Beverly Tucker, the daughter of an impoverished aristocratic Southern family, has scraped together her last pennies to put her brother Dal through college in the hope that he will support the family after graduation. However, Dal harbors no such ambition and instead spends his time gambling and drinking in a saloon owned by the town's mayor, Curran. During a raid led by Curran's crusading son Merle, a detective is killed and Dal is accused of the crime. When his case seems hopeless, one of the witnesses finally comes forth to testify that the saloon manager committed the killing and Dal is cleared. After this harrowing experience, Dal reforms and Beverly and Merle marry.