The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1901-05-07
"a PHOTOGRAPH.
By Marie Estelle Isles.

"What do 1 want for my birthday
Just your photo"
Then he spoke not a word, but tax
ling her face in his hands, looked down
into her upturned eyes. "And you
want my photo, only that?"
"Only that. Do you think you can
understand how much the giving of
your picture means to me?' she asked
,as they turned about and back into the
library.
'No; cannot say that can"
'But you could were you in my place
and had nothing that looked like YOU"
And she brushed back the soft curly
hair from the high, broad forehead,
still abundant, though the locks had
long grown white, as she sat by his
side on the low couch with that free
dom that comes from years of my COM
lpanionship. "You would know" she
repeated in low tense voice. Then
followed long silence, broken by the
man in answer to her query rs to his
silence.
II was thinking
sOf what?" she retorted.
81 can never think of a portrait or
photo other than as delineation of the
features of person-mere acquaint-
ance or friend. A photo is photo, a
black and white visage of some one,
and l cannot understand why two
whom have held dearest on earth
should want my photo" Then 81
L., :<s1,+ ~e 1,D e,tr G,,
gers about the hand within his own.
Glow my mother wanted my picture
years ago. She had wanted it for some
time. Often she said to me, My boy,
,iplease get an ambrotype of yourself
for me-
81 had been gathering sheaves of
wheat in the field with old Elijah Scott
down in Knox county all of that sum-
mer. had never earned dollar of my
own in my life, and when we We're
through he gave me 81 = four little
round gold dollars, such as you seldom
see these days-for my summers work.
proudly took them home to my moth
er. She held them in her hand, and,
looking from them to me, again she
asked me if would not go and have
an ambrotype taken with that money
i did not give a direct answer pom
dered over the question for several
days. The idea was as bad as the
toothache. Then l promised her
would. The promise was not easy to
make, assure you. 1t meant great
deal to me, and meant to keep it. Pho
Biography was in it's infancy then-am-
brotypes they were called-and the
process meant long time exposure
and patience on my part but l finally
went and had one taken for my mother
1t was put in one of those little black
red lined leather cases, and the copper
colored tinsel frame about the face
have often since then seen reflected in
the closing rays of the sun that pre-
. sages a fair tomorrow.
'.There was joy enough in her face
to recompense me for my suffering
when l gave it to her, for l actually
suffered in the process. In all the years
since then have had few pictures tax
en-. There has always been the same
distaste to having myself in type"
luGu growing icllllllSCeHl, lOISetllLls
time and everything, yet holding the
hands within his own: u can tell vol
the times, they have been so few. Once
when George Lawler and were in thu
army of 1923, down at Antietam
when we were sitting in front of ou
tents on the ground with our cup O
coffee, our beans and our skillet il
front of us. AT another time during tn,
war, for cameras were not found in ev
cry regiment, as now, we had somt
taken. had one taken with the bant
of my regiment in Cleveland, theI
again after the war was over, whel
my father went east to visit some rela
itives he had not seen since we at hom'
were little boys. Once only since thel
y have sat for a photo, and the ordea
was just as trying as the first time
and after all these years you want m.
picture for your birthday gift. VIII.