Cirrus@Austlit

'The details are faithful in every respect, for the story is composed by a man who is thoroughly familiar with Australian racing conditions. In addition to the dramatic, there is a gripping love interest. A beautiful girl, tortured by the idea that the man she loved was crooked, unknowingly works with him to expose a low trick. The unfortunate "rough passage" of Laurie Larland. who, upon his return from the war, finds himself jilted and 'broke,' his subsequent attempt to regain his lost manhood, his fight to prevent crooked work upon the race track, and the grand finale, when he unmasks the villains and wins happiness in the arms of his chosen one, is all so well told that "A Rough Passage" cannot fail to please the most exacting.'

Source: 'At the Pav. An Australian Picture', Register [Adelaide], 26 September 1924, p.15.

'The plot centres on the well-known sentiment, 'To err is human; to forgive, divine.' The play cannot be accused of any lack of humanity. It tells of a girl who loved unwisely. It tells, too, of the handsome lover who smiled, and passed on, and forgot. Then there is a wife who blighted her own life by effecting a divorce from a man she loved; and, lastly, there is the dainty, nameless girl who proved that every father should know and love, and do justice to, his child. This is a film with a purpose, and it holds through its human appeal and entertainment value. [...] Would it be possible, do you think, for any man to fall in love with his own daughter ? And, knowing the girl of his heart to be such, what would a real man do? Ray Stanford, in Know Thy Child, answers both questions satisfactorily.'

Source:

'Know Thy Child: Fine Australian Photoplay', Sunday Times, 9 October 1921, p.3. (Via Trove Australia)

'Lorna Denver, a young girl who has been reared on a station, becomes the owner of a big station, but there is a dissolute cousin who plans to marry her fortune and herself. Lorna has, however, bestowed her affections upon a manlike young surveyor. The cousin is murdered and suspicion falls upon the innocent hero who is arrested. One of the great scenes of the play is the race for life when one of the old stage coaches, which have become almost historic, is carrying the evidence for the defence to the court-house. The creeks are swollen and there is the thrill of excitement as the horses dash across the ford, and the coach arrives just in the nick of time. The photography is excellent and not only is the "Girl of the Bush" well staged, but it is interpreted by a cast of capable players. Vera James, a New Zealand actress who has had wide experience In the bush and who is a graceful horsewoman, stars as Lorna Denver. She is co-starred by Stella Southern and supported by Olga Broughton, Emmie Shea, Jack Martin, Herbert Linden, Sam Warr (a Chinaman), Gerald Harcourt, Monty Moncrieff and Rock Phillips. The drama is in six reels, one of the most modern holdings in New South Wales being used for a background for the bush scenes.'

Source:

'A Girl of the Bush', Table Talk, 7 July 1921, p.36.