John and Katherine Colby decide to put off parenthood until he has become wealthy. Their friends, Tom and Grace Donaldson, decide to start a family right away. While John works his way up to a position of power at a steel firm, Katherine begins to question the wisdom of their decision.

When retired New England skipper Captain Purcell finds Kit as a baby in a storm, he adopts the child, who grows up to be an adventurous youngster of the docks.

Nora Helmer has years earlier committed a forgery in order to save the life of her authoritarian husband Torvald. Now she is being blackmailed.

After his mining partner Joe Pelton's death, wealthy bachelor Richard Chester adopts Joe's five young children and takes them East by train. The children are hellions upsetting the calm of the Pullman car en route to New York City, and his home upon arrival. Richard enrolls them all in school except for the youngest. His frosty society fiancée Ethel McVae refuses to have anything to do with the children. After seeing how Richard interacts with his stenographer Sally Lockwood when she helps him nurse the youngest child through a night's illness Ethel breaks the engagement. Richard declares his love for Sally, and they join to raise a family.

Jim Montgomery receives a life sentence for a murder he did not commit. He escapes upon hearing that his mother is ill and begins a new life in California after her funeral.

20 year old Betty Lee becomes famous for her movie stunts with airplanes and high power roadsters. While horseback riding, she allows Ensign Tom Manley to believe that he has saved her from a runaway; then at the studio he meets her suitor, Carl D'Arcy. Betty evades Carl's marriage proposal and accepts Tom's luncheon invitation.

Following a series of misunderstandings, wealthy young aristocrat Gerry Lansing deserts his wife Alix, whom he believes has eloped with his friend Alan Wayne. He sails for South America, leaving no trace of his whereabouts. In Peru, he becomes a plantation owner and marries local girl Margarita.

Lupino Delchini, a waiter in a little restaurant, is discharged for giving food to a penniless beggar, and Detective Hartley rewards the Italian by getting him an appointment as pound master. Flora is attracted to Lupino by his kindness, but when he adopts a small Belgian boy, he falls in love with Madame Maureveau, whom he believes to be the boy's mother.