John Thorpe, a proud and haughty widower, has an only daughter, Helen, who contracts a secret marriage with an adven¬turer, and on the death of her husband finds herself about to become a mother. To hide what he considers a family dis¬grace, Thorpe, who is on the eve of marry¬ing again, takes the infant, and orders Mrs. Stimson, the housekeeper, to leave the child at the door of a foundling asylum. He tells his daughter, Helen, that the child died, and she has no reason to believe otherwise. After fifteen years, the child, now known as Faith, who has been adopted by a good family, is again thrown back upon the foundling asylum on account of misfortune which came to her foster parents. Helen, her own mother, is now a sad-faced, mid¬dle-aged woman ; Thorpe’s second wife is an invalid and his step-daughter Laura is now seventeen. Hearing of Faith’s return to the asylum, Mrs. Stimson, the housekeeper, takes the young girl into the Thorpe home as a servant without the knowledge of Helen or the family. While there, Faith observes the mental cruelty practiced upon Laura by her hard-hearted step-father and listens to a ter¬rible exhibition of his temper in a scene in which Helen champions the cause of the young girl, Laura. Faith gradually wins the confidence of the childless Helen, and opening up her heart, when questioned about herself, tells her that she was raised in a foundling asylum, and that she prays every night that she will someday find her mother. Helen is deeply touched by the child’s story. Laura in the meantime fighting against the cruel rules of her step-father, who will not allow her to receive company in her home, has clandestinely met and unwisely associated with David Thorne, a young col¬lege student. When she realizes that an immediate marriage is all that stands be¬ tween her and disgrace, she innocently writes to David with no doubt in her mind that he will come home immediately and give the child a name by an honorable marriage. To her horror, David pleads that just at this stage of his career, marriage would ruin his prospects. He comes to see her and informs her that he knows a physi¬cian who, for three hundred dollars, will take her case and keep silent. She finds that he cannot even furnish the money, and, thrown upon her own resources, she robs her step-father’s safe of the required amount. Finding that circumstantial evidence is strongly pointing in her direction, she tells little Faith the whole story. The child realizes that she has no mother to suffer, and takes the blame. Affirming that she robbed the safe, she is placed in custody by the detectives acting in accord with the com¬mands of the heartless Thorpe. But the little prisoner has a valuable champion in the person of Mark Strong, a lawyer, who remembers Faith’s kindness to him when he was down and out. Summoning all the bril¬liancy of his past legal training, he traces the whole case to the bottom and, despite the fact that Faith confesses to the crime, he proves she did not do it, and unveils her parentage. Faith finds her mother in Helen, and her prayers are answered. - THE VIRTUOUS OUTCAST Dec.16,1920 Copyright description - Written by James Kirkwood
Re-release of Mary Miles Minter's "Faith" issued as a States Rights offering.
Faith (1916), otherwise known as The Virtuous Outcast (1920), is a silent film telling the righteous story of a girl named Faith who gets her deserved justice. Faith originally had six reels worth of moving footage. In its re-release by the American Film Company under the basis of state rights, the Virtuous Outcast is now five reels. The original 6-reel film can be found at the George Eastman House in Rochester under its initial title Faith. The motivation to re-release can be due to American wanting to gain more profit with Mary Miles Minter's influence. Minters was a famous actress mainly due to portraying innocent and beautiful characters in many films. This remains true for Faith/The Virtuous Outcast since the film's plot describes a girl who was dealt a cruel hand getting the reparations she deserves. The main criticism of Faith was that it was too long and that it had to be shortened for the audience. From here it can be understood that the American Film Company decided to redistribute this film under the title of the Virtuous Outcast. This is where the film was shortened to five reels. This silent film addresses many issues of the time period. The topics of abortion, sexual morality, and gender politics influenced by the 19th Amendment which allowed women to vote, which was passed in June, six months before the re-release. – Abril Bautista, September 2023