Edith and John Maitland will allow David Sterling to marry their daughter Helen as soon as he earns five thousand dollars, so David tries to sell one of his inventions to Simon Baird for that amount. Simon, unable to make up his mind, is found murdered the next day, and David is arrested with five thousand dollars of Simon's money in his possession.
The hypnotic Svengali controls the singing voice of a young starlet, but he cannot control her heart. This 1915 Maurice Tourneur film is a version of the famous du Maurier novel. It was later done in a more famous 1931 film named Svengali with John Barrymore. The later film obviously changed the title due to the huge presence of its star.
Circus dancer Babette learns from Zaidee, her fortune-teller mother, that her father is the respected businessman Ezra Butterworth, who had deserted Zaidee years before and then remarried. After Zaidee dies, Babette goes to live with Ezra, but fearful that his second wife will learn of his less-than-upright past, he takes her in as his ward and forbids her to mention their real relationship.
A prologue shows an alchemist about to be burned at the stake. Before dying, he claims that his theory is correct: in an effort to overcome external conditions, man develops his character. In modern times, Harry Thorn loves Grace Dupont, but after losing his money he drifts toward crime. He steals a necklace, and when Grace finds out she cancels their engagement. Harry decides to give himself up, thereby finally establishing some strength of character. When he gets out of jail, Grace takes him back, but Harry has to face one more temptation. Alice Farley, who loves him but whom he has spurned, tries to lure him back to crime, but with Grace's help Harry manages to resist.
Margot, the motherless daughter of a New England fisherman, dreams of a better life. After rescuing the wealthy Jack Rutledge's mother, Margot is taken in by the family. Jack and Margot fall in love against the will of his mother and must find a way to marry.
James Wadsworth sets his sights on the lovely society girl Anna Dalton and determines to marry her. To achieve that goal, he follows her everywhere she goes, including on a ship to South America. He comes up with a plan to make her love him--he throws her overboard, follows her over the side and swims with her to a deserted island. His somewhat unorthodox method works and he wins over Anna, but problems arise when Richard Towne, Anna's fiancé who has been searching for her, finds the island and discovers the two.
