Motion Picture Classic (Jan-Aug 1919)

IWOTION PICTU j... .iiiciii When u had, linuever, sliced six successive pcilalucs willunii ail) dung further than occasional, very triflino; readjustiueiit.s, lie felt that he was justified in presenting his masterpiece to the world. He felt that he moved, unknown as yet, hut none the less forceful, with Bell and Maxim, with Marconi and lidison. When he slept he dreamed of laurel wreaths and laboratories where scores of aproned men and girls turned out Fletcher’s Little Giant Potato Sheer. 'I'he next day he tacked a huge proclamation on the grandstand at the h;dl-tield and another one on the screen door of the post-otTice. It announced that at high noon Andrew P. Idetcher wotihl demonstrate his “'World-Easing, Labor-Saving Little Giant Potato Sheer. Saves Hands. Preserves Mothers. Elongates Wives.” Piliersville was iinjiressed. Various people were lieard to say that ‘‘d'h.'it h'letcher boy alius did have somethin’ to him.” The mo.st im[)ressed of the Pipersvillians was Alice Flint, sixteen-year-old daughter of Labai Flint, Pipers ville’s one banker and one plutocrat. Laban car Flint kept “hell).” He had ar auto, mission furniture ir his living-room, steam heat, electric light and sanitary plumbing. He had brought the flesh-pots of Egypt to the stale ways and byways of Pipersville. H i s daughter was a product thereof. For a year Alice Flint had represented t o •Vudv finally made It understood that la wished to draw from the bank all his funds because t li e president's daughter liked a fellow with a .\ndy Fletcher the perfection in femininity. But he was ti.sed to dreaming and not so used to actuality. To pull his cap from his head when they met by chance on the street was as far as and as long as Andy ever dared to imagine. Alice, being feminine, was more largely fanciful. Fur a long time the vision of the boy before the anvil with his honest dreamer’s eyes shining, strangely blue, from the ruddiness of his cheeks, kept coming betw'een her and her dinner, her book, her knitting, the faces of her girl friends. She liked the way he smiled. She liked the gesture with which he ])ulled his cap from his tousled hair. She liked the gleam of his teeth. She had never seen a boy she liked so well. She wished that he liked her. It isn’t much fun being a goddess when one is sixteen and the month is May. It is still less so when one does not have even the chilly satisfaction of being aware of one’s empedestalling. When Alice read the sensational announcements she was very much excited. Just to prove it she ran home and i)ut on her figured organdie.' The old housekeeper had told her that her hair was “vellcr as corn-silk in it.” She wished that the boy whose sinewy arms wielded the anvil would see it al think so, too. She hoped that he would succeed. That j would be triumphant. He wasn’t a bit triumphant. He arrived, ostentatiouhJ with the marvelous miracle and a bushel of potatoes badly i need of slicing. He looked very much flushed, very anti^ patory. Alice had to put her hand over her heart so tl\ people might not see its beating. Not that the people { Pipersville were given to taking notice of beating hearts— The miracle didn’t seem inclined to slicing activities. It tacked the stolid vegetables before it rather wildly and qr at random. Tlj remained not o u n s 1 i c e d , b ; H quite unmoved! well. Pipersv' began to lau^i There was 11 mor. Those had come to [ remained to sci Only Alice v silent, s y m t h e t i c , u n d ( standing. When the I' polloi had g( she came timi up to the disc solate invent He had be stoned b y c rision. Pity her valorous. ??^ became a mot:l to his isolatioi'i “I’m a w f sorry,” she v cured, ;md pu^ timid hand upi his sleeve. T y stood alone in e u b 1 i c s q u a Trade had bn resumed. H;jj are the migl fallen! | A n d y loo I [d down on her. She a little thing! Terri|[e retty ! Sweet ! He gulped. “I’m no gof^ he lamented ; “cant do a; thing.” /Mice became more and ir womanly. More and more of that vast army who push vji their Herculean courage their men to triunqdt arches. "Vv?f you can!'' she declared, s()ueezing the rough sleeve just so accidentally. “You can, luo! You ” She cast alul her for inspiratiejn. What zaas it she had read of woi^ behind the throne? What zvas it? “'Our— our stove-pip!^ If I awful out of order,” she exclaimed, brilliantly; “if you ced fix it . . . do you s'[)Ose.'” .Andy I'letcher gazed down on her. He felt a healing, anointing. Already the Little Giant was becoming littler,^^ losing i)roportion. He inflated bis chest. “Bet I boasted. “Like to see anybody slop me!” j' So would Alice. W'alking along the board sidewalk to the plutocratic I » mansion, a dream was coming true for both of them. .Andy Fletcher did miraculous things to the stovc-j)ipe. k seemed' to know an amazing amount about everything ui the sun, stove-pi])es being only among the least of Alice watched, adoring. After the job was comi)leted she plied still further and d. ( h'ortyl^Y