The Washington herald., 1916-10-03
Seen and Heard by George Miner.

Seen and Heard by George Miner.
New York. Oct. Now that Villa has come
to the front again l wondering if any mo-
tion picture men will try to hook up a partner
ship with him they did formerly.
Never were any battles fought with quite
such an opera boufe element in them as Villa
injected when he was a revolutionary cheftain
and moving picture director at the time.
STILL they were real enough battles for all that
with an overabundant amount OF horror.
In return for large sum Of money Villa
agreed that all the fighting should be done be-
tween the hours of in the morning and in the
afternoon when the light best for the cam
era Surprising it may seem | am as
sured by Francis A. Collins, who knows all about
the affair, and by l. NJ. Burrud, who was the
photographer for the movie company, that Villa
II kept his word absolutely.
He made no night attacks because they could
not be photographed and, despite many tempta-
tions, when the hour of ! arrived he would stop
fighting and postpone the battle until the next
day when the light right Sometimes he
even impered his troops by doing this when
they should have followed up an advantage they
had gained and failure to do so might turn the
tide.
An operator for the Warwick Trading Com
rany, OF London, who took moving pictures of the
Russo japanese war, told me that once a Jap
general held back charge until he up with
his camera and had it we'll placed, but nobody
was ever so obHging in this respect Francisco
Villa. OF course. he did not do it out of kind
ness. No ever accused Villa OF ever doing
anything out of kindness. He wouldn't know
how.
Mr.. Burrud says that one day the machine
guns had actually been placed in position to meet
an expected charge. He had set up his camera
nearby. His range was OF course, much less
than the guns The situation explained to
Villa, who ordered his men not to begin firing
until the camera man gave the signal. The men
behind the guns actually stood the enemy's fire
without returning it until the advancing troops
were within range. Then Mr. Burrud be-
gan turning the crank OF his machine. That was
the signal The rapid frers began to spit streams
of lead and the charge checked
Once Villa ordered twenty political prisoners
to be shot that Burrud could make moving
picture Aim Of the execution, and to entertain
Villa. Burrud pretended to examine his films and
find them defective. He explained that it would
be useless to take the picture then and that the
only thing to dc w2s to wait until he could get
new supply. BY the time a new supply came
Villa had changed his mind and the massacre
was prevented.
As result of his own vanity, Villa lost his
income from the movies, and Mr. Burrud had to
leave his camp in hurry
In addition to photographing the actual fight
ing Burrud was called upon almost daily to make
long films of Villa himself Whenever there was
new horse or uniform he was ordered
out to take it. Villa developed a perfect obses,
sion for being photographed Naturally Rurrud
sot very tired of it. One day when there was
very trivial reason for the film Burrud went
through the motions of taking film without
leading his ca:ncia. When it was over, he turn
I'd to his assist mt and said:
81 fooled the old peacock that time The
cameras empty"
Unfortunately d Mexicar star ding nea- by
understood English and overheard the remark
He told Villa. There was an awful row. Bur
rud was ordered to pack up and go home without
moments delay.
And if you were not an American" Villa
shouted at him, Il would have you stood up
against the nearest wall and shot"
! That's the fellow that at that particular time
we were petting and making much of and sup
I plying with war munitions and Gen. Wood was
ProclaIming the Napoleon of Mexico.
We surely did go off half cooked about Villa
! When it was reported last spring that Villa
had been killed, the army officers selected Burrud
| to visit Chihuahua and identify the body. He
had focused him so many times that nobody else
was so we'll prepared for the task. As you may
remember, Burrud was mobbed by the Mexicans
and nearly got killed, but he found that the dead
man was not Villa. So that lie was nailed to the
lens.
The Felerad reserve banks have been the
| financial bulwark of the country during two years
demOTalIZed