The Trail of the Lost Chord (1913)
The interpretation of the poem, as set forth in the film, shows Father Josef seated at an organ in the chapel in the winter of his life. His ward comes to him with the information that the parent of his sweetheart is dying and wishes to see her united in marriage to him before his demise. Father Josef goes to the bedside and performs the ceremony and tells them that fifty years before he, himself, was about to be wed in this self-same room. The ceremony awakens a train of memories and, returning to the chapel, he sees in retrospection the long years he has lived since he entered on "The Trail of the Lost Chord." He sees himself in the long ago, a young musician and giving lessons on the pianoforte to Marie, the daughter of the old Spanish Grandee. He becomes lover and teacher at the same time, until Marie's father returns and. learning of the state of affairs, drives him from his home as a dreamer and idler. Filled with grief at the injustice of it all, he meets Father Superior of the Franciscan Order, who cheers him and infuses determination into him. The priest secures him a position in the orchards of a wealthy merchant and he toils until he possesses an orchard of his own. Then proving to Marie's father that he is not a dreamer, he secures her father's consent to the marriage. On the morning of his wedding day, seated at his pianoforte, in the glad rejoicing of his approaching happiness, he unconsciously strikes a combination of chords that sound like a "Grand Amen." He goes to Marie's home and the wedding party starts for the old Mission, but his happiness is destined not to be. Marie's horse throws her, and the frantic lover gathers her up in his arms and carries her to the home he has toiled years to gain. He sends for the Father Superior, but when the aged priest arrives, Marie is too near the borderland to respond to the marriage ceremony. The grief-stricken boy closes his home and goes out to seek happiness, and to do good. Starting on his journey he finds a family being evicted from their home. He brings happiness by giving them his home and again starts out on his errand of love. The grave of Marie is his shrine, and it is here the aged Father Superior finds him. Leading him gently to the chapel, the priest points out that here he will find the nearest approach to peace, until, in Nature's own time, he will join Marie in the Great Beyond. In the years that follow, he finds solace in deeds of mercy and charity. He is called by a dying mother to protect her boy from a drunken father. He raises the boy to reverence the church and hopes that he will also accept the Holy Orders, but the boy learns to love, and the priest, remembering his own sad life, gives his consent, and with it, the renunciation of his fondest and dearest hope. And now his mission is accomplished; the marriage is consummated and he returns to the chapel to ponder on the mystery of life. As he looks up the spirit of his lost love appears to convey his soul to its reward, and Father Josef at last has found his "Lost Chord."
All Releases
Domestic
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International
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Worldwide
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GenresDrama
Romance
Short
IMDbPro
See more details at IMDbPro
| Filmmakers | Role |
|---|---|
| Tom Ricketts | Director |
| Clarence J. Harris | Writer |
| Adelaide Anne Procter | Writer |
| Cast | Role |
|---|---|
| Edward Coxen | |
| Winifred Greenwood | |
| Peter Clark | |
| George Field |
