Picture Stories Magazine (Sept 1914-Feb 1915)

302 LILY OF THE VALLEY. forthwith produced Maynard's letter. " Then what does this mean 1 " she asked. Graham read it and grew confused. "Oh," he said, that must be a mistake — yes, it's a mistake." But Prudence was not to be deceived. ' Mr. Graham," she said, this is your money. You're trying to shield my brother and make the money up to Lily. I think it's just splendid of you, and I'm going to tell her what you've done." "Oh, no, please," protested Graham, in dismay. " Don't tell her, for goodness sake. But I'd like to see her if I may." It seemed, however, that Lily was not in the house, and Graham presently went out to see if he could find her. He wandered through lanes and footpaths, and up into the hills. Everything reminded him of her, but the girl herself he could not see. At last he came to the old schoolroom, pushed the door open and walked in. It was empty. No ! At the further end, at one of the benches near the master's desk, sat a girl in a white dress. Her head was bowed on her hands, but he knew her at once, and his heart gave a great bound. Was she crying? He stepped noiselessly down the room and took his old seat at the desk. The figure had not stirred. " Lily," he called, softly. She raised her head slowly, wonder and joy dawning in her eyes. Bring your book to me." She brought it — her old Latin book — open at the verb "to love." It was his turn. He took something from his pocket, opened it out and held it so that she could read it : "Isn't Mr. Graham sweet ? I think I shall marry him some day." " Will you, Lily 1 " he whispered. " Say you will." She looked up at him shyly. There was no need of words. He clasped her in his arms and their lips met — to the intense delight of Uncle Si, who happened to be peeping through the schoolroom window at the moment. He trotted off" at once to tell the joyful news to Prudence and Samantha. MESSRS. HEPWORTH in a facetious vein tell us of a few film fallacies, little things that may happen in any studio. 1.— FIRE-ARMS. (a) There is always a loaded revolver in every drawer in every room of every " cinema home." That is one of the ways of knowing the home is a picture home. (h) The weakest and most nervous woman can always hit a man in once, and generally in a vital spot. On the other hand cowboys and trained soldiers can pot at one another point blank for hundreds of feet (technical term, meaning seconds ; you'll get to understand this as you go on) without dropping a man ; except sheriffs, who always get winged directly they show up. (c) Any motor car, however desperately driven, can be stopped instantly by shooting at its wheels. Any old policeman who couldn't hit a haystack at two yards can hit a motor tyre doing sixty, and stop the car dead every time and without deflating the tyre either ! No film chauffeur has ever been known to drive on the rims, and he wouldn't do it if a hundred heroines were being burned alive for need of him. It isn't done. (d) If a man points a pistol at you and says "hands up," you hold up your hands, even if he is so near that you can push the thing down his throat before he had time to fire it. Fifty men can be held up in this way in a room so small that the man with the revolver has to back a bit to give them room to lift their hands up. (e) If the man with the pistol does not say "hands up," then you seize him by both wrists and rock backwards and forwards until the pistol goes off, once at the ceiling and once at the floor. That finishes that part, and the picture changes to " girl listening." (/) Black powder is always used in film firearms ; even the Germans have never dreamed of smokeless. British soldiers at the front use Martini-Henry rifles still. Henry doesn't mind, and Martini rather likes it. {g) Revolvers can be fired dozens and dozens of times without re-loading — especially when used by a girl — naturally she wouldn't carry cartridges in her nightgown. 2.— LETTERS. (a) A letter sent from the other side of the world invariably arrives simultaneously with its writer. He says, "I shall be with you almost as soon as you receive this," and he does it, too, in two or three seconds. Your blind mother just has time to press her hands together with joy, and there he is complete with bag and macintosh. He shakes hands vigorously all round, and says how glad he is to be back in the old country once more. Then he looks at his watch and says, well, he is afraid he must be off now, claps on his hat, shakes hands with everybody again, and goes back to China or Bermondsey.