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722 THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. LNOvEMBER 18, 1885. of tree trunks effective. The foreground also is good, all but a bit to the left, which is rather too black, and want ing in softness and detail. J. Starkey Downes sends a frame of three pictures taken in “Manx Land” (No. 440), of which one, the wheel at Great Laxey, is printed rather too dark. No. 539, “ I have nothing more to say,” is better conceived than most pictures of this character. A lady sits with an unfinished letter before her, part of her face buried in her hand. The picture on the table, presumably a portrait of the per son to whom she is writing, is just a little too much in evidence to seem natural. W. A. Skill’s No. 442, catalogued as “Portrait of a Blind Man.” is more appropriately labelled “By the Highway Side,” and is very well composed. It makes quite a picture, notwithstanding that the man has moved a little. No. 593, “A View of the Choir, Lincoln Cathedral,” is a well-lighted interior, but the uprights are a little out. No. 443, “ Interior of Temple Church,” by John Clark, Q.C., is a fine bold picture, enlarged from one in frame No. 648. The windows in this photograph come out with unusual distinctness and freedom from halation. R. Tindall sends “Views on the Ober Engadine,” of which two are good, and two show a defect so common with subjects of this class, that of being under-exposed, and harsh looking in some places. No. 623 is a frame containing two views, one of which, “ Pontresina Bridge,” is picturesque and good ; in the other, there is too much evidence of the water having moved. H. T. Hale’s No. 460 contains two pretty views, but they are a little too intense. In No. 507 neither of the pictures is pleas ing ; one, however, contains some striking tree forms. Geo. Hadley’s “ Grandad’s Coming ” (No. 465) is a re presentation of an old man entering a cottage garden, whilst a little girl who stands on the doorstep smiles him a welcome. Both figures are natural, and do not show that they are aware of the presence of the camera. The cottage front is good,'and climbing plants form a natural and pleasing arch over the doorway. A long line of palings in front gives some formality to this part of the picture, which, however, as a whole, is more successful than such attempts generally are. In " Portrait Studies” (No. 480) the lights are mostly a little too low in tone. No. 535, “ Thinking of Tomorrow’s Meal,” is not a very satisfactory composition. The old lady who is the subject of the pic ture is rather crowded in between a chair and a table, the former of which seems to have been placed in position after the model had settled herself. Other exhibits from the same hand are Nos. 627 and 669. “ Ford and Ferry” (No. 477) is by H. F. McConnel, a picture consisting of a pleasing bit of landscape with a ferry-boat and a cart crossing a stream ; these accessories compose very well, and their occupants appear to be naturally engaged without a suspicion that they are being photographed. The picture is very good as a whole, although the sky has been printed- in a little too dark. Jean Ville exhibits a series of platino- type prints of mountain scenery, of which we prefer No. 484. J. Renton Dunlop has a frame of photographs of micro scopic objects. “Section of the Human Scalp,” withits various glands, &c., clearly marked, is probably the most generally interesting. A remarkable photograph is that of a “ Nest of Birds,” by G. C. Tagliaferro, from which we reproduce a block print. The exposure must have been extremely rapid, and the effect is good as a picture. “ The Ravelled Hank,” by A. Donald (No. 524), is not of large size, but it is certainly one of the best of its kind in the Exhibition. An old woman sits at her wheel unravel ling the thread that gives its name to the picture. The chamber which forms the background is well chosen, and the lighting of it kept in due but not excessive subordina tion. The furniture and accessories are such as would naturally occur in such a scene, and do not look as if they had been packed round the model to fill up the picture. We are informed that the whole was taken at one exposure. The “ Industry of Age commands the attention of Youth” (No. 534), by W. J. Goodhew, is a composition in which the artist has endeavoured, not without success, to pourtray the ideas which occupied his mind. The old man works steadily on, while the girl, with the curiosity of childhood, watches the method and progress of his work. An overthrown stool is intended to denote the eagerness of youth which does not stay to measure the consequences of each hasty step, or to repair them if untoward. Nesbitt, Tom, or George, according to which portion of the cata logue we rely upon, sends three exhibits (Nos. 536,537, and 637.) Tire two first-mentioned frames contain some gems in the way of landscape photography, mounted in optical contact with the glass. Whilst blight and powerful, the shadows have received sufficient exposure to furnish them with luminous detail, which is, however, not too prominent. Of No. 637, “ What are you waiting for, Mama ? ” we can
