AllMovie

Silent picture hero Earle Williams has a role that's typical for him in this mystery, which was based on the novel by Mrs. Wilson Woodrow (a popular author not to be confused with the wife of then-president Woodrow Wilson). Because of being ostracized several years before, Ashe Colvin (Williams) has turned his back on society in favor of doing charitable work. Another outcast he has befriended is a burglar known as the Hornet (Brinsley Shaw). One day, by an odd coincidence, Muriel Fletcher (Vola Vale) enlists Colvin's help. The fortune belonging to Muriel and her cousin, Fletcher Hempstead, is controlled by her wicked Aunt and Uncle Whitefield (Kathleen Kirkham and Ogden Crane). It turns out that Hempstead is actually the Hornet. He steals some jewels that the Whitefields had themselves obtained illegally. To throw them off, Colvin paints the Hornet's identifying scar on his face, while Hempstead paints his off. Colvin takes the blame for the theft temporarily, until he can manipulate circumstances to return control of the fortune to Muriel and Hempstead.