Middletown transcript., 1912-06-22
A UNIQUE WAR HISTORY
Brady The First Camera Re-
porter

Is the name oil an Interesting account o
8 the late Civil War from the pen of Henri
D w. Elson professor of History in TIN
Ohio University and illustrated by re
Gently discovered photographs taken Oh
D the field right at the scenes of action BY
, MattheW-''the first camera reporter" a
he has been styled.
This history is brief, well written &C
count of the great Civil War, and thu
photo-illustrations by Brady give it new
and peculiar value.
1t is superb work not only highly in
strnctive, but of unique character from
the fact that for the first time in the
worlds history actual battle scenes were
caught and reproduced by the camera.
We give below an occonnt of the singular
loss and discovery Of these remarkable
photographs, and the yet more remark
able manner in which they were origiL-
ally taken by Brady in itself a ron ance.
The cost is only 10 cents numbsr.
Until late in the SOS Photographic
work had to be done with a daguerreo
type, which printed only one picture.
Just before the Civil War the whole art
of photography Was revolutionized, when
ScOtt-Archer, in London, invented the
the wet-p'ate process which made it pos
sible to make a number of prints Cf each
photograph.
The foremost photographer in New
York City at that time was Matthew
Brady. His gallery included thous.
ands of the most prominent Americans.
He charged so for life size portrait.
When the war opened he knew that
before him lay tremendous possibilities.
He at once toUk advantage of the "wet
plate' discovery. At odce he determined
to be the first in the history of the world
to accompany arm les to the field of war
with a camera-tO imuortalize great op-
erations to get in fash of light a whole
dramatic story that the slow pencil in the
hand of the artist could never catch.
BY hard work with Lincoln and Stan
ton he secured special protection from
the government for his big, clumsy cam
eras and his valuable outfit. Together
with the United States Secret Service
under Allan Pinkerton, he set off with
his men, bis wagons and his cameras,
and for four years he and his followers
brayed death a1d handed down to this
generation and undying record of the
most stupendous conflict the New World
has ever seen.
These are the photographs from which
has beer made up the marvellous panora-
ma that has been secured in this city for
readers of this newspaper exclusively.
Adventures on the Field Of War
Brady penetrated to strange places and
saw strange sights. Favored by the
Secret Service, he and his daring followers
penetrated everywhere.
Mr.. John c. Taylor of Hartford Con-
necticut, said of Brady not long ago, Il
met him frequently. He was a man of
artistic appearance and of very slight
phsique-abOut five feet six inches tall,
He generally wore broad-brimmed hat,
similar to those worn by the art students
in Paris. Twenty five years aft.r the
war | met him again, and, talking over
the taking of these photographs, he said,
mo one will ever know what l went
through in securing these negatives The
world can never appreciate it. 1t cLarg-
ed the whole course of my life. So,ne of
these negatives nearly cost me my life. -
Many indeed were his ma row escapes.
Once-alter Bull Run-Brady, in his linen
duster, wandered in the woods three days
fearing capture every minute. and armed
with bTt a lsword thrown him by fee
ing Zouave.
Another time-at Fredericksburg-the
Confederates, across the river, eepied his
bulky cameras, glinting in the sunlight
like cannon, and opened fire on them.
Only the marvellous BRADY luck" saved
the great artists life.
The Photographs Garry You Back so Years
Across the chasn Of the years, you look
into the guns of the enemy and into the i
faces Of friends.
Clear and sharp are these photographs
with brilliancy the photographers Of
today do not get. Experts explain that
no plates are made nowadays capable of !
receiving the deep impressions that made |
Brady's figures stand forth in such vivid |
relief from the Photographic print. He |
had q keen eye for artistic effects, with |
all an artists intuition of that would |
make good picture. His portraits show |
the souls of men through their outward |
lineaments like painting of Remnrandt's |
1t was about this ii ne that John n. |
Stewart, Past Senior Vice Commander, |
Dept. OF Illinois, q. A. R. met Brady and |
taxed with him about the old days, when |
Stewart was telegraph operator with the |
Army of the Potomac and Brady was aim. |
ing his cameras at the battlefield. Stewart |
asked Brady if his own negatives were |
still in existence, Brady replied, Il don't |
kn0w".
In the meantime, the governments col
lection was not receiving proper care. |
Many warnings we're given to the Depart
ment of War that it's negatives were un-
dergOing chemical action which would |
soon destroy them. Beratadt, as far back |
as 1882, warned the government that un-
less the photographs were reproduced in
more permanent form they would be lost.
The government. however, decided that
the cost was prohibitive.
It is the main scene collection. which |
lay forgotten in garret for SO many years
that has finally been discovered, and that
serves as the basis OF the Brady War pho
tographs. Almost miraculously preserved !
in perfect condition, they furnish mute
testimony to the bravery and genius of
the first camera-reporter, Matthew Brady.
The Brady War Photographs and El-
sons History Of the Civil War combine
TO maks oue Of t15z intensely
historical aud Photographic souvenirs of ,
the conflict between the North anl the i
South. And this is ''The Civil War
Through the Camera" for which Every !
n