Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1920-10-21
The Centenary Of an Idea.

A hundred years ago the science Of
photography was quite unknown. Not
until 1899 was the secret of the process
given TO the world, and not until 1910
was the FIRST sunlight picture" made
OF human face. But il is planned
10 celebrate the centennial of photo
graphy; for it is a generally accepted
fact that as early as 1920 Daguerre had
caught the principle, which he worked
10 perfect during the next two decades.
The exercises will be held ut Bry-sur-
Marine, few miles outside Paris,
where the distinguished experimenter
died in 1851.
Daguerre started life as sign paint
or for the theatres of Paris and was
so successful that he soon branched out
into painting panaramas of the great
cities of London, Rome, Naples, Jerus-
aem and Athens. This work evolved
naturally into the diorama, a kind of
panorama with special scenic effects
obtined by a clever use of lighting.
His painting from nature brought
him his great idea. Like many other
artists, he had used the camera OBJ
scura in making his sketches: he
would often carry a small dark tent
with him in which he would sit and re-
produce the picture reflected on the
white screen before him. Soon he be-
came obseSscd with the idea that he
should be able to fix those pictures
without having to copy them. From
that time on he followed the usual
path of inventors and spent nine tenths
of his time in his laboratory-to his
wifc'S great disgust.
For n number of years he struggled
on alone; then he associated himself
with Joseph Nepce, who was expert
mcntnG in the same field
1t was by a happy accident that
| Daguerre finally came upon the dis
covery that led to his success. He was
working with silver plates. trying to
make the surface sensitive to light by
exposing it to the vapor of iodine. AZ
ter many failures, he removed a spoiled
plate from the camera one day and laid
it aside in a cupboard.
When nc took the plate from the
cupboard the next morning he found an
exquisite picture upon it. II was a per
feet picture! Nothing approaching it
had ever been seen by man before. The
f,iata t,rit,n tl,n
b-cn affected by vapors from some of
the chemicals. Bur which? Finally
Daguerrc discovered that the good
fairy" of the cupboard was dish of
mcrcury.s
AT first he tried to form a private
company to finance and push his in
vention, but capital was shier of a
novelty in those days than it is now.
However, in 1889 the distinguished
French scientist Arago called the at
ton of the Academy of Sciences to the
Importance Of Daguerre's discovery,
and the French government appointed
him an officer of the Legion of Honor.
81 have seized the light" exclaimed
Daguerre in his excitement. 81 have
arrested his flight! The sun himself
in future shall draw my picturesw
The government bought the process
and paid Daguerre a life pension that
amounted to twenty-four dollars a
week, and to the son of Niepce, who
had died, about sixteen dollars a week,
with a pension of half those amounts
TO their widows after death.
How much of the process was
Daguerre's and how much was Niepce's
will probably never be known. But
when the two men formed a partner
ship, Daguerre ceded to the firm his
interest on condition that the process
should bear his name
The daguerreotype process reached
the United States in 1889 through
our distinguished scientist and in
ventor, S. F. B. Morse. He passed il
on to his colleague, Dr. John Draper,
who in 1910 made the first Sunlight
picture OF human face"
A Wealthy Conversation.