New-York tribune., 1915-09-10
BY HEYWOOD BROUN.

War is thc theme 'The Battle
Cry of Peace" the feature film which
was produced last night at the Vita
graph Theatre. The picture shows a
war not at wireless and cable range
but well within the corporate limits
Of New York.
IT will not be pleasant, this doorstep
war. II 1t comes, and some parts of the
moving picture shown last night were
not artistic because of the manner in
which the horrors were piled on. But
that Is the way of war. Conflict leaps
over the rules of art as nimbly as if
they were so many articles Of the
Hague Convention.
"The Battle Cry of Peace" is frankly
a propaganda play for preparation, and
as such II is always earnest, always
persistent and at times decidedly elo-
quent. The personal interest in the
drama is lost now and again, bat the
central theme of the necessity Of arma-
ment is always in mind.
Their. are thrills by the yard. hor-
rors slowly drawn out inch by inch and
not a few feet of good comedy The
achievements Of the camera are re-
markahle. The company which was
employed ir making The Battle Cry
OF Peace" must have left devastated
region benind il like Belgium in the
path Of the Germans. A train is
wrecked merely to point a passing ar
gumen. for the hero. and building
after building goes down under heavy
gunfire or bombs from the sky.
Enormous crowds are employed in
the scenes of panic and big masses OF
troops pictured as they charge in the
face Of shrapnel. There is also a large
scale naval battle and some decidedly
interesting views showing the man9uv-
ring Of submarines. But the best of all
the pictures concerned one of the hor-
rore Of peace the shOot-the -chutes at
Coney Island. II was a picture taken
from the prov of a boat as il came
down the long slide, and when the
craft struck the water an entire house
ful OF spectators was bounced high in
the air once. twice and again.
The Coney Island scene is shown be-
fore the declaration of war when
everything is peace in the homes of the
Harrisons and the Vandergriffs. In
particular peace rests on the home OF
the Vandergriffs, for the head of that
family is an advocate Of disarmament.
An enemy spy urges him on in the
work. John Harrison, who loves Vir-
ginia Vandergriffs. is an advocate OF
preparation, but his words are little
needed and the dread day comes when
there are no box scores on the first
page of the evening papers, but only
war in Cheltenham type of about 200
point.
The announcement of the beginning
of hostlities is made in a salmon
sheet which has been the greatest
thorn in the side of the German armies
ever since the war began, and we for
one were inclined to doubt the au-
thenticity of the report until shell
came in the window of Harmony Hall
and broke up peace meeting Shells
came fast then and bombs. too. Down
60 houses, sheds, bridges and all IN
the face of the devastating fire. The
guns of the harbor forts are shown
in action, but they are outranged by
the feet of the enemy and the army or
Emanon lands in New York.
With the foe come the horrors. John
Harrison and Mr.. Vsndergrift, the
peace advocate. are shot Harrison
subsequently, RECEIVERS in miraculous
fashion only to die Of bayonet thrust.
Virginia Vandergrift shoots the enemy
spy and in the most horrible scene Of
ali Mrs. Vandergrift kills her two
daughters to save them from drunken
soldiers. The shooting Of the little
girl by her mother is quite the most
horrible thing we have ever seen on
stagc or screen. The agony is piled on
in fearful fashion. But if the sue
cess of the campaign for preparation
rests upon soaring people into a reali-
zation Of the needs for defences we can
stand any horrors pictured for a good
cause. Preparation may keep our hor-
rors on the screen. Lay on Macduf,
say we.