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A Wild Ride
(1913) United States of America
B&W : Short film
Directed by Colin Campbell
Cast: Tom Santschi [Lieutenant Borden], Bessie Eyton [Florence MacGraw], Frank Clark [Donald MacGraw, Florence’s father], Lillian Hayward [Mrs. Donald MacGraw, Florence’s mother], Ferdinand Galvez (Fernando Gálvez) [Jahalli, a renegade], Wheeler Oakman [Leigh Jones, MacGraw’s foreman], Walter Scott (Walter F. Scott) [Layland Brown], Willie Scott (William Scott) [Willie]
The Selig Polyscope Company, Incorporated, production; distributed by The General Film Company, Incorporated. / Produced by William N. Selig. Scenario by Colin Campbell. / Released 12 July 1913. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format.
Drama.
Synopsis: [?] [From The Moving Picture World]? To contrast to the dreary, lonely, rural regions, the scene opens in Johannesburg, where the young heroine has a “coming-out” party, succeeding her graduation exercises. On this occasion she meets a dashing young Englishman who has just arrived in Africa to assume his duties at a remote military station up the country. It is a case of love at first sight, but the Englishman is too self-contained to be completely bowled over. However, the impression that the young woman makes upon him registers deeply. The young lady and her mother, having closed their townhouse, start for the far away farm, up country. They are halted, robbed and insulted at a lonely spot by a band of Zulus. Happily, the young soldier and his troop pass along the same way en route to their new station. They roundly trounce the rascals, return the goods, and see the ladies well on their way, after the young officer administers special treatment to the half-breed. This latter fact incurs the most venomous hostility on the part of the renegade, which smolders until it breaks into a fire of fierce vengeance that almost destroys the family at the farm. When he recovers from his wounds he haunts the neighborhood and inspires the half-frenzied Zulus to attack the farmer after they have driven off all the stock, so that they can wipe out the family at leisure without interruption or fear of rescue. The farmer and his family take refuge in the farmhouse, and as they have arms and ammunition, they put up a stout resistance against the savages. The daring daughter, observing that the ammunition is running low, knows that it will be merely a question of time before they are overcome. She escapes through the rear window of the house, makes her way to the ostrich pen, mounts her favorite riding bird, and speeds away across the trackless desert to secure help from the military station. She arrives in time so that several troops of cavalry immediately take to the saddle, return to the farm, followed by an elephant which carries a gatling-gun detail, so that the Zulus are thoroughly punished, the ringleader killed, and the family are rescued and gather about the ruins of their burned house ready to begin life anew with greater assurance of protection than ever before.
Survival status: (unknown)
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Listing updated: 13 September 2023.
References: Lahue-Selig p. 154 : Website-IMDb.
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