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.
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.
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.
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.
A little girl walks through the woods to deliver food to her sickly grandmother, only to discover a wolf in her stead.
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.
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.
ARCHIVE: George Eastman House
Country girl May loses at cards and must borrow $250 from Captain Stiles, but the wealthy roué's loan does not come without an expectation of repayment.
Maximillo Corto, a Mexican crook, keeps a tavern on the Mexican border and has a daughter whom he abuses and who has to do all the hard work around the place. One day, Bob Jamison, really an American spy in the service, comes to the inn and stops overnight. He falls in love with the daughter of the innkeeper. She is infatuated with him, as he is the first human being who has ever been kind to her. He goes away but promises to return. While he is away a large reward is offered for his capture, dead or alive. The innkeeper tells the messenger of the news that if Bob ever comes back, he will put him into room seven and hold him. The daughter overhears this, and when Bob returns, unable to warn him, she changes the number on the door of room seven to that of six. When Bob is sent up to his room by Corto, he goes in what he thinks is seven but the daughter afterwards shifts the door numbers back to their original positions. Corto decides to kill Bob in his sleep and steals upstairs.
This shows the regeneration of a gang leader, who remains true to his first sweetheart after his change of fortune.
Kitty, the pretty young wife of a Texas businessman, feels neglected and unwanted as her husband pays more attention to his business interests than he does to her and spends more and more time away from home. A handsome young neighbor notices her emotional state and decides to try to take advantage of it. In her confused and lonely condition, Kitty finds herself attracted to the man and begins to think about running away with him.
Marcus Down makes only $15 a week. He has always paid spot cash for everything, until he meets Mamie New and they are wed. Then Mamie shows him how simple it is to get things on the easy payment plan. At first everything is rosy and matters go very smoothly for the young couple. Then the collectors begin to get busy and finally Marcus has nothing left, not even his bride, for the parson comes to take her for his fee, which had been arranged for on a ten cents a day basis.
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.
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.
Three brothers: Bob, Will and Charlie, all are in love with Mae. Bob, the eldest, is sullen and revengeful, and Mae is afraid of him. Will, the middle brother, is a happy-go-lucky boy with whom she falls in love, and Charlie, the youngest, sacrifices his own feelings for Will, who loves Charlie devotedly. Will and Mae are engaged. During his absence in the city, where he is trying to get a hold in business, so that he and Mae can marry, Bob makes violent love to his brother's fiancée. Charlie comes to her rescue. Learning of the episode, Will later has word sent home that he is dead, and Mae marries Charlie. Some time after this, Will cannot resist coming home to see his mother and Charlie, though he intends that Mae shall not know of his return. Before he can slip away, however, an incident occurs in which he is called upon to save Charlie's life. His presence and his heroism become known to Mae. The inference is that she had a good deal of a struggle to overcome vain regrets.
A lost film. Mary the tomboy, and Owen, the sportsman, have an equal aversion to the opposite sex. . Meeting at the trout stream one day, Owen orders Mary off his side of the stream, where she has comfortably ensconced herself. But alas! Cupid has not lost his opportunity and the die is cast. Mary's uncle, although seemingly severe, has a tenderness for an interesting spinster of uncertain age and plans to get Mary married off at the behest of the spinster lady.
Ruth Wilson, daughter of a wealthy landowner, receives a visit from her country sweetheart, Joe Merriam. who is a motorboat enthusiast. Unknown to anyone but her brother Frank, Ruth is an expert at fixing auto and motorboat engines as the estate is on the bay and Ruth has the use of two launches. With Joe she goes for a boat ride but the engine breaks down and he is unable to fix it, and afraid that it would lower his opinion of her if she should repair the engine, she lets him call another boat to tow them back to the wharf. Merriam, while in love with Ruth, cannot bring himself to propose, fearing that she would be too ornamental for a farmer's wife, and half of his visit passes while he attempts to make up his mind.
Alice, an old beachcomber's daughter, and Bob, a young fisherman living on an island remote from the mainland, discover a man tied to a rough raft floating in the wreckage of a yacht along the shore. The man thus cast up by the sea is taken to the cabin of the old beachcomber, where he recovers.
Bob Taylor was a valuable man. Talbot, his employer, told Miriam as much, showing his daughter the good round sum which his new clerk had handed him that evening for a real estate deal he had made in Talbot's absence. It was after banking hours and Talbot slept with the money under his pillow. The next morning he went off in a tearing hurry and forgot the roll of bills.
