[WHFT's file copy:]
Mr Crookes
Lacock May 10
Dr Sir
I recd your last letter at Edinburgh – Since then I have been unable to pay attention to photography, partly from feeble health and partly from various affairs, which have taken up all my time –
In your letter you proposed to publish my etching of the Tuileries from the copperplate only, which I have had coated with steel – But on inspecting it again I doubted very much whether it wd yield 6000 good impressions, and I thought it wd be running too great a risk, to attempt it. For supposing the plate to wear out after taking 3000 impressions it would leave us in an unpleasant dilemma – I therefore decided to wait until I returned home.
Until your last letter, you had never mentioned the circumstance that you gave a decided preference to the copperplate over the various steel plates, representing the same subject, proofs of which I forwarded to you – But that being the case as I was at home for a short period (before returning again to Edinburgh) I resolved to try and make some more copper plates of this subject. I have accordingly made four new ones which are gone to Town and you shall soon have proofs of them – If approved of, they can then be coated with steel which does not injure the impressions – On the contrary the result of a close comparison which I instituted is, that it causes a slight improvement in the tone of the impression. If these four turn out unsuccessfully I will try & make some others. Those which I sent to Town yesterday have each of them some slight imperfections owing to my not being a good manipulator, but getting speedily tired, which a good photographer ought never to be. Besides which I was somewhat out of practice, owing to my absence in Scotland. If you wish it I can now forward you some more little plates ready prepared for etching as well as some specimens of etched plates, for comparison with those obtained by you. I never received the waxed positives which you promised me done by a peculiar method; I shd be glad of them as I am greatly in want of fine subjects for my photoglyphy
Yours truly
H. F. Talbot