THE WOMBAT. 95 



done. The labour of making this collection, weeding out, and 

 classifying, will be very considerable, but if a definite system 

 is adopted from the outset it will not present any insuperable 

 difficulty. Of course it may turn out that, although a 

 particular subject may have to be photographed many times, 

 none of the results are satisfactory for the purpose in view. 

 We emphasise this point because it ought never to be lost 

 sight of that the point of view and general treatment that is 

 best for pictorial purposes may not be best — in fact very often 

 wilt not be best — for survey purposes. Where the two can 

 be combined so much the better, but the record is the primary 

 object, the pictorial effect is secondary. The most important 

 point of all just now, from a practical point of view, is one to 

 which we have already alluded, namely, that through the 

 medium of the central committee everyone interested in the 

 matter can take part effectively in the national photographic 

 survey, and not feel that he is a detached and more or less 

 helpless unit because he cannot take part in the scheme of 

 some society. Everyone can help who carries a camera on 

 his holiday, and is in a neighbourhood where historic subjects 

 are to be found ; and in what neighbourhood are they not ? 

 Of course it may be that the object has been photographed 

 before and therefore the work may be unnecessary for survey 

 purposes, but at present we must take our chance of that. It 

 is in order to prevent waste of energy in this way that the 

 immediate drawing up of a list of what has been clone is so 

 very necessary. It would however be fatal to wait until such 

 a list is completed. Some object of great interest may be 

 destroyed accidently or intentionally, or may be so altered 

 that much of its interest disappears. Examples of this are, 

 unfortunately, only too familiar. Another point is that although 

 the object may remain unchanged, the possibility of photo- 

 graphing it from a satisfactory point of view may disappear 

 owing to the erection of buildings or the growth of trees. 

 The dependence of the photographer upon a suitable view 

 point always places him at a disadvantage in comparison with 

 the sketcher who can make himself independent of obstructions, 

 and of such bogeys as angle of view. In order to get over 

 difficulties of this sort a photographer who takes up survej' 

 work will find it almost essential to have a very short focus, 

 and also a very long focus (or tele-photo) lens. It is very 

 necessary, if a photographer wants to be of the maximum 

 possible usefulness to the survey that he should make him- 

 self acquainted, not only with the subjects that require photo- 

 graphing, but also with the aspects of them, and the points of 

 detail that deserve the most attention. Unless he does this 

 he may spend time over matters that are of little importance, 

 and neglect altogether some things that are of the greatest 

 interest. Of course when the central committee has drawn 



