He had not been studying long before Jim entered, and with a very grand air placed several small parcels on the table. He was about to explain their contents, when he suddenly broke out in a wild fit of laughter. "Why, Fred, what have you done to yourself?" said he.
Fred looked up from his book, and found, to his great disgust, a number of heavy black spots on his hands and coat. "Well, I don't see what that is," he said.
"I do," said Jim: "you have been and spattered yourself with silver, and the sunlight has turned it black. You are in a nice fix, for nothing will take it off."
"The coat was only a work jacket," said Fred, "and I don't care a bit about my hands. But let us see what you have bought."
"In the first place," said Jim, opening his packages, "here are some tin plates—great big fellows, too, and all for fifty cents. And here is some collodion. These green crystals are sulphate of iron, and the man says we must keep them in a very tight bottle, because if the air gets at them they will spoil. He told me they were made of old nails and sulphuric acid. Do you believe it? These green crystals we must dissolve in water before using. This stuff in the bottle is acetic acid. Doesn't it smell queer? And here is some hyposulphite of soda; and that's all. Now let's get to work."
The two hours were now over, and Fred returned to his silver bath, and let it run through a filter, when, by rule, the bath was ready. It was placed in a flask, and tightly corked.
"Now, Jim," said Fred. "I guess we would better leave everything until Saturday, because to-morrow we have an examination in algebra, and ought to cram for that to-night; and to-morrow afternoon is the ball match, and in the evening we shall be tired."
At last Saturday morning came, bright and sunny, and the two boys began in earnest the task of taking a picture.
Fred had procured a tall narrow glass vessel to hold the silver bath, and a glass dipper with which to suspend the plate, and having mixed the developing and fixing solutions, the boys were at last ready.
"Now you pour on the collodion," said Jim, "and put the plate in the bath, while I get the camera in position and adjust the focus."