The present condition of the chemical market should call for extreme economy in the use of developing solutions.

By economy we do not mean the skimping of the developing agent in making up a stock solution. This would be the wrong sort of economy, for the balance of the solution would be destroyed and the result would be disastrous. But there are methods of economy that will conserve the developer without affecting the resulting print.

Some of our readers will remember how the silver bath, of albumen days, was conserved. The sheet of paper, which had been floated on the silver bath, was carefully drawn over a glass rod across the end of the tray to drain all the surplus silver solution back into the tray. The paper was then placed between blotters and the silver absorbed by the blotters was also recovered. It would have been a crime to have destroyed those blotters.

But where is the parallel - how does this apply to developer, you say? It doesn't, except as to the use of the glass rod and the comparative expense of the material in which economy should be practiced. An ounce of developing agent such as Elon is, to-day, worth more than twice as much as an ounce of silver.

And an economy greater than that of the old days can be practiced in the use of developers, to-day, with a little care and no unnecessary delay in the process of developing prints.By comparative tests we have found that a given amount of developer in an 11 x 14 tray will properly develop a certain number of prints. In order to develop the same number of prints in a 14 x 17 tray, approximately one-third more solution is required to do the work.

The reason is quite plain when the rapidity with which coal-tar developing agents oxidize when exposed to the air, is considered. The 11 x 14 tray exposes a surface of 154 square inches of the developing solution to the air while the 14 x 17 tray exposes 238 square inches, which is a 54% greater area of solution for the air to act upon.

ARTURA PRINT FROM DEMONSTRATOR'S NEGATIVE

To develop the greatest number of prints possible with a given amount of solution, use a deep tray as nearly the size of the print as is consistent with convenience in handling your work. The saving in developer is worth more than the slight convenience gained by using large trays.

Another and equally great economy is suggested by the glass rod over which the silvered albumen paper, of former days, was drawn to drain the surplus silver solution back into the tray.

By carelessly tossing an 8 x 10 print from the developer into the rinse water, as much as one-half ounce of developer may be carried with the print. Try it for yourself. Lift an 8 x 10 print from the wash water with a quick movement and allow the water to drain into a small graduate. Then estimate how much solution is wasted in developing a gross of prints, if they are handled in the same manner in carrying them from the developer into the rinse water and fixing bath. There is also the additional injury to the fixing bath if the print is not thoroughly rinsed before it is fixed.

The economies suggested are not altogether a matter of saving a few dollars. It is imperative that the small quantities of developing agents available be made to go as far as possible, otherwise a very serious shortage may result.