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RECREATION. 



Although I still had my original 8 x 10 

 outfit and several later models including 

 an 8xio copying and enlarging outfit, a 

 5x7, and a 4 x 5, with a large collec- 

 tion of extra lenses, and a first class stere- 

 opticon for bromide work, I had never 

 found an outfit that came up to my ideal, 

 or one that I could successfully apply to 

 every branch of photo work. I therefore 

 made up my mind to inspect the qualities 

 of the Wizard, and sent for their catalogue. 

 While awaiting its arrival a friend called 

 one evening and brought over a 5 x 7 Wiz- 

 ard to have me try it for him. It was a 

 beauty; compact, with features not applied 

 so successfully in any other make, and the 

 best finished instrument I had ever seen. 

 Yet all of these advantages would amount 

 to little without a high grade lens and 

 shutter. A test of these would soon de- 

 cide their value. 



The next morning a bad railroad wreck 

 was reported near by, so, filling the holder, 

 I took my friend's new camera and has- 

 tened to the scene. The wreck was much 

 worse than I had anticipated. A cloud- 

 burst had descended on a private trout 

 pond, and a railroad culvert a little farther 

 down stream had been undermined. When 

 the express came rushing along it crashed 

 into the washout, a complete wreck, injur- 

 ing everyone aboard and killing several. 

 It didn't take long for the news to spread, 

 and soon there were several thousand 

 people at the scene, almost every other 

 one carrying some style of a camera. 



The day, which was anything but favor- 

 able, grew rapidly worse, and soon the 

 mist turned into a steady rain. On every 

 side were amateurs who, with the aid of 

 umbrellas and mackintoshes, were trying 



to protect their instruments while they 

 gave their plates a variety of exposures 

 varying from seconds to minutes in dura- 

 tion. With a friend holding his umbrella 

 over me, I made an exposure. I didn't 

 take much pains in focusing, only using 

 the scale, as I had left my tripod at home, 

 not expecting the day would permit an ex- 

 posure of any kind. I was therefore com- 

 pelled to give the plates an instantaneous 

 exposure of 1-25 second each. I was so 

 sure nothing could produce a picture with 

 such a short exposure on a dark, rainy 

 day I left the plates undeveloped several 

 days. When I finally developed them, 

 I was surprised to find the negatives the 

 best I had ever made. I think all of the 

 others over exposed their plates, as no 

 one else got a view of any kind that day. 



The result was, I sold over 1,000 of the 2 

 different views. The exposure was 16 

 stop, raining hard. 



I was not long in ordering an outfit like 

 my friend's. With it I have since made 

 many hundreds of exposures under every 

 imaginable condition, with but 2 failures. 

 Those were the first 2 exposures made 

 with the extra wide angle lens, which re- 

 quires a longer exposure than a rectilinear. 

 I slightly over exposed those 2. 



I can copy a cabinet photo with my 

 Wizard camera, making it larger than cab- 

 inet size and better than with my 8 x 10 

 copying outfit, which cost 4 times the price 

 of the Wizard outfit. After 10 years of 

 constant experimenting with the leading 

 high grade cameras, I consider the 5x7 

 long focus Cycle Wizard, with Bausch & 

 Lomb iris diaphragm shutter and extra 

 rapid rectilinear lens, by far the best outfit 

 one can possibly buy. 



JUST SO. 



A. L. VERMILYA. 



Thomas Tudor, a sportsman, perchance, 

 Went hunting in Podunk, or France ; 



But the fool with a gun, 



Who sees deer where there's none, 

 Put a ball in the seat of Tom's pants. 



Then home went poor Tommy real quick ; 

 His excursion had made him quite sick. 



Now, to carelessly shoot 



Such a guileless galoot, 

 Was a mean and contemptible trick. 



