Acting
Harvey Barton, a young cowboy, is happily in love with Kate Bowers, a pretty western girl. One day he calls at her home, shows her a handbill advertising a barn dance to be held at one of the nearby ranches, and asks her to go with him. On his way back to the ranch he comes upon a beautiful young woman, whose horse has met with an accident and Harvey dismounts and bashfully asks her if he can be of any assistance. She accepts his help and invites him to accompany her home. She is inclined to flirt and easily turns the foolish young cowpuncher's head, and the meeting ends with him inviting her to accompany him to the dance.
Young Harry Farman and Eloise Wendell are engaged to be married. Harry is a wealthy young fellow and Eloise is a society girl, and both find pleasure in their clubs and other such luxuries that the city affords the fashionable, wealthy set. Eloise, who has rode a hobby of philanthropy is engaged with her club and other clubs, who are holding a tag day, the funds to go to the children of the poor. Eloise, with another friend, invades a saloon in a fashionable hotel, and are invited to have a drink by two men seated at a table. Eloise, in fun, lifts the glass to her lips when Farman enters. The match is broken off and the next day Farman, with a friend, goes west.
When pretty Molly Martin comes out to the west to teach school, she is beset by many admirers. But the most persistent, and as fate often wills it, the least acceptable, is one "Bad" McGrew, town bully and a generally worthless scamp.
Two pals, Jack Manley and John French, are employed on a large ranch in Wyoming. French falls sick with fever and Jack goes for a doctor. This latter, however, refuses to accompany Jack without his payment in advance and Jack, in despair, is forced to depart without the doctor. Back at the bunkhouse he conceives the plan to hold up a pony express rider
George Maxwell, a young cowboy, rescues a fever-stricken Mexican prospector and carrying him to an inn in the vicinity like a good Samaritan, pays the innkeeper a sum of money to care for the stricken man until he recovers.
A stirring Western drama presenting as its principal character a man who is at once ranchman and bandit
'Red' Bowman is a worthless renegade, an alleged rustler, to whom fate has been unduly kind to allow him to escape so long the honest judgment and double earned punishment. His daughter, a curly-headed ragged little sunbeam, keeps house for him as best she can, accepting with model fortitude her brutal father's blows and lashings. When he beats her too mercilessly she runs away, if she can, to hide until his anger cools. One day he is interrupted in his amusement of "lickin' the kid" by a group of stern, determined cowboys, who threaten to lynch him if he dares whip the little girl again. 'Red' slinks away and postpones the lashing for another time. That night, he and a pal, another black-hearted scoundrel, make a raid on a bunch of cattle, but are caught in the act.
Dr. Henry Jekyll experiments with scientific means of revealing the hidden, dark side of man and releases a murderer from within himself.
Dan Coughlin, a ranger, comes upon a band of smugglers and succeeds in capturing one of them, a half-breed Mexican, "Easy" Joe by name. Joe is taken to headquarters and locked up, while all efforts to wring a confession from him as to the whereabouts of the band's rendezvous have failed. It is not long, however, before the others of the gang make an effort to liberate their pal and send an Indian to spy upon Dan and other members of the troupe.
Young Frank McLain loses his position in the east, and resolves to go west to prospect for gold. Arrangements are made that he leave his wife at home, and send for her later, as soon as he has found a position. Frank's prospecting proves a failure, and he is without funds, when his plight is made more severe by receiving a letter from Alice, his wife.
Wilton Shaw, a young author, has been advised by his physician to go west for his health and the opening scenes of this picture finds him in a little town in Montana, seeking board and lodging. Jim Walker, a backwoodsman, offers him a home with him and his wife, and he accepts. Arriving at the rough hut of the Walkers, Shaw is introduced to Walker's wife.
"Bullets" Brown, the hero of our story, is a rare track tout, and a true type or this particular parasite.
Old Jim Brown, a western ranchman, has a pretty daughter Gladys, who is loved by young Frank Carpenter, then foreman of the ranch. Brown objects to the match because he has an opportunity to marry Gladys off to a rich mine owner, seeing in this alliance the opportunity for social advancement for the girl and himself.
Driven to drink by poverty brought upon by the long illness of his wife, Joe Selling, a western miner, spends most of his time at the village bar, where one day his daughter Alice enters and pleads with him to come home. She is thrust aside by the brutal bartender, who orders her to leave the place when Dan Quigley, a rather shady character, takes her part, thrusts the bartender aside, and helping Joe to his feet, leads him out of the place and home. At home Alice pleads with both men to reform, but her father is obstinate and Dan says he is "too bad."
Upon the death of her father, Ann Newton is made the heiress of an extensive and valuable ranch in Arizona, when she is visited by the officials of the S.W. Railroad Company, who, seeking to extend the tracks of their company, find it necessary to buy a portion of the ranch. Ann refuses to part with the ranch at any price
Henry and Steve, two "bunkies" on the "LL" ranch, are in love with Katie, their employer's daughter. While she likes Steve the best, she feels she cannot accept him because of his craving for gambling. Cash Wilkins, a bully, insults Steve, whereat he receives a good thrashing, and Wilkins, to get even, insults Katie and steals a small revolver that she carries with her. He then sends a note to Katie, that if she wants the gun back to send Henry for it. Henry is afraid of the bully and frightenedly tells Steve that he is afraid he must lose Katie as he can never face Wilkins. Steve looks pityingly at the coward, and taking the note, goes to Wilkin's cabin, and after another thrashing, makes Wilkins write a note of apology to Katie, and a promise to leave the country forever. Steve gives the note and the girl's gun to Henry and tells him to take them to Katie. The girl never suspects and Steve, realizing that "two's company and three's a crowd," packs his clothes and leaves.
Jennie Lee and her father are on their way to Golden California, from a little Kansas farm, traveling in a prairie schooner. At the last settlement visited by the two, the old man, who has a weakness for drink, purchases several bottles of whiskey, which he begins drinking when they have made camp for the night. A lone cowboy calls upon them and finds the old man in a jovial mood and cautions him to beware of the hostile tribe of Indians, through whose country they are now traveling.
Andy Carson, puncher on the Lazy X ranch, is in love with Gladys, daughter of Col. Pierce, the ranch owner. Gladys likes the young puncher, but when Jack Brinsley, a young Eastern friend of her father, comes to spend Christmas at the ranch, she speedily transfers her affection to the Easterner.
Two young men of a western town, Will Phelps and George Arden, are in love with the same girl, the belle of the village. Having been pals from boyhood they decide to let the girl choose between them and to abide by her decision without argument or malice. Jessie chooses Phelps, and Arden, although deeply hurt by her decision, presses the hands of both and wishes them happiness. Several years elapse during which time Jessie and Will are married and the latter has become sheriff of the county. It is then that Arden returns and the two men are apparently happy in being together again.
Pretty Molly is afflicted with a peculiar nervous disease and after having tried many doctors is finally referred to a certain great specialist, who has had success with cases similar to her own. To briefly describe Molly's ailment would be in stating that the muscles of her throat and neck were uncontrollable, causing her to throw back her head in a way resembling a person beckoning to another.
