The Count's Wooing

• 1909
• Other, Comedy

The daughter of a millionaire is in love with a plain ordinary American, but unfortunately not rich. One evening the young man asks the stern father for the hand of his daughter in marriage, but the old man refuses to grant his consent, because he has arranged a match with a French nobleman, the Count O. de St. Estephe, who is going to call the following day. When the girl is left alone, she indulges in shedding a few tears over the refusal of her father to grant his consent to the American. She is informed by a letter that a number of friends will come the same night to rehearse a play. She explains her trouble to her friends, and they decide that they will don costumes and play the parts of lunatics and thus scare the count out of his wits and drive him off. Well, what a circus they all had when the count made his appearance. One, dressed up as an American Indian, seizes the count by the hair and goes through motions as if to scalp him. Another appears dressed as a cowboy, who forces the count to dance at the point of a pistol. After he is through with the torture imposed upon him by these and also by others, he meets Lady Macbeth and later Ophelia. He is so much annoyed that he wants to make his escape, when suddenly one dressed as William Tell makes his appearance and places a pumpkin on the count's head. He is about to take aim with an arrow, when the poor count faints away. He is hit on the head and he comes to his senses. Many other incidents are depicted until he finally makes his escape and is seen approaching a policeman whom he asks for aid from the attacks of lunatics who have escaped from an asylum. The policeman, with extra reserves, arrives at the millionaire's house to capture the alleged lunatics. The millionaire has just arrived home and is enraged at the encroachment of the police and declares that the count is intoxicated, and orders him ejected. The father is now thoroughly disgusted with the count, and he grants his consent to the marriage of his daughter to the young American, thanks for the support of her friends.