''Her Country's Call'' is a 1917 American silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by Lloyd Ingraham and starring Mary Miles Minter, along with

George Periolat George Periolat (February 5, 1874 – February 20, 1940) was an American actor. Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, George Periolat began his career as a Broadway actor. Making his film debut with the Essanay Studios in Chicago, he moved to H ...

and

Allan Forrest Allan Forrest Fisher (September 1, 1885 – July 25, 1941) was an American silent film actor. Life and career Allan Forrest Fisher starred in 119 films, mostly silent, between 1913 and 1932. He appeared in films such as '' The Torch Bearer'', ...

. The film is the final instalment in a series a films written by

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

impersonator Benjamin Chapin, who also appeared in the film as Lincoln. It was one of many films of the time that catered to the vogue for patriotic pictures after America joined

World War 1 World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, with ample shots of soldiers and the American flag. As with many of Minter's features, it is thought to be a

lost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy o ...

.The Library of Congress/FIAF American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''Her Country's Call''
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Plot

As described in various film magazines, Jess Slocum (Minter), a little mountain girl, lives in a cabin with her father Jim (Periolat). Jim Slocum hates the flag, and hates the soldiers that they can see drilling in the valley below, and when Jess asks him why, he explains that he was thrown out of camp fifteen years earlier for selling liquor to the soldiers. He tells Jess that he had his revenge, but does not elaborate further. One day, Jess meets a soldier from the camp, Captain Neville (Forrest), while he is fishing in a nearby stream. Attracted to the handsome soldier, she convinces her father to buy her a pretty new dress. While she is trying it on, secret service men open fire on the cabin, wounding Jess in the shoulder. Jim Slocum is arrested on the charge of moonshining, and Jess is taken to Captain Neville's house, to be nursed there by his sister. As she is recovering, Captain Neville teaches her to sound the bugle calls. The girls of the town, led by the Colonel's daughter Marie (Shelby), shun Jess due to her father's arrest and so, when she is well enough, she sets out to return to her old cabin. On the way she sees John Reynolds (Dearholt) tear down the flag, and hears him plotting to raid the town while the soldiers are at a dance. Jess shoots him, then rides back to town and sounds the call to arms on the bugle. Reynolds and his raiders are defeated, and Colonel Tremaine (Barrows) receives a letter from Jim Slocum which finally reveals the nature of his old revenge; fifteen years ago, he stole the Colonel's baby daughter and raised her as his own. Thus Jess is the saviour of the town, and finds herself a new father, a new sister, and a handsome husband in Captain Neville.

Cast

* Mary Miles Minter - Jess Slocum *

- Jim Slocum *

- Capt. Earle Neville *

Henry A. Barrows Henry Arthur Barrows (April 29, 1875 – March 25, 1945) was an American actor who appeared in films from 1913 to 1936. Burrows performed in supporting roles for American, Astra, Biograph, Brentwood, Pathe, Universal, and Vitagraph studios. H ...

- Col. Tremaine *

Margaret Shelby Alma Margaret Reilly (June 16, 1900 – December 21, 1939), known professionally as Margaret Shelby, was an American stage and motion picture actress, daughter of actress Charlotte Shelby, older sister of silent film star Mary Miles Minter ...

- Marie Tremaine * Ashton Dearholt - John Reynolds * Benjamin Chapin -

Reception

Like many American films of the time, ''Her Country's Call'' was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. The Chicago Board of Censors required a cut of the scenes of selling whiskey to an Indian and the shooting of a guard.

References

External links

* {{Lloyd Ingraham 1917 films 1917 drama films American Civil War films American war drama films American historical fiction American silent feature films American black-and-white films Fictional depictions of Abraham Lincoln in film Films set in the 1860s Films set in the 19th century Lost American films Films directed by Lloyd Ingraham 1910s American films Silent American drama films Silent war drama films 1910s English-language films English-language war drama films