To the Postal Photographic Club 



^^HE illustrations in the book will seem 

 ^^ like old friends to you, I know. The orig- 

 inals are yours. They have all gone the 

 rounds in our albums, and you have criticised 

 and praised them with that candor and 

 generosity so characteristic of our fraternity. 

 Several of them have been prize winners by 

 judgment of your suffrages. In the issue of 

 the book I am deeply grateful to you all, 

 and especially to those particular members 

 who graciously loaned their best pictures for 

 the improvement of my essays. 



In a large way you have all helped in 

 the making of this book, for the principles, 

 opinions and observations here set down 

 have nearly all borne the heat of discussion 

 with you in the club note-books. These 

 friendly discussions in which I have par- 

 ticipated for more than a decade, have been 

 like a liberal education to me. The Postal 

 Photographic Club has been my school of 

 art, — my photographic alma mater, if I 

 might call myself a reputable graduate, — 

 and you have been at once my teachers and 



