictures are repro
luced in such countless numbers and
put upon the market. so as to ingen-
ouSly combine moral destruction with
the physical injury inflicted by the
drugged tobacco on the youth?''
''IT Is VERY SINIPLE.'
| g ,oJ,o+c,rro,Nbar &c,
cigarette manufacturer a contract to
supply so many million pictures of the
size and description named. He goes
into the market and buys, chiefly
through agents, every new and suitable
picture he can lay his hands upon of
actresses, ballet dancers, popular celeb
rities-anything, in short, that will
serve his purpose and attract the pOpu-
lar eye. These he mounts, in sizes
matched. on huge cards or mats
100 or more on each. The card
camera and the whole taken on scale
as much smaller as may be desired In
this way whole sheets of portraits are
struck off at once from the resulting
negatives, to be subsequently cut apart
mounted and delivered to the cigarette
maker, who places one of them in each
package he sends out"
'BuJ 90 LneSe photographers hire
people to sit for them?''
''NOt as rule, though it is sometimes
done. Not long ago manufacturer hit
upon the notion of having the prettiest
girls he could get to pose as operators in
the act of making cigarettes. Something
off-color Icing considered essential i'm a
cigarette picture, every young woman
had her dress so arranged as to expose
about foot, more or less, of rather ugly
ankle. 1t was difficult for the healthy
eye to discover wherein the Sc
ductivenesS of the thing lay, and vet
the shop windows in which these
portraits were exhibited always had
an eagerly curious crowd about
them. At the same period of time, as
you will remember, cigarette pictures
of all sorts were displaying a steady
tendency to the worse. But a howl
against the abuse arose in the newspa-
pers, and the very Objectionable ones
were prudently withdrawn from circu-
lation. 1t is only temporary reform,
however. | presume you are aware that
Boston is the great depot for such pho
tographic supplies, which are turned
out here in incalculable quantities. The
most popular photographer in the city
produces millions of them every wear
on the sly. There is money in the bust
ness" RENE BACHE.
| nara CrS cno~Jr ~nD~