TALBOT5005

Reading ¹
May 31 /44

Sir

Do not you think I better part with either Murray or Porter ² for I have not suficient to do to emploi one les two and of course it is very expensive to me to keep them when I get nothing, coming in as at present, and I do not see any prospect to have suficient to do to inploy them both, beside the boy - I went to M^r Walter ³ the other day but owing to the weather I did not get such good results as I expected wyl there I took another Negative of the Busts and M^r Walter is very much pleased with the result M^r Lovejoy ⁴ advised me not to accept any thing if they offer it to mee thinking it will be more to the advantage for the Calotype, he thinks if you would make him a present of a coppy of your work telling him you heard tru me that he takes a great interest in the matter would have a good effect - I here with inclose you a coppy of the last I took and send him som today - the coppies I send him are rather better than yours the negative I did not boil for fear of getting to bad a ground like the others -

The weather has and is still very bad and not fit for negatives I hope your camera will soon arrive from Paris I have got the Chemical chest it is a very good one but a good deal dearer than I anticipated Costing fyf guinies the paper Coppies I send you, could not have been done twice over, onles I knew before hand wish were going to turn out bad, but by using 6 oz of N.S. ⁵ to 10 oz of water I get less failures - I only use as little nitric accid as possible being 1/7 and if I use none the coppies com out smeary, I think the brown tint is the result of the Hypo being made diferent[sic] to wath it used to be when it was 12 Shilling a [illegible] for ever sints the hypo became cheaper I never get such dark grounds - or els it must be the paper if you could find som Wathman Turkey Mill Bleu ⁶ I think that may have a good efect for the Page & [illegible] - the speck in the Portrait you [illegible deletion] complain of is and always has been in the original if it is the speck in the neck, or in the small writing, and i cannot detect any other spots [illegible] if I let it come very strong the ground gets derty & requires to be lowerd but I will Try to make another Negative as I have the original

Your Ob^t Sv^t
N. Henneman

the coppie I enclose is derty on the back as you will observe that was by accident those I send to Mr Walter are all rigt