Ghostly Images by Peter Townsend

Author:Peter Townsend [Townsend, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: LL-Publications

Chapter 21

Sunday 2nd September 1894

DAVID ADJUSTED THE SHOULDER STRAP of the case containing his camera. He’d thought of going to Scarborough for the day but decided to stay in Whitby and search for scenes to photograph.

He guessed that John would be meeting Laura today. Was he envious of their friendship? He had to admit that was probably true. A pleasant stroll with a pretty, young woman wouldn’t go amiss. He thought of Lucy Shaw and then shook his head. He had no time for romance with his career at stake.

He reached Argument’s Yard and took out his camera. Two ragged and dirty-faced young girls sat on the steps playing with dolls equally ragged and dirty. One of the dolls had an arm missing.

Thirteen uneven and broken steps lead to the narrow passage into Church Street. To the right of the girls, there was a house with nearly all the panes of glass smashed or broken. He looked up at the roof and saw most of the tiles lost or damaged. The girls’ attention was now on his camera. One of the girls combed her greasy, matted locks with her fingers, wiped her mouth with her arm and smiled, revealing two missing front teeth.

The sun’s rays then lit up the yard. It would have been an easy image to take with the gelatin-bromide technique with a one-second exposure, but now that he was using the collodion process, it would require a lengthier exposure.

“Keep still,” David said to the girls with a smile. He opened the shutter and closed it four seconds later. He waved, and they instantly forgot about the camera and resumed playing with their dolls once more.

David considered sending the print to Whitby Town Council to illustrate the need for urgent repairs to improve the lives of its inhabitants. This was the assignment he should be covering. He liked the idea of being a photographer for a crusading newspaper.

In Hull, David had frequently argued with his father about the plight of the poor. Oliver Taylor had come from a disadvantaged background but had risen to be the joint owner of a thriving abattoir business. Yet, Oliver firmly believed that if the poor remained that way, it was their own damn fault.

The girls moved to one side so David could climb the steps. He walked through the dark passageway until he came out onto Church Street. He turned left and continued until he reached the bottom of the 199 Steps.

Looking at the steep flight of stone steps, he could see the coffin rests on the railings every few yards that enabled funeral processions to pause on their way up to the summit and the church.

People were wearing their Sunday best. The women’s white bonnets were pristine, without a spot or blemish. The men’s collars and ties were equally immaculate.

To the right of the 199 Steps was the King’s Highway, but all the locals referred to it as Donkey Road. It climbed steeply parallel to the steps. A donkey ascended carrying milk churns.

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