In the Right of Way

John Burton, a railroad clerk from the east, was spending his vacation hunting in the wild lands about John Walsh's shack. One morning, as he was eagerly following a large hawk, which he had already wounded, he lost his balance on the edge of a cliff and plunged down to the stony ground below. His cries for help attracted Walsh's attention and he was taken to the latter's cabin, where he was tenderly cared for by Walsh and his wife, until he was able to return to his duties in the east. Walsh's wife was the apple of his eye, but, like most things that we love, she did not last, and twenty years later we find him a broken old man, living in the days that are gone.

Directed by William F. Haddock, In the Right of Way leans on a strong ensemble — Francis Ford, William Clifford, Eleanor Blanchard — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about western titles of 1911.