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the wonder horse, was ridden by the heavy deal with a new producer would have to
in several Selig films. include the Mix stock company.
In 1915 Mix brought his company to The end came when Selig sent an eff i-
California, first to Edendale, near the , Se- ciency expert to the Mix lot to investigate
lig studio, and later to Newhall. It was at ways of further trimming production
this time that Victor{a Forde, later to be costs. Tom told the story that the only
the fourth Mrs. Mix, became Tom's lead- way the "expert" could find to trim costs
ing lady. was to not feed oats to the horses that did
Throughout th.is year Selig's total out- not work in the day's shooting, but no
put remained constant, with the release of . doubt the efficiency expert suggested
some two hundred pictures. But by 1916 trimming several of the 9owboys from the
the fortunes of Selig were foundering, and payroll.
the studio combined its output with that of Mix would not stand for this and, with PORT OF MISSING MEN
several other producers in the former Victoria Forde, guaranteed th'e wages of
trust, first under the K-E-S-E (Kalem-Edi- the entire company while he sought a new (Contr nued from page 40)
son-Selig-Essanay) banner, and then with producer. He signed with William Fox in
the V-L-S-E (Vitagraph-Lubin-Selig-Essa- early 1917, with assurances on his com- in Billy's safe. That's vhy Billy kilt him."
nay) combine. T.he Selig-Tribune News- pany and his stock. It was a hearsay conversation lacking
reel became the studio's only regular re- Mix's ·greatest success lay ahead, but it in permissible court evidence, but it pro-
lease. Mix's pictures alternated with Se- was at Selig that he developed his talents vided a motive and a link to the floating
lig's other productions at the rate of one and screen personality. Mix was never to fleet. Besides, Billy had a reputation for
or two a month. lose control over the production of his pic- bragging just to scare people. Yet the ap-
Mix moved his company to Las Vegas, tures altogether, but neither was he to pearance of the victims in the harbor coin-
New Mexico, concentrating on the pro- have the same freedom that he had at Se- cided with Gohl's venture in the area.
0
duction of two-reel pictures, but the con- lig. Mix would go on to pioneer the
tinuing decline of the Selig company so-called "streamlined" Western, and Another piece of information to be
forced his return to Edendale. By the end create a new type of Western picture- but added to Chief Dean's file was brought by
of 1916, the Tom Mix Westerns were vir- the Selig comedies were themselves Paddy to Dean's kitchen late one night.
tually the only entertainment releases of unique. Rough as they are, the Selig pic- The Irishman asked the Chief if he had
the company. tures are infused with an honesty and heard anything about a Polish family at
Tom knew the end was near. He also _charm- they are a picture of ranch life by Lone Tree Point. When Dean said he
knew that his popularity would permit a cowboy, and in their way, perhaps, as hadn't, Paddy related Gohl's latest brag.
him to find another producer with very lit- valuable as all the thousands of Westerns Three harc;icases had slaughtered the Pol-
tle trouble. _But Tom had a great loyalty that have been produced in the fifty plus ish family's cattle and had raped the sev-
toward the Colonel, who had given him years since they were first shown in nick- enteen-year old daughter. Goh! said he
his big break. He also insi'sted that any elodeons across the nation. • had heard some sailors talking about it,
but Paddy couldn't understand why sailors
would go so far out of Aberdeen to cause
Tom dressed as a woman in A WESTERN MASQUERADE. _(1916)
trouble. Lone Tree Point was an area bet-
ter known to local people.
Taking a motorboat to Lone Tree Point
the next morning, Chief Dean and Detec-
tive K. Y. Church told the Polish family
they had heard about the incident. At first
the Polish farmer fearfully den.ied the sto-
ry until Dean, while looking around the
farm, was unable to find the three cows
owned by the family. The farmer admitted
what had happened, but he couldn't identi-
fy the men. The descriptions of the three
men fitted Goh! and two of his friends,
John Hoffman and Charles Hedberg.
Through Gobi's elaborate grapevine. he
learned of Dean's visit to the Polish fami-
ly. Gohl knew he had told only one person
about the incident at Lone Tree Point:
Paddy McHugh.
Goh! went downstaris to the bar where
the Irishman was tending bar. Leaning to-
ward Paddy, he coldly commented, "So
you've been rattling your cup to Dean
about that Polack family."
The stocky Irishman covered his fear
and surprise by laughing rather nervously.
· "Himself, you say? I wouldn't give the law
the time of day."
"Then how is it, you being the only per-
son I told, that Dean has been out ques-
tioning them Polacks?"
"Ah, man, I wouldn't know--unless
Hedberg or Hoffman's been bragging.
They talk a lot when they're drunk, you
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