Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1923-06-17
''7He Ten Commandments
Cecil B. De M;Ne's Screen Version

small fires rose from before the many
| tents as the women busted themselves
with the preparation of food. It was
happy camp, the camp of liber-
Here and there lookout lounged.
Then. while the whole colorfui
scene was fresh to my eyes. quick.
action began. Two OF the iookouts
| discovered the advancing war chart
| OTIS OF the Egyptians. for Pharaoh had
| broken his promise and had sent his
army in purusit Of the Jews. AT once
| the camp was in wild confusion.
and waited. bows drawn: Screaming
mothers sought their children; sheep.
! goats. camels and cattle charged here
and there and trampled tents and the
| inmates, while frantic men and
women cried for Moses to lead and
| advise and command.
In the prologue to the De Mile
| production the biblical story will be
followed with fidelity through the
days of wandering In the wilderness.
mandments and will then destroy the
| golden calf, which the faint-hearted,
led by Aaron, have set UP to worship.
4 The golden calf Is dissolved into dust
I will fade In upon the opening scene
| of the modern sequence Of the play.
| an American mother in San Fran
! cisco reading the Ten Commandments
| to her two sons.
Moses Based ON Painting.
And then Moses strobe across the
sands and climbed the rock-a truly
| patriarchial Moses, who bore a strik-
| ing resemblance to the Moses whom
| Sargent has made famous in oils. 1t
| was Theodore Roberts, garbed and
| made up after the Sargent painting.
| Detached, statuesQue he stood with
| folded arms. looking out across the
4 - he
fate OF his people. A crowd gathered
around the rock. Old men and
| striplings. mothers with babes in
! their arms; grandmothers with wrin-
killed. shrunken faces and stringy
white hair were jostled by strong
Moses for having led them into a.
trap. Aaron. the doubter. pushed
his way through the supplicants and
| pointed to a distant hill down which
| vengeful pursuit. The women walled
while the waves washed higher.
Just then the clouds cleared. It was
almost sunset and the nearly level
rays of the sun made a halo around
the figure of the prophet, gave
startling radiance to his face. He
looked down on the throng with pity
and human sympathy. ignored the
, rantings Of Aaron. gave one scorn-
full glance at the advancing Egyptians
and then raised his arms in prayer
of faith.
One rock Is thrown. then another.
then a hail of them fills the air. The
prophet is being stoned-but still he
prays.
The miracle happens then. The pill
lar of fire cuts off the paths down
which the Egyptians are coming,
Moses opens his eyes. and with a look,
of thankfulness and pride and faith
justified. turns to lead his people
dry shod across the bed of the sea.
A Scene the Camera Misses.
But still the men and women kneel
in the sand praying even while the
incoming tide sends wave over their
feet and knees. And st Is not all
streaking the makeup on many
cheeks.
Then the light failed and the long
trek back to camp was begun. Over
the sands in all directions the people
and animals streamed in the twilight
Sand sleighs there were by the score
men on galloping horses, oxen yoked
to heavy carts of ancient pattern
camels with their swaying howdahs
and even several hundred men toll
ing across the sands afoot with
blankets or bath robes huddled over
their costumes. That was one mem
orable picture that the cameras did
not get.
Copyright. 1923. in United States and
Great Britain, by North American Newspaper
. A