this," Burns stated at last, stepping
back. "When it's done, if you don't bungle the scene, it'll be done.
You stand here, Jean, and kind of lean against the rock as if you're
all in from that chase. You hear Gil coming, and you start forward and
listen, and look,--how far can she turn, Pete; without showing too much
of her face?"

Pete squinted into the finder and gave the information.

"Well, Gil, you come from behind that bush. She'll be looking toward
you then without turning too much. You grin, and come up with that
eager, I-got-you-now look. Don't hurry too much; we'll give this scene
plenty of time. This is the feature scene. Jean, you're at the end of
your rope. You couldn't run another step if you wanted to, and you're
cornered anyway, so you can't get away; get me? You're scared. Did you
ever get scared in your life?"

"Yes," said Jean simply, remembering last night when she had pulled the
blanket over her head.

"Well, you think of that time you were scared. And you make yourself
think that you're going to shoot the thing that scared you. You don't
put in half the punch when you shoot blanks; I've noticed that all
along. So that's why you shoot a bullet. See? And you come as close
to Gil as you can and not hit him. Gil, when you're shot, you go down
all in a heap; you know what I mean. And Jean, when he falls, you
start and lean forward, looking at him,--remember and keep your face
away from the camera!--and then you start toward him kind of horrified.
The scene stops right there, just as you start towards him. Then Gay
takes it up and does the remorse and horror stuff because she's killed
a man. That will be a close-up.

"All right, now; take your places. Sure your gun is loose so you can
pull it quick? That's the feature of this scene, remember. You want
to get it across BIG! And make it real,--the scare, and all that. Hey,
you women get behind the camera! Bullets glance, sometimes, and play
the very mischief." He looked all around to make sure that everything
was as it should be, faced Jean again, and raised his hand.

"All ready? Start your action! Camera!"

Jean had never before been given so much dramatic work to do, and Burns
watched her anxiously, wishing that he dared cut the scene in two and
give Muriel that tense interval when Gil Huntley came creeping into the
scene from behind the bush. But after the first few seconds his
strained expression relaxed; anxiety gav