At a dance on his parents' plantation in the early nineteenth century, Harry Rutter wins a duel with Langdon Willetts, but loses his fiancée, Kate Seymour, who disapproves of fighting. He is thrown out of his family home and forced to stay with others. Tired of accepting charity, Harry leaves for South America. Now he returns a rich man to a ruined home.

Deserted by his wife Arline, who absconds with their baby daughter Ruth as well, Robert Travers loses all faith in women. Years later, Travers, now known as the man without a soul, is the owner of a chain of department stores in which young Ruth Carroll is employed as a ribbon clerk. Finding himself strangely attracted to the girl, he takes a fatherly interest in her and offers Ruth a position in his office. Laura Wilson, who wants Travers for herself becomes jealous and tries to lure the girl away but Travers comes to realize she is his own daughter.

Wealthy Bruce MacAllister, goaded by his fiancée, Helen, into proving that he is a man of action rather than a pampered youth tells his estate administrator, Eugene Preston, that he is going east for a meeting. Instead, Bruce dons a disguise and infiltrates the San Francisco underworld. Mistaken for master criminal "The Chicago Kid", he finds himself leading the gang in a robbery of his own fortune in diamonds. Discovering Eugene's intention to steal the jewels for himself he engineers it so the loot changes hands many times. Getting wise, Helen summons the police, the criminals are apprehended, and she sees Bruce in a new light.

When she is orphaned Lily Upjohn, from the London slums, becomes a chorus girl at the Pandora Theatre. During a performance a scene painter drops some paint near Lily and her screams prompt the show's composer to create a hit song "Mind the Paint Girl," which Lily makes an overnight sensation. She is courted by young officer Nicholas Jeyes and by Lord Francombe. Driving both men to near ruin she promises marriage to both but in the end choses neither.

The story of a happily married woman, Amy, who is greeted with temptation of riches beyond belief after her husband, Andrew, accepts a position at a Colorado Steel Mill.

Chrissey Desselden is the ward of John Warburton and has promised to marry him though she is drawn to the roguish Robert Neyland. When Robert’s caddish behavior becomes too flagrant, she marries John despite still feeling a pull towards the bad boy. Conflicted, she asks her husband for time to sort out her feelings but when she discovers Neyland’s plot to destroy John’s fortune for spite she spurns him and settles into a happy marriage.

Reggie Dillingham, a spendthrift socialite, is challenged by his lawyer to support himself for six months; Reggie finds a job as a newspaper editor to keep quiet about a compromising photo of a powerful politician, but soon discovers his boss is involved in bootlegging and uses the newspaper to expose him, despite threats, with the help of his loyal staff, leading to the boss's arrest and Reggie's financial windfall.

A young husband just wants to spend a quiet evening at home with his wife, but her collection of zany friends make hash of his hopes.

Viola Baxter is deceived into a hasty marriage with her guardian, Marshall Welch, who is after her money and has framed her fiancé, Dick Fletcher, for theft. She discovers and exposes her husband's perfidy. Humiliated, Welch decides to take his wife's life along with his own, but she is saved by her Great Dane.

Robert Taylor has been romancing Blanche Mansfield but also seeing Grace Eldridge at the same time. When he tells Blanche that he is marrying Grace, she attacks him and he is rushed to the hospital with a knife wound.