The Lost Letter's primary photo
  • The Lost Letter (1909)
  • Short | Short, Drama
Primary photo for The Lost Letter
The Lost Letter (1909)
Short | Short, Drama
A pathetic Western drama. Sam and Jim arc two miners living in a shack near their claim in Nevada. Jim is dying of consumption. Sam, his big-hearted partner, tells him, "I will bring a doctor to help you, Jim, if it takes every ounce of ...See moreA pathetic Western drama. Sam and Jim arc two miners living in a shack near their claim in Nevada. Jim is dying of consumption. Sam, his big-hearted partner, tells him, "I will bring a doctor to help you, Jim, if it takes every ounce of gold we have." Sam takes their bag of gold nuggets and flees for the only doctor within fifty miles. Several hours pass. Racked by pain, Jim is about to kill himself when he notices the name of his partner, Sam Lewis, is carved on the handle of the dagger. To prevent suspicion falling upon his chum, Jim writes a note as follows: "Dear Sam, I'm done for. I can't stand the pain, so I'm going to end it with your knife Keep my share of the gold. Goodbye, old pal, Jim." Jim places the note on the table and the poor fellow stabs himself. A strong wind blows the door open and sends the letter flying across the room into a corner. The discovery of the dead body of Jim, with Sam's dagger covered with blood near him, and Sam gone leads the sheriff and miners to quickly agree on the verdict, "Murdered by his pal, Sam Lewis." The sheriff overtakes Sam, searches him and finds the bag of nuggets. Sam protests his innocence but the sheriff answers, "We will hang you for this murder." A terrific fight between the men follows. Sam gets the sheriff's revolver and escapes. The sheriff again overtakes Sam and in the struggle that follows, Sam falls over the edge of a precipice. The plucky sheriff lets himself down with a rope to the bottom of the ravine, finds Sam stunned by his fall, captures him and takes him back to camp. The miners immediately lead Sam off to lynch him. But fate works in strange ways. A half drunken miner, looking for a stopper for his whiskey flask, picks up the lost letter that Jim wrote exonerating Sam. The man dashes after the lynching party and overtakes them with the letter just as the lynchers are about to send Sam into Eternity. The sheriff reads Jim's last letter to the crowd and Sam is released and cheered. Our last scene shows the grave of Jim. A rough board states that he was murdered by his pal, Sam Lewis. The sheriff escorting Sam and followed by all the men in the mining camp, orders the board to be removed and a handsome new board does justice to "A True Pal." The miners leave Sam with his dead comrade. The simple, great-hearted fellow bursts into tears and falls on the grave of his chum. Written by Moving Picture World synopsis See less
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Producer
David Horsley
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Status
Edit Released
Updated Aug 18, 1909
Release date
Aug 18, 1909 (United States)

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