One Touch of Nature (1914)

• 56%
• 1914
• Comedy
• Ashley Miller
• John Sturgeon
• Elizabeth Miller
• T. Tamamoto

Mr. Bradley had a very serious case of nerves. The cares and worries of his tremendous business interests reacted on his disposition to such an extent that he stayed in a perpetual state of ill nature. Everything seemed to go wrong, and nothing whatever pleased him. One day, Mr. Bradley set out to keep a business engagement, in his automobile. The car broke down on a lonely country road, and Mr. Bradley, after telling the chauffeur exactly what he thought of him, decided to walk the balance of the distance. After he had taken out a portion of his spleen on a wasps' nest, with somewhat unforeseen results, Mr. Bradley lost his way. After wandering about for some time, he met Freckles. Freckles was sitting beside a stream fishing. When Mr. Bradley angrily demanded that he be set upon his proper road at once, Freckles commanded him to keep back from the bank, lest he spoil the fishing. Mr. Bradley's wild anger was suddenly quieted by the sudden catching of a fish on Freckles' part. Interested in spite of himself, he settled down to watch the boy. Then, waxing enthusiastic, he cut himself a pole, and started to fish, too. The long and short of it all was that Mr. Bradley forgot all about his business engagement and settled down to a real outing with Freckles. They cooked their fish, and ate them with berries gathered by Freckles. They played mumbley-peg: and, finally, when the sun grew hot, went in swimming. The freedom and carelessness of it all wrought a miraculous change in Mr. Bradley. The frayed irritability of his ruffled nerves was smoothed out as though by a hot iron. So when night came on, he sent Freckles to Mrs. Bradley with a note telling her that he thought he would stay out in the woods for a few days. "Perhaps," he concluded, "It may improve my temper." Mrs. Bradley smiled curiously when she read her husband's letter. When Bradley awoke next morning, he was surprised to find himself wrapped in a blanket. Not far away, Mrs. Bradley, wrapped in another blanket, was sleeping on the ground. When she awoke, she informed her husband that she thought the best thing to do was for both of them to stay out there for a month.