The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-16
No. -"The Birth of a Ma
 tion'
By DOLLY DALRYMPLE


 It was perfect joy to me to see The Birth of a Nation' for more req sons than one; not only because 1t is the most marvellous moving picture that has ever been produced, but also because I had seen so many broad. suggestive, dramas so many 'outre" plays of one sort or an- other during my brief visit to New York that I fairly reveled In the beauty and whoesomeness and artistic effect of MT. Griffiths wonderful film drama.
 MT. Henry Arthur Jones remarked cnce upon a time that "the American drama is suffering from an overdose of ideas"
 Fact is, If MT. Jones had said an over dose of one idea, he would have been more correct in his statement, said idea being that of a perfectly good lady Cthe heroine. of course) gone wrong sometime between 20 years before the play opened and the end of the first act, and who tricked through scene after scene in tears and a black, spangled gown, ana turned on everybody at the end of the third act, when the proverbial bedroom scene was presented, and the expose came to light.
 Ladies gone wrong and deceived bus bands are the inevitable ingredients of ntdIly every pldy l1ldl IS Oll lie in New York today
 A bit of comedy, of course, if thrown in, and there usually is couple of ju- venle lovers to be paired neatly off as the curtain falls but the rest of the plot is the same everywhere-and 1t has been tead and toasted to tedium, and mani- cured to the thinness of tissue paper.
 After seeing half dozen or more of such plays, a body feels like exclaimmg with the unknown poet:
 "Oh, lovely lady we implore
 Please go away and sin no more,
 Or If that effort be too great,
 Just go away at any rate.'
 Only heaven and the Sage foundation fund.- know how many motion pictures are opera ting in New York today.
 Every adventurer with money enough to hire a blonde, a retired delicatessen shop, two rolls of tickets and 'ol of photographs has gone into the movies, it would seem.
 When papa comes home late all tired out and worn out, he can gather his little brood about him, including Mama" a3ess, little Willie Dorothy, Annie and susie and treat them to two murders, d train wreck, 'steen elopements and 5000 miles of the fastest horseback riding you ever saw all for the sum of cents each, put Watch! Look Listeni" Along comes MT. Impressario with more money ana bigger ideas. and behold; he rents one of the biggest theatres in New York, hand somely furnished and gorgeous equipped, produces a big screen play and up goes the price of admission
 The conquering host in this respect reaches his ultimatum in The Birth or d. Nation" where orchestra chairs are s2 each eff you buy them through ny son or Mcbride, they are S2.bO each), and would you believe it, with per formance every afternoon in the week and every evening you can scarcely get seats,
 That is what MT. David w. Griffith has done for the moving picture' busi- ness in New York by producing "The Birth of Nation"
 And better still. I'll say this, "The Birth of a Nation Is worth the price, oy cry cent of it. although as some old bum with half a dozen drinks under his belt said when he saw 1t.
 I'm disappointed; I thought they said this was The Breath of a Nation and 1t ain'tv
 Even so, the old bum to the contrary notwith standing, the picture is wonder ful, and to MT. Griffith, who has done one of the biggest things that has been done in modern photo-play, one feels like paying homage, not only to the rlan himself. but to American art as well, of which he is a magnificent ex- ponent, and so we render unto Caesar the things that are Caesars, and rank "The Birth of Nation" with the big things of the world-the eighth won- der"- so to speak.
 The Birth of a Nation" is the last word in the "movies"-it as reached | the summit-it is the apotheasis of the