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Emily Graham (Iris Ashton) marries Philip Amory (Philo McCullough), whose father is the lifelong enemy of Emily's father (Edwin Booth Tilton). When Philip accidentally blinds Emily, her father takes her infant and gives it to a sailor, who hands it over to his wife. The baby, Gertie grows up (to be played by Shirley Mason), and is treated like a slave by her adopted mother. When she can't take it anymore, she runs away and is taken in by Trueman, a lamplighter (Albert Knott). He works for Graham, and with his help, Gertie is finally reunited with both her parents. This picture, based on the novel by Maria Susanna Cummins, was far darker than the comedy dramas in which Shirley Mason usually excelled.