Moving Picture World (Jul-Sep 1911)

822 THE MOVING PICTURE! WORLD THE HUMAN TORPEDO (Sept. 21).— Steve liked maple syrup, so be took a can full of It before starting on a trip. While nt a saloou, having a drink, lie forgot the Can, bur did not remember It Until several miles from the place. He sends word to the bartender thai the can contains nltro l.lyeeilne. 80, when the bartender receives the message, the tin la carefully conveyed to the cellar, and orders lire given that no noise must be made, as it might lifted the can. A hobo who is given a position as (Kilter around the saloon, happens to see the can. le takes a good drink of it, and everybody thinking that he would explode, treales him with care. I9e gets into a scrap with an ex prize tighter, who llellvers him a stunning blow in the solar plexus. (Everybody iinding that no explosion occurred, thanks the pugilist, and start in pursuit of the fleeing hobo. HER INSPIRATION (Sept. 23).— Love and ambition struggled in the heart of Ruth Cameron, a mountain girl. Love bade her be the wife of Jack, a sturdy backwoodsman; ambition bade her go to the great art centers of the world and when Dick Latham on a hunting trip saw her and asked her to he his wife, she Hnally consented, leaving Jack heart-broken. They eloped and Ruth send back a note telling where she had goue, tied to the neck of her faithful collie. Within a year Latham had tired of his young wife and her ambitions. He was the kind of fellow thai didn't try to conceal his aversion. After lie has deserted her, Ruth had visions of the happy days in the mountains with Jack. With this inspiration she painted a picture which took first prize at a great art exhibition and made her famous. She immediately started for home. On the train she read a newspaper account of the death of her husband. At the old homestead she was received with open arms by her parents. Faithful Jack forgave her and received lier with the fulness of his manly heart. SELIG. THE VOYAGER (Sept. 15).— Sir Harold Drayton and his sister, the Honorable Jessica, were on a visit to Canada iu the days of Lord Simcoe's rule over the fortunes of the great Hudson Bay Company, in the early part of the nineteenth century, and there she met a voyageur, romantic and wonderful iu her young eyes, and became so much interested in him that her brother begged the interference of the factor, Nigel Hardie, who was in command of the post at Selkirk House, where they were stopping, and Francois, the voyageur was sent away. Sadly he took his departure, wearing in his heart a flower given him by the girl, and in his stout canoe, paddled through the vast primeval forest. Soon after, .a letter came to Hardie bidding him speed his guests back to Quebec to sail in the last ship for England, and fihey started off accompanied only by two canoe men as the trapping season was on and Hardie wai short handed. Lauding one evening for (imp, they were captured by a band of Indians, and one of the men was killed, the other escaping back to Selkirk House where he warned Hardie; but iu the meantime. Francois saw the empty eauoe and body of his old companion, and suspecting the fate of the party, he crept up to where they sat tied to trees while their captors caroused, and cutting their bonds, bade them wait for night and sleep to effect their escape. His plans were overthrown by the chief waking find going to take a look at his captives. A melee ensued, in which aided by Sir Harold and even the brave little Jessica, Francois was able to account for all his stupilied foes, and makes good his rescue. The party from the Stockade met them in their flight and Jessica bravely told her brother and the factor that her life belonged to the man who had risked all to save her, and that now she was his beyond recall. "LOST IN THE ARCTIC" (Sept. 18).— We see a tribe of Kskimos starting on a hunt, they come upon the hut of a young orphan girl, she is ill and without food. The natives immediately go into council and the orphan is given a choice of death — to be turned out to be devoured by wolves and bears, or to be cast adrift In an open canoe. She prefers the latter, and with many strange and curious cerethe death penalty is iiui>osed. She is led to 11 pen water, placed in a canoe and set adrift. By the "Ceremony of the Walrus Skull," the natives invoke the good spirits to protect the orphan on her .journey into darkness. Next we see Davis, an explorer, the only survivor of a lost polar expedition. He Is spearing seals through the open ice, when to his horror, he is that the ice upon which he is standing has broken off from the main body, and he finds himself 11 ing oat to sea, obviously for the purpose of the story to be met by the orphan girl who leen casl adrift. Their meeting at sea and the trials and suffering of Captain John Smith, the Arctic explorer, who has gone to the North Sim in search of Davis, the thrilling* picture of the Eskimos harpooning a polar bear, their strange ceremonies al the end of the hunt and the g on the ice between Captain Smith and the losl explorer go to make up a picture which Will outrival "The Way of the Eskimo," recently re leased by Selig and declared by the reviewers to be "one of the season's notable offerings." McKEE RANKIN'S "49" (Sept. 19).— The story begins in St. Louis where, as a young man, "Forty" failed in business and found that poverty had no attractions for his wife, who separated from him. In the quarrel that ensued, Dennison accidentally cut his little son's forehead and fled, not knowing how serious the Injury was. He determined to hide his shame in the mining camps and the year drffted on leaving him a bit of flotsam on the shores of that vast human stream that surged through the mighty canyons of the Sierras. Lonely and sad. he had taken to his bosom a little waif of the diggings who had come from Heaven knows where, and she had nestled her little red head against his shoulder and brought him peace. Back in St. Louis a search had been instituted for a young lady who had sprung into interest through having become an heiress most unexpectedly. She had been stolen by gypsies, it was surmised, and taken West, and Col. James, the lawyer, sent his clerk, young Arthur Dennison who had taken his mother's name of Stanley to look for her. Tom Bradshaw, a fellow clerk, overhearing the Colonel's instructions to Arthur, changed the description given him, and getting to the ground first, married a girl he was sure was the heiress, only to find that poor little "Carrots," freckled and ragged, but good and true, was the missing child, that old "49" was Arthur's father, and had struck it rich at last in the claim he had worked for twenty years, and that his action brought happiness to every one but himself. "A CUP OF COLD WATER" (Sept. 21) Many years ago, just after California became a part of the Union, and before the American influence had exerted much power over the old and splendid Mexican families, the Senora Inez de Miguel lost her beautiful little daughter Juana at the hands of the notorious bandit, Jose, who stealing the child as it played away from the side of a careless duenna, carried it to the mountain fastnesses, in order to obtain a heavy ransom. He was pursued by the rurales of that time, a sort of Mexican Vigilantes, and was compelled to flee so far away that finally he took refuge in the ravines of the Sierra Madres, above the little Indian and Mexican mission of Pala, where the good and self-abnegating Padre, Antonio ministered to the wants, spiritual and temporal of his little flock, and was waited on by the gruff but kiudly old Nita, his housekeeper. Hard pressed and nearly starved. Jose begged the padre for food, and was given both food and shoes from his slendor store, escaping to the brush just in time to avoid the rurales who rode up and asked the Padre if he had seen the bandit. He gave a non-committal reply, but Nita, not so charitable, pointed out the way he had taken, and the riders were soon on the track of the hunted wretch. Dashing through the sage they overran the wife of Jose, who gave her life for that of the stolen child, and Jose was captured as he tried to take shelter with the Priest who had shown him such kindness. The leader of the band told how they had run down the woman, and Antonio and Nita hastened to find her. Beneath her torn and crushed body lay the little Juana, and the Padre supposing her to be Jose's daughter, took her to his home and heart. The years passed by and Juana had given her love to a young American, who was looked upon most favorably, too. by the now aged and weak Padre. Her beauty had won for her another and less favored suitor, a passionate young Mexican, Garcia by name. At this time, the Senorita Inez was traveling to the north, and stopped at San Luis Rey, where she heard that her old friend and father confessor, Antonio, was near by at Pala. She wrote him that she would visit him and Varney. the Ameriuan, volunteered to guide her. In his absence, Garcia attacked Juana, but the old Priest came to her rescue by threatening him with the anathema of his church, and soon after, the party arrived from San Luis, and Senora Inez recognized in Juana the lost child of her youth by a cross she had worn. EDISON. "THE SHERIFF" (Sept. 16).— The sheriff is a youngish man devoted to his wife but of such unyielding integrity that he has no patience with his brother-in-law who is a young man more weak than vicious, putting in most of his time at gambling. Being absolutely without funds, this young man conceives the desperate idea of holding up a'stagecoach. thinking probably as all gamblers do, that if he can only get some money to start with he will have 110 trouble in re-establishing his finances. The actual hold-up of the stage is not shown on the screen, but it is made evident that the coach has been robbed and that the robber got away with the mail bags after receiving a wound in the arm. As the sheriff is out on the trail of the robber the latter comes to his home and his sister meeting him, is not long in getting it the facts. Repentant, he promises, if allowed to escape, to lead a better life and she aids him unknown to her husband, who she is perfectly certain would never allow a guilty man to escape, even though he were a relative. So, with a woman's art. she keeps the sheriff in the house by suddenly arousing his jealousy so that for the moment all thoughts of his duty go out of his head. Suddenly the sheriff's riderless horse comes back to his house with a note from the brother saying that he is returning all that was stolen from the stage-coach and that with God's help he will lead a better life henceforth. The wife is forgiven for her innocent deception. "THE SAILOR'S LOVE LETTER (Sept. 19).— Jack, a "sailor, comes ashore and falls in with two pretty girls. One girl tries to outdo the other, and win his love. One night he visits the girl of bis choice, Mary, and makes love to her. Fate brings Nora there, too, and she tries to win his love. Nora asks him to see her home, and this he reluclently consents to do. Here fate again intercepts, and Jack leaves Xota in the hands of one ojf his friends, whom he meets. Then he hastens back to his true love. Jack is suddenly called away. He has no time to say "good-bye" to his little girl, so he writes a letter and entrusts it with a friend to be delivered. Here Nora again intercepts and agrees to deliver it herself. She encounters Mary and she shows her the letter. Nora does not divulge the fact that it is for Mary and not for her, as the envelopes are addressed "Dearest," so Mary goes away heartbroken. Her sorrow brings on brain fever. Jack returns iu a week, and Nora confesses her guilt. "AN UNKNOWN LANGUAGE" (Sept. 20).— Two young people, plighted lovers for many years past, play a joke on their fathers, who are old linguists, by writing a letter in a reverse hand. One old man claims it to tie archaic Greek, while the other says it to be old Hebrew. A quarrel ensues which terminates by both vowing that his child shall not marry the other's. The young people are forbidden to call upon one another, so they resort to the phonograph. The young man dictates a message into the machine, telling his fiancee to elope with him. He has the record delivered with all possible speed. At the proper time they meet at their trysting place. Both fathers start in pursuit in automobiles only to reach the river to see their children far away. The old men take another boat, which capsizes, giving the two a good ducking. The lovers come to their fathers' aid, and everything is explained. "THE BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR" Sept. 22).— We show Lord Nelson leaving the admiralty room where he makes his famous speech and then introduce him with his captains giving the details of that wonderful plan of attack which was carried out to the letter at Trafalgar, the inspirations of the captains and their enthusiastic toast. We are then carried along to the day before the battle when the men are writing their last letters home. Here a beautiful scenic and photographic effect is introduced as the vision of the sweetheart of one of the lieutenants fades into view. This gives an opportunity to introduce that famous episode of the letter in which Lord Nelson called back the mail ship for a single message and which is endeared to the hearts of all those who sail the sea. We are then carried along to the morning of October twenty-first, Eighteen Hundred and Five, when the fleet of the enemy is sighted. The decks are cleared for action and the hoisting of the colors is portrayed with all the solemnity of the occasion before entering the battle. The correct incident of the hoisting of the famous signal "England expects every man to do his duty" is splendidly portrayed and carried out in every detail, and we note the pathetic touch in Nelson's life in bidding farwell to his captains having at the time a presentiment of his own death. We now get to the little human touch in his life and learn the true character of the man: for, in his last entry in his diary before the battle, he makes peace with his maker. And now we come to that wonderful spectacular picture of the real battle of Trafalgar. We see the ships in action, the firing of the guns, the ships caught on fire and then the camera switches to a close view of the deck of the Victory where human life is sacrificed by the hundreds, the fighting top of the Redoubtable, the fatal shot and Nelson's fall. We then see that wonderful character in his death, the solemnity, the beauty and the pathos of it all being carried out by the Edison players in all its grandeur; his farewell to Captain Hardy, the last kiss, the news of the victory and finally his death. "THE BIG DAM" (Sept. 23).— Young Bedford Is accepted by a girl who loves and marries him, thereby making Dillon, the rejected suitor, an enemy for life. Both men are contractors, and put in a bid for a large dam to be completed within a year, under a forfeit of $25,000. The contract is awarded Bedford, which makes Dillon more vindictive. We are shown scenes of the work in progress. Bedford is getting worried as to whether he will be able to get the work through on time. At this juncture Dillon disguises himself, and gets Bedford to hire him as a foreman. As soon as he gets to work he does his best to keep the men from working as hard as they did. Time goes on until It is but two days from the expiration of the contract. Dillon writes a fake telegram to Bedford, saying that he can get a number of men from a neighboring town, by making personal application. Bedford hurries there immediately. While away. Dillon succeeds in getting the men to stop work. All cease with the exception of one man who informs Mrs. Bedford of the situation.