Onesime, Clockmaker (1912)

Batty Bill has been left a legacy, but the cruel donor stipulated that it should not be given to him for twenty years. Poor Batty, besieged as ever by creditors, is in a great state of mind and is forced to his utmost resources to find a means of releasing this legacy. In his town all clocks are controlled by electricity from the local observatory, and he thinks of a brilliant idea, of breaking into this place one night, tampering with the arrangements and setting the clocks at a great pace. This is a very amusing picture, because the clocks begin to move at a tremendous speed. Automobiles go at an incredulous pace. Shoppers shop and are served almost before they get into the door. Walkers seem to be racing for dear life, and, in fact, the whole city is on a great hustle. Boys become men and young men grow beards, and in the space of about twenty-four hours, twenty years have passed. Batty Bill secures his fortune.