“Stop the ship!” repeated scores of voices, when the nature of the accident was understood.

Discipline and boat drill were at a high state of perfection aboard the steamer, and soon, with a warning blast of her whistle, the craft trembled under the power of her reversed engines.

“Lower away a boat!  Smartly, men!” called one of the officers, as he ran up to the davits whence hung a life-boat.

And while preparations are under way to rescue the unfortunate actor, may I take just a few moments to acquaint my new readers with something of the former books of this series?

The initial volume was entitled “The Moving Picture Girls; Or, First Appearances in Photo Dramas.”  In that was related how Hosmer DeVere, a talented actor, suddenly lost his voice, through the return of a former throat ailment.  He was unable to go in his part in a legitimate drama, and, through the suggestion of Russ Dalwood, who lived in the same apartment house with the DeVeres, in New York, Mr. DeVere took up moving picture acting.

His two daughters, Ruth, aged seventeen, and Alice, aged fifteen, also became engaged in the work, and later they were instrumental in doing Russ Dalwood a great service in connection with a valuable patent he had evolved for a moving picture machine.

The second volume was called “The Moving Picture Girls at Oak Farm; Or, Queer Happenings While Taking Rural Plays.”  In that book was told how the acquaintance was made of Sandy Apgar, who ran a farm in New Jersey.  As Mr. Pertell was looking for some country scenes to use in connection with his moving picture dramas, he took his entire company out to Oak Farm, hiring it from the Apgars.

A curious mystery was solved by the girls, and other members of the company—­a mystery that involved the happiness of the old couple who owned Oak Farm, but were on the verge of losing it.

“The Moving Picture Girls Snowbound; Or, The Proof on the Film,” was the title of the third book.  As its name indicates, the girls and other members of the company were really snowbound.  After the summer at Oak Farm, and the fall spent in New York, Mr. Pertell decided to make some dramas in the backwoods of New England, where there was much snow and ice.  And for a time there was almost too much snow, for Elk Lodge, where the company of players was housed, was almost buried by a blizzard.

Before going to the backwoods, Mr. DeVere had been much annoyed, and alarmed, by an unjust demand, and how a certain illegal suit against an electric car company was called off, through a discovery made by Ruth and Alice, you may read of in the book.

Russ got “the proof on the film” and when this moving picture was shown privately it caused Dan Merley’s lawyer to say: 

“You win!  We are beaten!” And Mr. DeVere was at ease after that.

Many beautiful films were made at Elk Lodge, and some wonderful pictures of snow and ice scenes resulted from the trip to the backwoods.  Then the company returned to New York, and now we find them en route for Florida, when the accident to Mr. Towne occurred.