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Show TURNING THE CRANK 'MID SHOT AND SHELL ON WAR'S HORRORS Heart Stirring Adventures of Operators in Taking Balkan War Scenes. One Is Bayoneted and Another, Captured, Barely Escapes Death As a Spy. With bullets whistling over their heads and the clash of steel Bounding in their ears, the camera men employed hv the photoplay companies to obtain pictures of the Balkan war successfnllv carried on their work, according to statements made by Angus Hamilton, detailed by the Central .News Agency of London to furnish information rc-garding rc-garding the tightiug. "The motion picture boys were absolutely abso-lutely fearless." he declared as he talked in his room in the Hotel Astor. New York City, of the rout of the Turkish army before Tchatalja "I saw one poor fellow bayoneted by the Turks as he was turning the crank of his machine ma-chine He had previously been taking pictures during a heavy shell tire at a distance of KX) yards from the Bulgarian Bul-garian army. Hfs name was Wilkins, but ju?t what motion picture company he represented I cannot recall "We rescued him with difficulty from the Turks, who wished to finish him It was impossible to explain, of course, that he had been with the Turkish side during the campaign, and, though he displayed his pass, it did not prevent him from being bayoneted. Fie was severely but not mortally hurt." DARING DEATH FOR PICTURES Mr Hamilton said that he had varely witnessed such daring as was shown by the motion picture men, particularly the operators employed by the Pathe l rercs. the Gaumont and the Kinema-color Kinema-color companies He himself had many thrilling experiences and took a number of motion pictures. Delegated to the Turkish side, he made his wa through various perils to the firing line with Ins motion picture machine In his desire to witness the actual lighting he approached ap-proached too closely to the allies' lines and was captured by the latter force while with a detachment of Turkish soldiers. Suspected of being a Turkish officer and a spy, he was bound and thrown into an improvised jail. He was not permitted an opportunity to defend him-seli him-seli In order to determine whether or not he was a Turk he was stripped of his clothes and the color of his skin examined Finally he was condemned to death, but as he was about to be shot a Bulgarian officer of superior rank met the luing party and a further inquiry was held. After he had been detained twenty-one days he was released In describing the difficulties of the camera men Mr. Hamilton said "They carried their heavy outfits on the backs of two ponies It look them about fifteen minutes to pet their machines ma-chines ready for use They were not .emitted to carrv weapons , .f anv sort and were exposed at times to tlic fire of both the Turks and the allies bc-catisc bc-catisc of the dangerous middle ground which they were frequently compelled to occupy. "The public wants scenes of actual fighting, and some of the boys exposed themselves recklessly. It was a case "t quickly reeling of! a couple of hundred feet and then scuttling back into s.iietv behind a hillock With their heavy kit. heavier than that ol the ordinary soldier, sol-dier, this was no easy matter Even .ifter they obtained their pictures they frequently had to suffer from the stupidity stu-pidity and officiousncss of both Bulgarian Bul-garian and Turkish officers, who insisted insist-ed upon 'censoring' their pictures. ALWAYS L'NDER FIRT "Motion picture operators with the Bulgarian army were not permitted to go within twenty miles of the frinc lines On the Turkish side, however, no limit was set and the boys advanced to the front. The Pathe operator, for instance, in-stance, took bis pictures at the muzle of the Turkish guns and was constantly under fire. The Gaumont men, too, risked their lives hundreds of times in a day's work. They slaked their lives against a comparatively insignificant salary. "The Pathe and Gaumont men would not agree to field censorship and their films were sent to Constantinople where the Turkish War Office passed them safely and without mutilation. "When I was sentenced to death my own camera was taken away from nie by the Bulgarians 1 made an attempt through the Briu h consul at Sofia to recover my plates, but I heard later that it was not successful. "During the advance on Tchorln my camera and tripod were blown over by the wind of a shell which exploded near me. Things were rather exciting for a while and my plates, 1 think, were confiscated to find out some of the Turkish secrets. Perhaps I shall be able to recover the plates some day AT WORK ON THE Ftr.LD "The motion picture operators were at great disadvantage in their work They were compelled to carry their apparatus ap-paratus in six rr seven sections in bather cases It is a job equal to the efforts of two men to set up the tripod and camera, and when shells arc bursting burst-ing all about the work must necessarily be done in a hurry Sometimes the ma chine would hardly be set up before the Turks would sound a retreat Then it was necessary to hastily pack up again and take to the ponies. As a rule the motion picture men wtri the last to leave the field and frequently the Bulgarian cavalry mistaking them for furks, subjected them to a Heavy tire" Mr Hamilton believes that it will he necessary to m.-d.e 'mprovemcilts in motion mo-tion picture machines before they will do perfect woik in takinR war pictures |