The story
“Mrs. Montague is an American society woman who had a great regard for titles. So when an English earl promised to pay a visit to her bungalow in the Western mountain region, she was delighted. In her mind’s eye, she should see herself the mother-in-law of an earl—for the earl was poor and the Montagues were rich, while the woman’s daughter was decidedly charming. Probably there would have been another international marriage, had it not been for the girl in this case. She had an American sweetheart and frowned upon the foreign nobleman, much to her mother’s sorrow. So Mrs. Montague, driven to desperation, finally evolved a plot which she believed would win the earl the success he sought.
“A Wild West show was giving performances near her summer home, and the earl, advised by Mrs. Montague, sought out the proprietor and hired his band of performing Indians. They were to capture the earl and the heiress. Then the earl was to be allowed to escape and free the woman whose hand he sought. But the young American suitor heard of the plot and decided to pay back the earl in his own coin. The show also had cowboys, and Jack engaged them and the proprietor, Rattlesnake Bill, to capture the Indians after they had captured the girl. The counterpart worked successfully, and so, instead of being regarded as a hero, the poor earl actually acquired quite a different reputation. He was figuratively and literally a ‘belted earl’ before he finished, and Mrs. Montague found that the real hero was the man her daughter loved, and she was willing to have him marry her. Rattlesnake Bill, who courteously helped both sides, as he agreed, was well satisfied. In fact, the only unhappy person was the earl.”
Summary from The Moving Picture World · 11 February 1911
