I wasn’t aware until now that Jules White even directed silent comedies. I’ve seen SIDEWALKS OF NEW YORK and some of his horrifying DOGVILLE COMEDIES, but this very well may be the earliest film I’ve ever seen from him. And if it wasn’t clear already, this is very much proof that his style did not change much over the years. It definitely does feel like a Stooges setup, albeit without the team dynamic that made those shorts work so well. This short also shows that Jules White’s obsession with shooting tacks at his comics is there from the beginning. As far as comedy goes, this does have one great sequence, when Monte is attempting to put the books in the trunk. I love the way Monte tries pretending to lift nonexistent books into the trunk, as though that will somehow solve his problem. It’s timed well, you do get the idea that the trunk is out to get him; it reminds me a lot of the ironing board gag from SING A SONG OF SING PANTS. It works, but again, it’s the type of thing you can see in lots of White comedies, and Dent is definitely wasted in this effort; this very much could have been a solo Collins effort and they wouldn’t have even had to change that much to do so. Interesting from a historical standpoint, but not much beyond that.