Daily Yellowstone journal., 1890-04-12
how A CHRONIC IS MADE.


Few People Are FAMILIAR.
We see tens of thousands of chro-
mos, which are given away by every
entcrprising business man, yet ! VEN
ture the assertion that very few know
how they are produced. To properly
produce a chrome the photographer
must be Ell rapport with the artist.
lie must aualyze the picture, fully
realize the combinations Of colors and
the spiri: Of the work. Having deter.
mined Just how many basic colors on
ter into the picture, the artist COM
mences his work by preparing a litho-
graphic stone for each separate color.
The artist mmence his work by
making "A delicate and elaborate ink
tracing of the picture; not only its
general outlines. but the minute and
intricate touches and shades Of color
of which il is composed. The tracing
paper is chemically prepared, SO that
the lines upon it can be readily trans
ferred to stone. A press is employed
to transfer the impressions oil the
paper TO the stone, considerable pres
sure being used. Thousands of i'm
pressions can then be taken from the
stone by simply running an ink roller
over il.
The tracing thus transformed forms
what is known as the keystone. Sup
pose there are twenty colors in the
chrome. This number of impressions
is taken from the key stone and each
carefully busted with red chalk. A
dim offset of the entire tracing is then
pressed on each one of these stones.
The drawing then begins, and often
occupies many months. Each stone is
TO be printed in a separate color, and
therefore must contain not only all
that is necessary Of that color of the
picture, to the min,itest detail. but all
Of the compound c~olors. made by
printing one or more over others. A
variety of gradations of color from its
full strength To the faintest tinting
can be produced on the stone, just as
in using AN ordinary pencil or crayon
on drawing paper. These various col
ors are, of course. worked up in black
by the artist, and it is the printer who
applies the color. The lines on each
separate stone are etched with the
wash Of nitric acid and gum arabic,
and are ready for the presses.
The printer must be as skillful as
the artist in applying his colors, and
must fully realize the blending and ef-
feet of each color. AS fast as each
color is printed it is submitted to the
artist. who has thus a progressive proof
of the work.
Ii has been probably noticed that
lines cross each other on the margin
of the chrome. These are these regis
tering marks. and enable the printer to
place the sheet i'm the same relative po-
sition every time a new stone is used
and a new color applied. These lines
are drawn in the original tracing and
appear on each stone.
When the first color is printed very
small holes are p%unctured in each sheet
al the intersection of these lines, very
fine holes are alsodrilled in correspond
ing positions on each of the subse-
quent stones, and the holes i'm the pa
per are u correspond precisely with
the holes i'm the stone, and thus as each
additional color is put ON a perfect reg
lister is secured and each color falls
just where il belongs.
The next process is to make the
chrome have a rough surface like an
oil painting. \ stone is now prepared
which has a rough surface, similar to
canvas The chrome is then laid
apon it and passed through q press
with heavy pressure. When it comes
forth it is AN exact imitation of the
painting. 1t is her vanished, and
thus you have the chrome ready for
the market.
The world is yet practically depend
ent OF quarry in Bavaria for its
photographic stone. Stones have been
found in France, England, Canada
and the United States. but none pos
sess the qualities of the best German
stones. \ bed Of photographic stone
has been found in ~Sequatcliie Valley,
not far from Chattanooga, and the in
vestigations 70 far indicate that it will
yield stone Of a very fine quality. II
it should prove so, it will be literally
a gold mine. The finer quality of stone
is today worth thirteen cents per
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