The River Pirates

Biograph summary: In "THE RIVER PIRATES" we have a sensational production in which most of the scenes are on the water, the action being based on the recent raid of sound pirates on the summer residence of Mrs. Bonner, at Stamford, Conn., where they secured a safe containing over $12,000 worth of valuables, carrying it bodily to their sloop, and getting away with it in safety. Neither the pirates have been discovered, nor the valuables recovered at the time of the issuing of this bulletin. Our picture, therefore, in many of its scenes is imaginary. We start out with a short scene showing the villain of our plot being jilted by the daughter of a wealthy landowner. He departs vowing vengeance on the entire household. The opening of the scene proper shows the rendezvous of the pirates beneath an abandoned pier. The villain enters and puts up the scheme to loot the residence, and when a spy threatens to peach he is promptly seized by the rest of the gang, secured to a pile by ropes, and left to the mercy of the incoming tide. The gang of cut-throats depart, and the spy only releases himself after desperate efforts. The second scene shows the gang in a large rowboat approaching the shore and disembarking. Following this the robbery in the house occurs, the owner is murdered, and the thieves make away with an eight hundred pound safe. This they carry down to the shore, as shown in the succeeding scene, and with difficulty load it into their boat and row out to a sloop, which they capture after a sharp fight with the owner and some of his friends aboard. The safe is then hoisted upon the deck of the sloop, and the pirates are about to make good their escape when the police come into view, guided by the spy of the story. The pirates, in their haste to escape, drop the safe overboard, and it goes down with a tremendous splash. They have just time enough to get into their boats and get away when the police are close after them. A running fight between the boats then ensues, with an exchange of shots and a general uproar. The final scene is back under the pier, where the police close in on the thieves. There is a desperate gun battle and, as a climax, the spy and the gentleman villain have a hand-to-hand fight with knives, resulting in the death of both. The action throughout is exceedingly exciting, and the work in arrangement and composition considerably above the average.