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THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. Vol. VII. No. 232.—February 13, 1863. CONTENTS. PAGE Spirit Photographs The New Globe Lenses Enlarged Negatives Printing Difficulties. By a Photographers Assistant On the Production of Instantaneous Photographs on Large Plates By Lieut.-Col. Stuart Wortley On the Manipulation, Developing, and Intensifying of Negatives. By James Ewing Theory of the Photographic Processes. By Dr. D. Van Monck- hoven... 73 74 75 75 76 76 79 Prizes at the Photographic Exhibition.—Adjudicators’ Report... 81 Remedy for Cracked Varnish. By II. R. Nichols 81 The Application of Photography to the Magic Lantern Educa ¬ tionally Considered. By Samuel Highley, F.G.S., F.C.S. ... 81 Correspondence.—The French Photographic Exhibition ... 82 Photographic Notes and Queries 83 Talk in the Studio 84 To Correspondents 84 Photographs Registered during the Week 84 SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHS. We feel that some apology is due to our readers for gravely occupying their attention with what we now do not hesi tate to style a pitiable delusion originating in shameful fraud or mischievous trickery. Our business is not, however, with the general claims of what is termed “ Spiritualism,” but with a phase of it in which our own art is prostituted to purposes of imposture, and which we feel called upon to lay fully before our readers, if not to denounce. The chief details have already appeared in our pages, and, as no new facts have transpired, we shall not exhaust the patience of your reader's by a repetition of evidences similar to those already published. The faith of photographers in this country has, however, been challenged on new ground. Copies of the photographs containing the alleged spirit portraits have been announced in our advertising columns for sale in this country, three for three and sixpence, in sealed packets, like some other matters of more than ques- tionableccharacter. In addition to the evidence thus to be attention m sight, the Spiritual Magazine claims especial attpntion.and. credence for a letter from Dr. H. T. hild, +1 il le P hia, W 10 is stated to be well known to “ many in •. is coun IV as.a man of science, and a clear philoso- p nca nn cer. We demur, however, entirely to his science and philosophy, as deve oped in the letter in question, for the reasons we shaH lay before our readers. Dr. Child, at the opening of this letter, states that he had been informed that “ the learned philosophers who consti tute the American. Photographic Society had solemnly resolved that the spiritual likenesses are a fraud and gross deception ho then adds that this led him “ rather to infer that these pictures were real because of this decision!” The fact that a body of scientific gentlemen, with no possible object before them but the truth, having examined a sub ject on which they were pre-eminently well qualified to form an opinion, and pronounced it a fraud, rather inclines this “philosopher” to believe in its truth, and in this spirit he proceeds to investigate the subject. He informs us that he is aware of the modes in which, the. spirit photographs might be simulated, one of which is to place another negative in contact with the sensitive, plate, already con taining a latent image of an actual sitter, and allow the light of a lamp to pass through the negative. So far so good. But the doctor then proceeds to illustrate his charac ter as a “ man of science,” by informing us that he has seen a photograph so produced, and that it was distinguishable from the genuine spirit photograph by having “a very marked yellow tint, the result of the artificial light of the lamp 1” With these two specimens of the doctor’s knowledge of facts and mode of reasoning upon them, his “ science ” and “ philosophy,” we presume our readers will be content. One word more, however, since it bears on the theory of photo graphy, and introduces ideas doubtless new to our readers, borne of the doctor’s spiritual visitants have communicated to him the theory or modus operandi of these spirit portraits. Here it is :—• “ There are three forms of matter. First, tangible matter ; second, the imponderables, well known to science as heat, light, electricity, magnetism, the Od force and the life principle. These become more refined in the order in which I have named them, and thus approximate toward the third realm of matter, which constitutes spirits, and the home they dwell in, in the spiritual world. Photography, or the art of printing by light, is the most spiritual of all the arts, and by it any substance that is sufficiently dense to set in motion the rays of light, may have its form and character printed on the plate, being received there by the delicate and perceptive chemicals which are used. But spirit forms are so much more refined than light, that they cannot set in motion or reflect its rays. To do this, they require the aid of the life principle — the Od force — magnetism and electricity. These may be obtained from certain mediums, and the atmosphere around them ; and when thus obtained and properly placed, either around a spirit form, or combined and formed into such a model as to represent the form itself, either of which will be enabled to set in motion the next form of matter, which is light, and print an image upon the glass. It does not require as much light to print this as it does to make an imago on the retina of the human eye, and hence these forms are not visible. This model process is the one which will be first introduced, and hence the forms of spirits and objects will not be very perfect.” One or two words on the “ spirit ” portraits sent to this country and advertised for sale. When we saw the announce ment, we called upon the publisher and asked to be permitted to see the pictures in question. We were informed that strict instructions had been given that no one was to be permitted to see them without purchasing. They were in sealed packets, and could only be seen on disbursing three shillings and six pence. As these instructions emanated from the proprietors of the Spiritual Magazine, who have undertaken the specula tion of getting up these pictures for the English market, we were scarcely so much impressed with their desire to promul gate what they believed to be spiritual truth, as with their anxiety to obtain material cash. However, we purchased the packet, and although we were prepared for imposture, we were altogether confounded by the barefaced humbug revealed to us. The first picture contains a portrait of Mumler, the “ medium and photographer,” standing with his hand on a chair. In the printed description at the back it is stated “ in the chair sits a half-defined female form,” and that “ this was at once recognized as a deceased relative.” The half-defined female form is simply and palpably, to the eye of any. experienced photographer, the smudgy trace of a former image on an imperfectly cleaned plate, not sitting on a chair, but near it. She is attired in the ordinary costume of the material world as worn in the nineteenth century, and sitting in the conventional position, with one arm on the table holding a book and the other laid across a lap, as doubtless Mr. Mumler is in the habit of posing young ladies. It is such an image as almost every photographer of any practice has occasionally been troubled with, the persistency