Daniel F. Whitcomb

Guiding two covered wagons along a desert trail, Duke Steele meets and befriends Sam Le Saint, a mysterious hermit who is searching for a former partner who destroyed his home and ran away with his wife and infant daughter eighteen years earlier. Later, the two men ride into a mining camp controlled by Silver Sleed, who runs a gambling place. Duke is smitten by beautiful young Nola "Luck" Sleed, and learns that she is the gambler's daughter. Silver Sleed also happens to be the man that Sam Le Saint is searching for. Sam, who is dying, kills Sleed, and Duke learns that Luck is Sam's long-lost daughter.

When her wealthy husband informs her of the death of her baby, Bernice Ridgeway leaves him and takes a tenement apartment opposite that of Kate Martin, whose husband is in prison, and becomes acquainted with Kate and her child. When Kate commits suicide, Bernice takes the child and assumes the dead woman's name; and the child's father, Fred Martin, having finished his term, discovers the deceit but keeps the secret.

To remove forever anything that will remind him of his dream of happiness that was shattered by his wife's infidelity, Stanley sends his infant daughter Nan to be cared for by a woman named Hopkins. He sends money regularly for her support but never visits her. Nan is treated as a slave and never receives any of the money intended for her.

A cowboy is falsely accused of killing the local sheriff. Fleeing the law, Wilson obtains a job on a ranch.

Just after Bob's fiancée breaks off their engagement, he meets young Mary, whose mother has just died, and the two of them comfort each other.

Rosemary van Voort lives in the countryside with her elderly Dutch parents. The wooden dolls she carves so beautifully catch the eye of a group of artists who are having a picnic in the area. Among them is aspiring opera singer Ricardo Fitzmaurice. Rosemary is convinced to move to New York City where she becomes wildly successful, but when the temperamental Madame Fedoreska, who is in love with Ricardo, becomes insanely jealous of his growing affection for Rosemary she threatens to kill her. When Madame turns up shot to death, the police look at Rosemary as a suspect--and even worse, she has no alibi.

Small town sheriff "Silent" Davidson tries to protect aging sheep rancher Scott Martin and his daughter, Jean, from the predations of local cattlemen. Head cattleman Pete Kane and banker Jeff Sedley ambush the old man and frame the sheriff for his murder, but Scott is only badly wounded. Recovering consciousness, he tells Jean who the real culprits are. However, Kane seizes and imprisons her. Ultimately, Silent breaks out of jail, finds and frees Jean from her bonds, proves his innocence, and brings Kane and Sedley to justice. Naturally, he wins Jean's heart.