The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-06-27
ILLUSTRATED LECTURES
FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT THAT
HAS LATELY COME INTO VOGUE.
The Part Played by the Camera
Some of the Necessary Adjuncts-
Opens a New Field for Women.
New York Evening Post.

New York Evening Post.
One of the fields of work that have re-
Gently been greatly extended, especially for
women, is the Illustrated lecture. The pub
lie now demands that the thought of the
speaker no less than that of the writer
shall be illustrated It's eagerness for in
struction or entertainment OFFICIALLY con-
veyed is great. The taste has been largely
quickened by the development or the cam
era, the evolution and spread of amateur
photography, and the free-lecture bureau
of the Board of Education which furnishes
the lecturer every facility known to the
pictorial lantern. The illustrated lecture
necessitates an outlay of money unknown
to the parlor reader or talker who address
es a subscription class. The cost, however
may be reduced to minimum A most
successful lecturer is woman who intro
duced Illustrations into a course she de-
livered in house after house in Fifth ave-
nue.. She wrote her lectures to fit slides
rented for twenty-four hours, at cost
of about three cents apiece.
The rate at which the Board OF Education
pays the lecturer in its course had tended
seriously to lower the prices once in ready
reach of the Illustrated lecturer. The lee
turer furnishes his own slides, but camera
and operator are supplied at the cost of the
board In accordance with his popularity
he may be given five engagements week
throughout course of six or seven weeks.
II is the frequency of repetition that pays.
When q lecturer now applies for engage
ments at private schools or colleges, the
authorities quote the Board Of Education,
and are unwilling to give the prices former
w maid Tney usually ON erlook the fact
Ri tba
continuous engagements and no expense of
operator. One of the beSt-knoWn women
lecturers on a scientific subject has been
forced to cut her price for a single lecture
to $50. When the operators charges are de-
Quoted she will have but S2J. Before the
Board of Education set the price she had
little difficulty in getting $50 a lecture.
once prepared every reading brings mon
ey return.
THE PRELIMINARIES.
In preparing a lecture the most direct
way is to carefully select the pictures de-
sired Arrange them in the order in which
they are to be thrown On the screen. Then
begin TO write, addressing each picture.
The most successful lecturers allow about
half a typewriter page of text to single
picture. Simplicity and directness are impor-
tant essentials 1t is necessary TO avoid
keeping a picture too long to the screen.
An audience becomes restless. 1t demands
being more original in the choice of sub
Jects than men. Originality of subject en-
tails originality of illustrations as rule
that is. slides that cannot be had in stock
On the originality OF illustration now lies
largely The drawing power of the illustrated
lecture Within the last three or four years
great proficiency has been acquired in col
oring slides. Copies OF engravings, photo
graphs. woodcuts, are photographed on the
glass, then colored at the lecturers dicta.
ton or left TO the artists discretion The
demand for colored slides has opened up
new industry to women Large numbers
are employed. Success lies in deftness and
handling. IL is very close work. 1t re.
quires a skilled slide painter from half ar
hour TO three hours TO paint one slide
One of the most expert women slide
painters says that, despite steady appIica.
ton, she is rarely able 10 earn 81 a day
The employer pays a stipulated price fol
each slide. Women who have worked Ii
decorative lines drift into painting slides
As rslle, the work continues steady
throughout the year.
Professor Bickmore, of the Americas
Museum OF Natural History, keeps. in III