The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-08-13

ItpNloidlly SOOu sci OF pictures.
The machine had kept right on al
work up to the time when the pole OF
the engine struck it. The last view
shows pair of big grey horses tearing
along at full gallop right out of the
center of the picture. That set has beer
popular with the audiences because OF
its realistic character. but the people
who wonder at its naturalness would
not be so surprised if they knew the
circumstances Under which it was OBJ
tanned.
There are other. experiences which
fall TO the lot of the camera man in this
particular line of work which are not
particularly risky but are rather nerve
trying. For instance, we were sent
some months ago to make a reproduc-
ton of the panorama from the Mt. Tom
inclined railway. We wanted to get the
whole view onto our films. which meant
that We must make the trip in a little
more than a minute. That was prac-
tically the same as dropping through
space, but we got aboard a car at the
top. yelled to the man in charge to let
go and set the machine in motion.
The rest of the time we hung on for
dear life.
We came out of it without smash
up. but ours will stand as the record
trip on the Mt. Tom railroad. and
don't think that any of us would care
10 undertake it again.
Playing Tag With an Explosion.
"A year ago we wanted to get a
scene showing a big explosion. So the
camera was shipped up to Syracuse.
where an unusually large blast was
to he made. In order to get a record
worth anything it was necessary to get
near to the explosion The men in
charge of the work assured us that
they couldn't guarantee what direction
the rocks might take. and made II
clear by their inquiries about our life
insurance that they didn't envy us our
undertaking.
1T was too late to back out then.
even if we had wanted to. so l told
the boss of the blasting enterprise to
give me a signal when he touched on
the fuse. AS soon as the signal came
started up the machine and then
turned and ran The explosion came in
about two seconds. / fell on my stOm-
ach and l could hear the rocks rat
thing about me- but none of them hap
pened to land on the spot where l lay.
That was a case where it was simply
necessary TO take chances.
Photographing From the Cowcatcher.
In obtaining landscape or panoramic
passenger sees from a train, the usual
method is to mount the camera on a
car in front of the engine or on the
pilot of the engine itself. To travel
sixty miles an hour dashed to the pilot
of an engine, sharing your narrow rest
with the camera and being compelled
to keep that comera in operation, is
an experience of which one installment
will satisfy the ordinary man. But
i'll. ~ i "A
ton of satisfying the public's appetite
for entertainment.
When this moving picture business
first came into existence" said another
operator. "a favorite subject was the
view of an express train going sixty
miles an hour. The effectiveness of
the view was heightened. of course. by
the train as nearly head on as
possible We tried to find how close
to the track we could set cur machine
and incidentally ourselves-without be-
ing overcome by the suction OF the
train. We found that there was no
agreement among railroad men them
selves on. this point, but we finally
figured il out that we could take up
our stand five feet from the track IL
we had an anchorage.
so we made ready to take a through
express on one of the big roads and set
d.
feet from the track. There was sig
nal pole beside the machine. which we
intended 10 use for cur own anchor
age.
The man with me had had some rail-
road experience. and 1 had relied large
Nv on his opinion in arranging the bus
mess. Well sir. when the express
reached the curve and came toward
us it looked exactly as though she
was going To run over us. Inc eN-ral-
road man stood it for about two sec
nnds: then he dropped his rope and
bolted for the fence. | was tempted to
follow. but [ set my teeth. turned on
the connection and started the reel
Then l grabbed the post and hung on TO
il for all I was worth. The train was
only a fraction of second in passing
me. but il seemed like an hour. The
suction of the train at that distance
was terrific. but the mental strain was
worse. | actually thought that my arms
had been pulled out of their sockets.
and felt them carefully over before |
was convinced that they were all right
and sound. They weren't even lame the
1ext day. but l have never cared to get
so near TO fast train since that time.
Reproducing An Execution
The men who were sent To Cuba to
photograph the Spanish-American war
n action had some blood-stirring ex-
Deriences in the pursuit of their duties.
Arthur Marvin. who had charge of the
apparatus of the largest
American biograph company. relates
some Of these.
.'One of our unusual experiences"
;aid Mr.. Marvin. came. before the ac-
-ual beginning of the war. during those
weeks of tedious waiting in Tampa.
We heard that there was to be an exc
,ution by hanging in Jacksonville. and
n the interests of science and the cam
IRA we decided to obtain views of il If
We could We got permission to set up
our machine in the Jail yard. and SUE
.eeded in photographing the proceeding
rom the time the death march APP
)eared outside the Jail door until the
lrop was sprung. That is perhaps one
If the most unusual subjects ever re-
produced in detail by means of photo
graphs.
Some of our attempts to make cam
IRA records of the events of the war
we're not so successful as this One OF
hem was frustrated in a somewhat ri
iiculous way by circumstances tempo
-arily beyond our control
I'VE had followed SIMPSONS fleet
eastward from Key West To Porto
Rico. II was at the time of the bonn
oardment of San Juan. AS that bonn
oardment was our first opportunity to
10 any work. we were anxious natu-
-ally to get some good views. When
he firing began we steamed up toward
he battleships and got where we could
AXE the whole range of operations
pretty well. We Kept urging the cap
ain of the yacht TO get in nearer the
shore, and he gradually did so.
A Stampeded Crew.
Pretty soon the Spanish batteries be-