The Better Way
Directed by Norval MacGregorGeorge Ogden is cursed with a quick temper and well-nigh ruined by his own self-indulgence. He marries a beautiful girl, Anna Wilson, but, after a few years, his fondness for whiskey overcomes his better traits, and life becomes almost unbearable for her. The beautiful home becomes a hollow mockery. Her husband's only sober hours are spent at his business; at home he is a grouch, and after a few drinks, becomes a snarling, disagreeable beast. Eventually this wears her out and wrecks her health. She is, however, brave and trustful and sticks by the man she wedded "for worse," but the cause is discovered by Dr. Phillip Grant, a friend of her husband, who attends her. He finds that her case is beyond medical aid, and takes it upon himself to administer a stinging reproof to Ogden, concerning the peril of his dissolute habits for his ultimate ruin. Ogden does not receive this advice in any kindly spirit; in fact, he grows wilder and drinks deeper and when the doctor calls the second time and speaks to him, he dashes the decanter to the floor, deserts his house in a furious heat, and in a wild, insane way, goes far away on a hunting trip, and leads a hermit's life in a mountain cabin. In addition to firearms, he has a large supply of "fire-water," so that what might have been a cure, sticks like a curse. One day, while hunting, he falls upon his gun, and the accidental discharge of the piece strikes him in the head and leaves him severely wounded and unconscious. Two farmers find him, take him to the house, summon medical assistance and eventually he is nursed back to life, the daughter of the family, Esther, being most assiduous in her attention, his recovery is shown as the scene dims. Time passes quickly. Ogden has been restored to physical health, thanks to the splendid nursing and the alienation of the poison that sapped his strength, but his mind is entirely blank regarding the past. In the meantime, his wife in the big city house finds that he has not only lived up to his income, but was overliving it, and is seriously involved in debt. She has every reason to believe that he has basely deserted her, and starts out bravely to make her own living. At the suggestion of good old Dr. Grant, she enters a training school, studies nursing and eventually enters the hospital as a nurse where he is chief surgeon. There she meets Harold Scott, Dr. Grant's assistant, and friendship ripens into love. Several years have passed. Anna thoroughly believes that Ogden has deserted her, and she is granted a divorce. In the interim, the one-time active city man of affairs and business, works out of doors on Caleb Jackson's farm, happy and thoroughly contented. His whole nature has changed, and in his simple, kindly manner, he woos and wins Esther Jackson. When he approaches her father regarding the marriage, the latter hesitates because he has no definite knowledge of Ogden's past. The fact is he is deficient, and the country practitioner who had his case in hand advises his friend to consult a city specialist. As a result of this, they take Ogden to a hospital, strangely enough that is conducted by Dr. Grant. He at once recognizes his patient, but at once decides it is best for all concerned not to reveal the knowledge of his identity. The doctor realizes that if an operation is successfully performed, the chances are all in favor of Ogden's former nature asserting itself. He takes the unusual stand that an operation in view of these facts might prove disastrous, and sternly advises against it. Later, Anna and Dr. Scott are married, and the old doctor sees him off on their honeymoon. On his return to the hospital, he finds a letter from Caleb, asking whether or not Ogden's injury would be a bar to his marriage with Esther, and Grant, fortified in self-consciousness that his decision was the better way, assures him there will be no danger in such a union.
