The St. Johns herald., 1891-10-08
DOUBLE PHOTOGRAPHS.
The Latest Fad in tho Way of a
 Sun-Painted Portrait.
1t Originated with the Police, But It Was Too Artistic to Be Limited to Rogues' Gallery PTecaution
 About Fading Letters.

'.Ehat is the latest wrinkle? " ny, the double phctegrapl, Of course. There E notli1g really new abo1t it. for there are many yoara back of it, but 1t seems to Ic q rcpular fad juet rCw.
 What is the double photograph? Is 1t q r'lctocraph of two persons, or com positc affair?"
 ..It is neither. It is Q single photo g-r.uh showing two views of the saIne 15erson-a profile and a front view, bot1 fel,en bv the same negative. Difficult: Oh. no: not at all It is Q very simple matter. The person to be photographed i5Dlaced beside mirror, and the camera records the irnare in the glass as well as the counterfeit presentment Of the sit ter. In this way two views are ob- tined. If the sitter is so placed as to secure Q profile picture, the image in inc class shows Q front view, and vice versa. It is a pretty scheme. and seems likely to become as popular as 1t IS pretty.
 But, as I remarked, few people, l be- licve. know where the double photo eraDh originated. It is a French idea, and comes to us from the rogues' gallery Of the Department of Police of Paris. It i3 not always an easy matter to identify q person from Q single photograph. In the first place all pictures are more or less unnatural, the sitter often Is made up for the occasion, and his pho tograph does not show him as he ap- pears in real life. Then, too, Q profile picture gives only a very misty notion of the actual front-view appearance in real life. and vice versa. This point-of- view difference is greater than would be imagined by those who have not ln- vestigated the subject. have ire orentlv shown two photographs of the same sitter, giving profile and front view, and those who have looked at them casually have not discovered that they were not pictures of two indIvld- uals. ,sIhe Paris police were first to simpli- fy the matter of Identification through Inc introduction of the double photo c1a,,h.' But. from an artistic stand point. their method is too valuable to be limited to the rogues' gallery, and 1t las already obtained firm foothold throughout Europe, and has made its appearance here. With q good mirror the reflection makes 2 fine, clcar-cat photograph, and it's advantages are o3- vious. With Q front view how can beauty show her cOifUre? Or her arehed eyebrows and daintily-curleo bangs in profile view?
 Any other new thinms? Well, yes there is always something new crop piar out in our line of business, but Ii is rarely any thing in which the pubil, i-tercsted The fact is, Q great many things which you newspaper men say occr7 in photograph studios havC TGyer seen at al. For instance, l wa surprised few months ago to learr from the papers that high society young Ladies were Gocking into the studio: end galleries to be photographed II tia,lts. and to have their feet ant ankles, their hands, their arms. neck: end shoulders photographed for tho benefit of their own particularly cX elusive circle of relatives or acquaint ances Perhaps that story was true don't say it was canard but d' say that don't believe a word of it.
 s.Of course it is q common thing for ; woman with whom nature has deal l.indly to modestly display her persona charms to the camera, and l think suci q course entirely pardonablc; but have never heard of such wholesal anatomical exhibition of society odd and ends as the newspapers described
 II had an experience the other da which has interested me more than an thinp of a similar nature which Ina happened to me in all my business eN perience. A young lady who moves i . the best society brought me thre letters, and I photographed them fo her and at her request destroyed tn 1segatives. The letters were the mos tender and ardent love missives imagir able. They were addressed to the lad herself. and were signed by nam which I am sure you would reeogniz instantly were to mention it. wi confess that curiosity got tho better ( my judgment and 1 finally said:
 '' You'll pardon me, but this iot .5 little unusual, isn't it.?
 ...Is ito she said, smilipgly.
 Ut strikes me so, l replied.
 don't sec why you want photographs those letters since you have the letter themselves
 .Don't you? Well, do. Suppose Il letters were lost or burned, or destroy1 in some other way?
 ".Wouldn't the photographs be q stroved as easily as the letters"
 Perhaps not; especially if thc were not kept in the same placcewi' inc letters. But I'm not afraid of losir them by fire or in any such way taat. The fact is, the ink is faoi, o,,t. end in short time t is likely bc iilegiblc.'
 ..Therc is Q girl for you who does- ,s~oposc to t&.,e any cA2ntes i2 t breacE-of-prom;sc business.
 Sur.lGs Professionals.