ving
speaking parts upon the stage.

The big scene--the really big scene in the drama--was set upon that
overhanging lip of rock that Ruth had spied when first she, with Helen
and Jennie, had ridden up the trail. On that overhanging shelf occurred
the struggle between the white lover of _Brighteyes_ and the Indian who
had trailed him and the girl to this wild spot.

Mr. Grand, in spite of Wonota's scorn of him, was a handsome man and
made as fine an appearance in the out-of-door garments the part called
for as he did in the dress-suit to which he was so much addicted. The
Indian who played the part of the villain was an excellent actor and had
appeared many times on the silver sheet. He was earnest in his desire to
please the director, but he failed sometimes to "keep in the picture"
when he was not actually dominating a scene.

Because of this failing in John Onehorse, Mr. Hooley sent Ruth to the
top of the rock to watch and advise Onehorse as the scene proceeded.

She was quite able by this time to act as assistant director. Indeed, it
was Ruth's ambition to direct a picture of her own in the near future.
She sometimes had ideas that conflicted with those of Mr. Hammond and
his directors, and she wished to try her own way to get certain
results.

Now, however, she was to follow Mr. Hooley's instructions exactly.

The arrangement of the cameras were such, both from below and at the
level of the scene to be shot, that Ruth had to stand upon a narrow
shelf quite out of sight of the actors on the overhanging rock, and
hidden as well from most of the people below. This, to make sure that
she was out of the line of the camera.

Behind her the narrow and broken trail led to the top of the canyon
wall. It was up this trail that Jennie and Helen had seen the "Man
Friday" disappear on the occasion of their first visit to the place.

Patiently, over and over again, Mr. Hooley had the principal characters
try the scene. Below, Wonota, as the heroine, was to run into the camera
field at a certain point in the struggle of the two men on the lip of
rock. To time the Indian girl's entrance was no small task. But at last
the characters seemed to be about letter perfect.

"Look out now! We're going to shoot it!" shouted Jim Hooley through his
megaphone. "Miss Fielding! Keep your eye on Onehorse. Keep him up to the
mark while he waits for Mr. Grand's speech. Now! Ready?"

It was at just this moment that Ruth felt something--s