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108 TECHNIQUE OF THE PHOTOPLAY Patriotism comes next, then love of home, but patriotism is not represented by a wildly waving American flag. The romance, or love story is next to the crime story, the theme most often attempted. All the world loves a lover and his lass, and almost any love story with a decently novel idea will find a welcome, but there are certain love stories that are so very com- mon the author will find it best to leave them alone. Out of every hundred love stories written, probably ten are written around an elopement. Five more are written around the overcoming of parental objection and fully twenty-five—a quarter of the entire output—are what Hal Reid has tersely compressed into "They love, they quarrel, they are reconciled." Unless the quarrel and its sequel differ from the usual run, it is better to leave these to others and strike out along more original lines. This would seem to be equivalent to saying that love stories should be left severely alone. This is not so. Write love stories, by all means, for there is a steady market for them, but seek to give some brand new -twist to plot or development if you would make sales. Suppose that we take the "Modern Cinderella" idea. The girl loses her slipper and a man falls in love first with the slipper and then the owner. This is a master plot that has been used dozens of times and not always with much originality to the touches. Let us see if we cannot twist it around. Nell loses her slipper. It falls on the fire escape below and it is found by a young man who occupies that apartment with his mother. He falls in love with the slipper and its owner and sets it back on the fire escape as a bait for the owner. Then he is called to the telephone and as he rushes back the slipper is gone—but he can see the janitor's feet ascending the iron ladder. He haunts the front steps and eyes the footwear of every woman passing in or out. At last he sees the slipper again. To his surprise he is not the least bit in love with the owner, but there was a girl he saw who has captured his fancy. He wins her love. Then he tells the story of the slipper and she confesses that it was hers but that after the loss of one and its recovery she gave the pair to her maid. He found the right girl after all. It will be well to leave the stories of deep passion alone until increasing technical equipment will permit you to handle them properly. There is but a small chance that the novice will be able to handle the incidents of intense passion without becoming foolish when most desirous of being impressive. Purpose plays should be left severely alone. By purpose play is meant a story that in the guise of romance or drama presents some argument in favor of public movement. The Edison series