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THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB.
gentleman said, if they were all photographers in the true sense of the
word, he was fully aware of the kind of enthusiasm they would display in regard
to it. There was no doubt but that photography gave them more pleasure,
more intelligence, more education, move information, than any other thing, not
excepting reading itself. Therefore, he had a very exalted opinion of the uses to
which photography could be put. He fully sympathised with those who were
struggling with photography in its various phases, because he was aware they had
to encounter many failures. But he should like to remind beginners that all he
knew was what he had learned through failures. Every time one failed in photo-
graphic work they learned something which would add to their future success.
He was always failing, and through that he learned something better.
Remarking that the two rival classes of photographers were often quarrelling, he
said it was not inconsistent. One class was represented by the man who worked
scientifically and with precision—he was faithfully recording the truth ; the other
class was represented by the man who wanted to make a picture with his studio
work—his was a work of art. He did not object to his work, but why the two
classes should quarrel he could not conceive. A man should try to be so exact
that the pleasure he got in viewing places should be transferred to the paper he
showed to his friends. After having done that, one was able to see every object
one met to the best advantage. In his experience of photography, he had met
with all kinds of curious things. He had travelled in all parts of the world, and
more than once people he had photographed had tried to kill him. More than
once he had seen the serious side of life turned to ridicule. He was photographing
in China some time ago when he turned his camera on a crowd of people, and
took an excellent photograph. Shortly after they became excited and disturbed,,
and he soon found there was some reason for their trouble. He asked his inter-
prefer what was the matter, and he quickly replied that the people said he (Sir
Benjamin) had taken their spirit away. He told the interpreter to say that he
had taken nothing away, and at once he put this poser to him—"How can you.
say that when you have got their likeness in your box?" The people getting
into a riotous state, he had to bribe them into a proper state of mind-
People of intelligence had given him a considerable amount of trouble.
His implements of photography suggested to some people that he had.
been doing work, and the consequence was that they followed him, and in an
unwary moment his boxes were opened, and the work he had done inspected.
They all knew with what results. Oftentimes a picture would appear with only
half a man's body visible. An American lady the other day saw his camera
fixed for a time exposure for the purpose of taking a monument in London ; she
immediately went round and looked inside. He had an amusing time in Brazil,
when there was a revolution in progress. It was a revolution in which the chief
governor was deposed by the head of the military forces. The individual
aspiring to be the new governor fomented a disturbance, and at the same time
made terms with the general in charge of the military. When the Governor
declined to resign, he brought up the soldiers with cannon, and forthwith
proceeded to bombard the palace. Many people were killed, and after a time
the photographer appeared. Thereupon everybody suspended what they were
doing ; the soldiers posed at their guns, and the remainder of those in the palace
appeared on the balconies to be photographed. After the new Governor had.
entered into possession of the palace the chief of the military informed him that
his action of the previous day was all a mistake, and as he also would not go, the-