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In 1916 most Americans wanted to steer clear of World War I (then known as the European War), and this three-reeler mirrors public sentiment. In fact, it was apparently inspired by the popular song, "I Did Not Raise my Boy to Be a Soldier." John Archer (Guy Oliver) and his friend Warrington (Harry De Vere) go off to war. Warrington is killed in battle, while Archer is wounded and returns home. The grief-stricken Mrs. Warrington (Eugenie Besserer) swears that she will raise her son to hate war. But when Jerry (Harry Mestayer), is grown, the nation finds itself under attack. He enlists and reluctantly tells his mother he is going off to fight. Meanwhile his sweetheart, Mercy Archer (Anna Luther), becomes a Red Cross nurse. Jerry's heroics only serve to have him fatally shot, and he winds up at a field hospital where Mercy is taking care of the wounded. He dies in her arms, and she returns home to tell Mrs. Warrington the tragic news.