— J, THEOBALD & COMPANY’S EXTRA SPECIAL ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OP fJflOIC Iifll^TERNS, SLIDES AND APPARATUS. (From the smallest Toy Lanterns and Slides to the most elaborate Professional Apparatus). ACTUAL MANUFACTURERS--NOT MERE DEALERS. J. THEOBALD & COMPANY, (KSTABI.ISJIKI) OVER FIFTY YEARS), Wfsl End Retail Depot : -20, CHURCH ST., KENSINGTON, W. City Warehouse (Wholesale, Retail, and Export) where address all orders ; 43, FARRINGDON ROAD, LONDON, E.C. (Opposite Earringtlon Street Station). City Telephone: -No. 6767. West End Telephone: —No. 8597. EXTRA SPECIAL ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OF MAGIC LANTERNS, SLIDES AND APPARATUS. (From the smallest Toy Lanterns and Slides to the most elaborate Professional Apparatus.) ACTUAL MANUFACTURERS—NOT MERE DEALERS. ; SPSCIAXd N^O'TICESS issuing N our new catalogue of Magic Lanterns and Slides for the present season wish I we to draw your attention to the very large number of new slides which are contained heiein, and particularly to the Life Model sets. This catalogue now con- tains descriptions of over 100,000 slides and is supposed to be about one of the most comprehensive yet issued. We have made one price for photographic slides right throughout. It is always possible if customers want slides specially well coloured, to fedo them up to any price, but the quality mentioned in this catalogue is quite equal to those supplied by other houses in the trade. It must always be borne in mind that there are lantern slides and lantern slides, and that there are a few people not very well known in the trade, who issue a list of very low priced slides indeed, many of which are simply slides which would not be sold by any Optician with an established reputation. A great many persons now go in for photographing slides who know very little about the business, and turn out slides of very inferior qualily which they are glad to dispose of at a very low rate, but such slides are not fit to be shown in any ordinary exhibition. We shall be glad if persons, before deciding to purchase slides any where else, if they have any doubt about the quality of our slides, will send for one or two samples. It will be noticed that we have a very large variety. If any special kind of Lantern is required, or if persons W'ant a lantern made to their own designs, we shall be pleased to supply it. We are also prepared to supply photo- graphic^ slides or hand-painted slides of any subject, of which an engraving or illustration is handed to us, or to copy slides from any negatives which any of our customers may wish to have produced as lantern slides. In ordering slides for hire, persons should always endeavour to give as long notice as possible ; we cannot guarantee to let out all the slides in this list for hire, because as this means keeping an immense stock, it is always possible in the busy season, that some of thrae slides are sold out, or, if there are only one or two sets left, we have to keep them in stock in case we want them for purchasers ; in all popular sets of slides we always keep a large stock and there is no difficulty whatever in obtaining these at the shortest notice. We have generally got in stock a quantity of second-hand Lanterns and .Slides, which are quite equal for showing purposes to any of those contained in this list, but which are not good enough sell to as new : it is impossible for us to publish a list of these, as they are constantly being sold out, but any persons paying a visit to London, if they would call here, could always look over our stock and might pick up a great many We shall be extremely glad, if people who are satisfied wdth our goods will recommend them to their friends, because the larger quantity we are able to sell the cheaper we are able to produce. We would draw particular attention to our new patent lime light jet, and also to the very low prices at which are selling we our mechanical slides ; our photographic slides It will be seen, are very much lower than the prices asked by most other houses, and in all other cases are the same price, in no one instance are they higher. We should like to draw your attention to three 'or four special sets of slides which have been produced at a very great expense from best engravings of the follow- ing subjects : “ Romeo and Juliet,” “The Charge of the Light Brigade, and Life with the Colours,” and a very excellent set called “ Utopia,” by Jerome K. Jerome these slides are produced both in the lithographic slides and also in the photographic and a very excellent set of the “Overland Route to India,” being incidents on board one of the “ P. and O.” vessels, from the time it leaves Tilbury Docks to the time of arrival in India : these are copied by special permission from “P. and O.” Pencillings in possession of “ ” the Peninsular and Oriental Steamship Company, and to those persons who have ever made a voyage on one of these vessels, these sets of slides will no doubt be very welcome, as well as to any others who are curious to know what life on board a Floating Palace really is. ; b \Ve wish it to be understood that we do not merely sell slides but we actually make them ; we always keep a number of hands employed throughout the entire year both in manufacturing and colouring slides. People will naturally understand that in buying of the actual manufacturers instead of buying them at some dealers they get an advantage both in price and quality. To purchasers of very large quantities, we shall be willing to make considerable reduction if they will let us know what quantities they are prepared to purchase, and we also make reductions to missionaries and clergymen for mission work. We have also started a special system of exchange for persons liv- ing abroad, who wish to have slides sent out to them which they do not desire to keep entirely, but like to exchange after having them perhaps twelve months ; this is a very great advantage to persons in the mission field or to persons travelling in distant lands the terms which we make are as follows : —that they pay us the ordinary price for the slides when they purchase them and are allowed to keep them for twelve months from the time that they are dispatched by us. When received back again we allow half price for them, value to be taken out in other slides. Carriage of course is paid both ways by the purchasers and all risks of damage taken by them. We would also draw attention to the fact that people should not be misled into thinking that because a man has a particular kind of lantern which he thinks a great deal of himself, that it is of any practical use. A great many lanterns are now on the market which are simply the product of people without any practical experience, who have been working out their own hobbies without any idea of what a lantern should patent lanterns are generally very expensive and really be, or what it should do ; are not always any better, or so good, as an ordinary lantern. What is wanted in a thoroughly good lantern for an ordinary operator is one which does not require too much manipulation, the less working parts there are in a lantern the better ; some lanterns are now made with different screws and catches and shifting parts, which would take a person several weeks to thoroughly understand how they should work and the advantage of which is absolutely nil. It is quite possible also in purchasing slides to buy them too cheaply, that is to say, some persons produce slides which are not of any use whatever for a clear good at very low price, because any person having a prac- picture ; these slides are sold a tical knowledge would not touch them at all, and they are what is termed, cheap and nasty, while on the other hand, it is quite possible to pay a high price for slides and yet not to have them good. Whoever you are dealing with, it should be your object to deal with a house that has a reputation and not with a person who has just started in business, of whom nothing whatever is known, who simply wishes to sell slides without troubling whether you are satisfied or would give him your further orders. We are prepared to produce any slides specially to order ; if persons wishing for them would send us engravings, photographs, or good pen and ink sketches of what they require. Our price for the first slide produced is two shillings, this is for a plain photographic slide, and any extra copies which are required of the same slide can then it be had by paying one shilling each ; if coloured, the price of would be one shilling extra in best colouring ; or 6d. extra ordinary colouring. Owing to the large number of foreign customers which we have, it is necessary that we get out this catalogue long before other makers think of compiling theirs, and it is therefore quite probable that you may see some of the slides mentioned in our it is list appearing in other persons catalogues at a rather lower price ; quite the usual thing for one manufacturer to wait till another manufacturer publishes his price list, and then to list some of the articles at a lower price, to attract attention and make people believe he is equally cheap in everything allround.