The author was the niece of photographic inventor D. H. Houston whose American patents included numerous firsts. Hammer claims that her uncle was the father of motion pictures and was cheated out of millions of dollars. She claims that Houston originated the Kodak name (based on the fact he lived in Dakota). The Eastman-Walker roll holder did infringe a Houston patent (USP 248,179) in 1891 and Walker obtained a license to work the patent in Monroe County for $700. Eastman purchased the American Camera Manufacturing Co to acquire another important Houston patent (which Houston has assigned to them) in which the roll film was placed in front of the film plane instead of behind. Hammer's claims do not stand detailed examination.
It was rumoured that Eastman Kodak was so displeased with the book that they bought up most of the copies and had them detsroyed, which may explain the book's rarity.