In this two-reel subject the Kalem Glendale studio shows us what it can do in the way of an Indian Western picture. Producer George Melford has used as a basis for a stirring melodrama an actual incident in the early history of the Far West. He has selected his backgrounds with great care; he has shown fine technical skill in placing his camera so that these backgrounds are revealed to us in all their grandeur; and excellent photography adds to the charm of the views of mountain and dale. There are many scenes of big fields, one of them reminding us of the effective setting of the attack on a wagon train in a previous Kalem picture, "The Frenzy of Firewater." The settlers have thrown their wagons into the form of a circle about the paling-enclosed blockhouse. The camera is placed on a hill so that the attack in the valley is shown in all its details. One of the features of the play is the exploding of the powder magazine, which wrecks the building and carries annihilation to the defenders of the blockhouse. Of the scenes that stand out, one of the best is where the troop of cavalry rides out to find the Indians. Their route takes them along the ridge of a long hill; riding in single file the military figures are outlined against the skyline and form an effective picture. Another scene worthy of special mention is the duel with knives between the settler Jim and the half-breed Crow. It is stirring and not revolting; it is what men will call a "real scrap." The cast is excellent. There is that soldier of fortune. General C. Rhys Pryce, veteran of the Boer war and officer under Madero in the late Mexican insurrection, if not in the latest one, at least in the one that succeeded up to the time this is written. General Pryce has the part of Captain Steele of the United States Cavalry. He has done previous work in pictures, but in this production he shows improvement in his appearance before the camera. He does not betray the consciousness that he did in his early characterization. Carlyle Blackwell has the role of Jim, a settler. He carries his part well. William H. West plays Jack, the other settler. This old veteran of the operatic stage as well as of the pictures has done no better screen work than he does here. Paul Hurst is most convincing as Crow, the half-breed; he has the bearing, the converted physiognomy, that make the part. Knute Rahmn gives us one of his well-known Indian portrayals as Pasac, a chief. Last, but by no means least, is the little woman who has the role of Dot, the wife of Jim, Marin Sais. There are two scenes in which she has an opportunity for the display of ability. They are particularly difficult ones, difficult in so far that it requires balanced judgment to avoid exaggeration. She has been seized by the half- breed and thrown into his tent. She is in his power. You feel the terror she displays only in her eyes. It is fine work. - The Moving Picture World, January 18, 1913
