Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-10-12

sSLhere, rs said Srntths you are
welsoEae ID this You take it along for
ashne; IL Isn't very good oatEt. but
it'll do you as a starter. Afterwards,
when you get 70 know the ropes. yoa
win probably have your own prefer
eace as 70 a camera, and can then suit
yourself
Smith az the time thought this was
doubtless Jones himself thought he
was good-natured person who was
acting IN good-natnred way 70 feb
low creature. Had there been. ct this
time. somebody TO whisper q kindly
word of warning 70 young John smith.
how different might have been the re-
snlti But there was no one - whisper
the word.
The story Is sad enough without hav-
ing any exceptional gloom aided 20 il
by me; and It would be an exaggeration
To say that Smith al once became ire
trievably addicted to photography. He
did not. IL was a gradual process. He
took the camera out ON Saturday half
holiday, and then developed his plates
IN a room he had fitted up for that pur-
pose. But he did not take it out every
Saturday, nor did no relinquish his
boating or many of his usual habits IL
he thought about the matter at all, he
thought that he could at any time give
Ii up; that all he had 10 do was to send
back the borrowed camera 10 Jones.
and there would bo an end of it. IL
anybody had told him that he was be-
coming a confirmed amateur photog-
rapher. he would have laughed at the
idea. None of his friends noticed any
difference in him. and his employer
still thought him model young saan
las, indeed, with the exception OF the
one growing vice, he was
Blu. by and by he began to think
about his camera during business
hours As he sat on his high stool in
the somewhat somber room in the city,
little bits of pretty landscape would
come up before his oye. and he yearncd
TO be away In the green fields, or be-
side the streams, or among the rocks
and woods with his camera He now
spent nearly every Saturday away with
the little instrument, and he gave up
his usual Sunday nvocations to print
the pictures he had made, which every
body admitted were about as bad as
they possibly could be. Nevertheless
he improved, and one day he joined a
photographic society in his neighbor-
hood, composed mostly Of reckless
young fellows, who saw no harm in
photography, and who would have
laughed TO scorn anyone who had
warned them of their danger. These
people met once a week, and often
listened to papers read by fellow-mem-
'"Mental Alteration of Lenses" and on
"Hydroquinone as Useful Stimulant,"
and all that sort OF thing. Wild bac-
chanalian smoking concerts were held
By the club. where the air was blue,
aud songs were sung, and glasses which
did not contain an authorized developer
were emptied These young fellows
during the summer were in the habit
Of going off on dissipsted Photographic
revels, meeting ut tsae station, and go
ing out to parts of the country unpro-
tected by the police. where they de-
scerded, each one armed with his
camera, and photographed things right
and left without regard to conse-
,quencea
Smith Joined these bacchanalian
tours, and regret to have to say that
he liked them. BY and by he gave
Jones back his camera, but not with
the intention of making an effort to re-
form. Far otherwise. He had como
and purchased half-plate instrument
and this he told Jones with apparent
pride.
That's tho way fellows generally
act" said Jones. ''Thcy are rarely
contented with quartcr-plate, and
hope you have got good instrument"
You see the young man was not
among people who could give him a
word OF warning. If he had had any
friends who would HSve said to him:
"Aly dear sir, you commence with Z
uuarter-plate, and at first the quarter
plate satisfcs you; but after awhile
you ycarn for larger dose, and go in
for half plate; 50 don't you see that
By and by you'll go in for a whole
plate, and then an eight by ten or per-
haps ten By twelve? Thinlc, my young
friend. Pause for moment and con-
slider where you will bring up. Con-
slider the hold it is getting o. you.
Consider that it takes larger and larger
plates to satisfy your crawl ng for them.
Break it of whilc there is yet time. :"
But there was 10 ono to say these
words, and Smith went on his career
unchecked. IL. therefore, these re-
marks OF minc reach the eye Of some
young man, ut present respectable, but
having still warnings towards rhotog-
raphy, let him think seriously and ask
himself what Is to be thought of vice
that begins at quarter-platcs and ends
who knows where?
One would have thought that Smiths
own people would begin 10 take notice
of his general change of conduct One
would have thought that his mother
would have asked herself: where is
my bog spending his nights?"
The time was when no played a
friendly game OF cards OF of chess with
his people; the time was when he met
his friends down at city club. and
played an innocent gamo of poker with
the stakes limited tho time was when
his aspirations led him to believe that
sometime he might f1d himself seated
among highly moral people around a
baceerat table: but. alas, all these as
pirssio1s were now gone, and his mind
was wholly taken up with photogs
raphy. His nights were spent in .
darkroom, surrounded by bottles thu.