Further Foolishness Part 8

"Friends," he said, "the new day is coming. The dawn is breaking. The moon is rising. The stars are setting. It is the birth of freedom. See! we need it not!"--and as he spoke he grasped in his hands the bomb with its still unlighted fuse--"Russia is free. We are all brothers now. Let us cast it at our enemies. Forward! To the frontier! Live the Czar."

Movies and Motors, Men and Women

IV. Madeline of the Movies: A Photoplay done back into Words

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

In writing this I ought to explain that I am a tottering old man of forty-six. I was born too soon to understand moving pictures. They go too fast. I can't keep up. In my young days we used a magic lantern. It showed Robinson Crusoe in six scenes. It took all evening to show them.

When it was done the hall was filled full with black smoke and the audience quite unstrung with excitement.

What I set down here represents my thoughts as I sit in front of a moving picture photoplay and interpret it as best I can.

Flick, flick, flick! I guess it must be going to begin now, but it's queer the people don't stop talking: how can they expect to hear the pictures if they go on talking?

Now it's off. Pa.s.sED BY THE BOARD OF--. Ah, this looks interesting--pa.s.sed by the board of--wait till I adjust my spectacles and read what it--

It's gone. Never mind, here's something else, let me see--CAST OF CHARACTERS--Oh, yes--let's see who they are--MADELINE MEADOWLARK, a young something--EDWARD DANGERFIELD, a--a what? Ah, yes, a roo--at least, it's spelt r-o-u-e, that must be roo all right--but wait till I see what that is that's written across the top--MADELINE MEADOWLARK; OR, ALONE IN A GREAT CITY. I see, that's the t.i.tle of it. I wonder which of the characters is alone.

I guess not Madeline: she'd hardly be alone in a place like that. I imagine it's more likely Edward Dangerous the Roo. A roo would probably be alone a great deal, I should think. Let's see what the other characters are--JOHN HOLDFAST, a something. FARMER MEADOWLARK, MRS. MEADOWLARK, his Something--

Pshaw, I missed the others, but never mind; flick, flick, it's beginning--What's this? A bedroom, eh? Looks like a girl's bedroom--pretty poor sort of place. I wish the picture would keep still a minute--in Robinson Crusoe it all stayed still and one could sit and look at it, the blue sea and the green palm trees and the black footprints in the yellow sand--but this blamed thing keeps rippling and flickering all the time--Ha! there's the girl herself--come into her bedroom. My! I hope she doesn't start to undress in it--that would be fearfully uncomfortable with all these people here. No, she's not undressing--she's gone and opened the cupboard. What's that she's doing--taking out a milk jug and a gla.s.s--empty, eh? I guess it must be, because she seemed to hold it upside down. Now she's picked up a sugar bowl--empty, too, eh?--and a cake tin, and that's empty--What on earth does she take them all out for if they're empty?

Why can't she speak? I think--hullo--who's this coming in? Pretty hard-looking sort of woman--what's she got in her hand?--some sort of paper, I guess--she looks like a landlady, I shouldn't wonder if--

Flick, flick! Say! Look there on the screen:

"YOU OWE ME THREE WEEKS' RENT."

Oh, I catch on! that's what the landlady says, eh? Say!

That's a mighty smart way to indicate it isn't it? I was on to that in a minute--flick, flick--hullo, the landlady's vanished--what's the girl doing now--say, she's praying!

Look at her face! Doesn't she look religious, eh?

Flick, flick!

Oh, look, they've put her face, all by itself, on the screen. My! what a big face she's got when you see it like that.

She's in her room again--she's taking off her jacket--by Gee! She _is_ going to bed! Here, stop the machine; it doesn't seem--Flick, flick!

Well, look at that! She's in bed, all in one flick, and fast asleep! Something must have broken in the machine and missed out a chunk. There! she's asleep all right--looks as if she was dreaming. Now it's sort of fading. I wonder how they make it do that? I guess they turn the wick of the lamp down low: that was the way in Robinson Crusoe--Flick, flick!

Hullo! where on earth is this--farmhouse, I guess--must be away upstate somewhere--who on earth are these people?

Old man--white whiskers--old lady at a spinning-wheel--see it go, eh? Just like real! And a young man--that must be John Holdfast--and a girl with her hand in his. Why!

Say! it's the girl, the same girl, Madeline--only what's she doing away off here at this farm--how did she get clean back from the bedroom to this farm? Flick, flick!

what's this?

"NO, JOHN, I CANNOT MARRY YOU.

I MUST DEVOTE MY LIFE TO MY MUSIC."

Who says that? What music? Here, stop--

It's all gone. What's this new place? Flick, flick, looks like a street. Say! see the street car coming along--well!

say! isn't that great? A street car! And here's Madeline!

How on earth did she get back from the old farm all in a second? Got her street things on--that must be music under her arm--I wonder where--hullo--who's this man in a silk hat and swell coat? Gee! he's well dressed. See him roll his eyes at Madeline! He's lifting his hat--I guess he must be Edward Something, the Roo--only a roo would dress as well as he does--he's going to speak to her--

"SIR, I DO NOT KNOW YOU.

LET ME Pa.s.s."

Oh, I see! The Roo mistook her; he thought she was somebody that he knew! And she wasn't! I catch on! It gets easy to understand these pictures once you're on.

Flick, flick--Oh, say, stop! I missed a piece--where is she? Outside a street door--she's pausing a moment outside--that was lucky her pausing like that--it just gave me time to read EMPLOYMENT BUREAU on the door. Gee!

I read it quick.

Flick, flick! Where is it now?--oh, I see, she's gone in--she's in there--this must be the Bureau, eh? There's Madeline going up to the desk.

"NO, WE HAVE TOLD YOU BEFORE, WE HAVE NOTHING ..."

Pshaw! I read too slow--she's on the street again. Flick, flick!

No, she isn't--she's back in her room--cupboard still empty--no milk--no sugar--Flick, flick!

Kneeling down to pray--my! but she's religious--flick, flick--now she's on the street--got a letter in her hand--what's the address--Flick, flick!

Mr. Meadowlark Meadow Farm Meadow County New York

Gee! They've put it right on the screen! The whole letter!

Flick, flick--here's Madeline again on the street with the letter still in her hand--she's gone to a letter-box with it--why doesn't she post it? What's stopping her?

"I CANNOT TELL THEM OF MY FAILURE.

IT WOULD BREAK THEIR ..."

Break their what? They slide these things along altogether too quick--anyway, she won't post it--I see--she's torn it up--Flick, flick!

Where is it now? Another street--seems like everything --that's a restaurant, I guess--say, it looks a swell place--see the people getting out of the motor and going in--and another lot right after them--there's Madeline --she's stopped outside the window--she's looking in--it's starting to snow! Hullo! here's a man coming along! Why, it's the Roo; he's stopping to talk to her, and pointing in at the restaurant--Flick, flick!

"LET ME TAKE YOU IN HERE TO DINNER."

Oh, I see! The Roo says that! My! I'm getting on to the scheme of these things--the Roo is going to buy her some dinner! That's decent of him. He must have heard about her being hungry up in her room--say, I'm glad he came along. Look, there's a waiter come out to the door to show them in--what! she won't go! Say! I don't understand!

Didn't it say he offered to take her in? Flick, flick!

"I WOULD RATHER DIE THAN EAT IT."

Gee! Why's that? What are all the audience applauding for? I must have missed something! Flick, flick!

Oh, blazes! I'm getting lost! Where is she now? Back in her room--flick, flick--praying--flick, flick! She's out on the street!--flick, flick!--in the employment bureau --flick, flick!--out of it--flick--darn the thing! It changes too much--where is it all? What is it all--?

Flick, flick!

Now it's back at the old farm--I understand that all right, anyway! Same kitchen--same old man--same old woman--she's crying--who's this?--man in a sort of uniform--oh, I see, rural postal delivery--oh, yes, he brings them their letters--I see--