Thwarted by his despotic uncle from continuing his love affair, a young man's thoughts turn dark as he dwells on ways to deal with his uncle. Becoming convinced that murder is merely a natural part of life, he kills his uncle and hides the body. However, the man's conscience awakens; paranoia sets in and nightmarish visions begin to haunt him.
Billy Milford, Harvard graduate, goes west to seek his fortune. In Addertown he secures a position as stationmaster of the L. & R. Railroad, but is forced out because of his drinking habits. He accidentally meets Gunhild, an emigrant Norwegian girl, as she arrives in Addertown to take up her home with Jan Hagsberg, the town's saloonkeeper. Seeking revenge on the railroad, Milford joins Jim Dorsey in a scheme to hold up the road's paymaster on his way to pay the employees of the company's mine.
Helen Alving leads an outwardly contented life. On the eve of the 10th anniversary of her husband's death, she is about to open an orphanage as a memorial to him. To mark this occasion, her bohemian painter son Oswald has returned from Paris. Helen plans to take the opportunity to tell Oswald the truth about his father. But ghosts of the past erupt during an eventful evening, bringing the facade of civilised family life crashing down.
John Howard Payne leaves home and begins a career in the theater. Despite encouragement from his mother and his sweetheart, Payne begins to lead a life of dissolute habits, and this soon leads to ruin and misery. In deep despair, he thinks of better days, and writes a song that later provides inspiration to several others in their own times of need.
This shows the regeneration of a gang leader, who remains true to his first sweetheart after his change of fortune.
A dramatic comparison between the mating habits of animals and the way humans choose their own partners. The film is now considered to be a lost film.
The will of old Dr. Andrews left the bulk of his property to his niece, Mary, who was an orphan living in a distant mining town. The small balance of his wealth went to a married nephew, John, who had been practicing medicine with him and was now made the executor of his estate, but who felt that he should have been made the sole heir.
Before his niece and ward, Dosia Dale, comes of age, her uncle, who has spent her entire fortune, must think of a way to account for his actions. He proposes marriage, and when Dosia indignantly refuses him, he conspires with his evil friend, Dr. Protheroe, to do away with her. Declaring Dosia insane, the two men lock her up in the doctor's insane asylum, but she manages to drop a note from the window. Her plea for help is found by a reporter named Ford, who feigns insanity in order to gain admittance to the asylum. Dr. Protheroe becomes suspicious of Ford and locks him up with Dosia, whereupon Ford, knowing that his friend Cuthbert will notify the police if he and Dosia do not emerge safely by twelve, barricades the door and waits. In a furious battle with the police and the militia, Dosia's uncle and Dr. Protheroe are killed and the house set ablaze, but Ford and Dosia escape, leaping from the roof into a fire net below. All danger passed, Ford and Dosia become engaged.
Seamen Enoch Arden returns home after a long absence marooned on a desert island. At home he finds his wife married to another, and though he loves her, he cannot bear to disrupt her current happiness.
Dottie gets a job in a small show as "side kick" of a famous knife thrower. The "Angel" is a nice boy who is backing the show, and who is too modest to declare his love to Dottie. She can see no one save the great, handsome "Strong Man." The knife thrower gets drunk, and the "Angel" forbids Dottie to do her act. The "Strong Man," however, locks up the "Angel" and bids the knife thrower go on with the show. Dottie, terrified but helpless, has risked her life a half dozen times from the carelessly thrown knives, when the "Angel," bursting out of his prison, rushes into the ring and flings himself between her and the weapons. He is seriously injured. At the hospital, Dottie and the "Angel" pledge their troth.
Frank Andrews is a successful businessman. He has always found pride and joy in the company of his wife, son and daughter. He suddenly finds himself enthralled by the advances of a gay young woman siren, who lives in the same apartment house as he does. So marked an influence does she have over him as time progresses that at last he quite forgets his home ties, neglects his family, and goes the way of many other men who have forgotten the meaning of paternity and blood ties. The story is advanced through many scenes enacted with the accompanying notes of New York's night life, and the denouement comes when the faithful wife discovers her husband's infidelity. At this time the mother's mind nearly loses balance, while Jane, the beautiful daughter, crazed by the grief of her mother, determines to take part in the tragedy. With revolver in hand she steals up to the apartment of the woman, but her frail nature is overcome by the temperamental anger of the woman and her mission fails.
"The Hunchback" earns a scanty living as a tinker, traveling from house to house, but on account of his deformity, there is no one who cares for him. Although a great lover of children, they flee at his approach. Taking pity on a little girl whose doll has been broken, he spends all his earnings to replace her plaything, and in consequence, the people with whom he boards, order him out. Tired and despairing, he gets, unobserved, into a freight car, and is carried to a western mining town. There the wanderer finds friends in a miner and his little girl. An accident renders the little girl fatherless, and the hunchback brings the child to womanhood. As the years pass the cripple grows to care for his ward, but when he tells her of his love, he finds that it is not returned. The girl falls in love with a young prospector, and the jealous hunchback seeks to take his life, and then weakens in his resolve. Later the prospector is in deadly danger and the hunchback decides to let him die.
A country boarding house story
Molly Kite, the neglected child of a drunken father, rouses the sympathy of the minister, Mr. Shipton, who also teaches the school at Dead Tree. The minister-school-master persuades some of his parishioners to give the girl decent clothes, and he coaxes her into attending school. At first unruly and sullen, she gradually comes to feel that the minister is her best friend. One day she happens to see him meet a strange girl on the street. Apparently overjoyed, he kisses the stranger. Molly rushes into the house, tears off her new clothes, and vows she will never go to school again.
The Tear That Burned is a silent movie drama.
Sykes, an American engaged to a poor girl, goes to the Philippines as a teacher, and the girl stays behind to await their marriage. Sykes, after some time has passed, has succumbed to the tropic influences, and is living with a native girl, when one day he hears from the girl back home that she is coming to join him and that she will arrive at dawn next day. An aunt has died and left her a lot of money. Caring more for this coin that the girl, Sykes tries to get rid of the native girl, but she makes a row, and he in fear of losing his girl and her cash, poisons the native girl, who dies. He is about to get rid of the body when a young lieutenant of the U.S. Army shows up with his sergeant, inquiring the way to the trail of Indians, and becomes suspicious of Sykes' uneasiness and finds the dead girl.
May and her younger sister, Carol, live in a small town. May is the more lovely of the two, but Carol is wooed by Frank, a country boy. George, a city man, comes to town on a visit, falls in love with Carol and wins her away from Frank. Carol is pleased with his attentions and poor Frank is brokenhearted. Calling one day to see Carol, George meets May and falls madly in love with her, and finally runs away with her and they are married. Carol, in despair, turns back to Frank and they are married, and a year later a baby is born.
Hazel, a cashier in a restaurant, is engaged to Patsy, a bus driver. Patsy earns some extra money by going in on preliminary bouts at the Athletic Club pugilistic exhibitions, and gains a local reputation as a boxer. When a big fighter is suddenly taken ill on the eve of a public contest, Patsy substitutes, wins the match, and suddenly finds himself in line for a bout with the champion of the world. On receipt of an offer for a long tour, he gets a swelled head and repudiates Hazel, who is forced to go back to work in the restaurant. She plans to get even with Patsy.
The clerk has money to pay the last installment on his home, occupied by his old mother and himself, but meeting a fellow clerk and two girls is "forced" to treat in order to show that he really is no tightwad.
Waldo and the baby went on an outing to the beach with the nurse, but it mattered little to Waldo, who consumed much learning from his book, wherever he went or wandered. Nurse went off with the auto driver and left the studious one in charge of the baby. That gave Bob and Tilly a chance to make their innings. Bob was a pirate chief and his crew was Tilly and two black slaves, Rastus and Dave, thrown in. Waldo would not think of playing pirates, but he became part of the game all right. They bound him in their pirate cave and sailed away for the sea with the baby. But the pirate brig was a leaky motor boat that ran away out to sea. Bold pirates became frightened ones when the runaway boat also began to leak, but when the nurse returned and found what her neglect had led to, assistance was soon sent to the pirates.
