Howard McGrath is a Wall Street broker with few scruples. His nephew, Kenneth McGrath, the son of a deceased brother, is his chief clerk. Doris Van Ness is an heiress whose fortune is left in the hands of Howard McGrath, her guardian. Mrs. Wheeler Van Ness, her mother, does not share this fortune, for she is anxious that Doris marry Baron Von Zeller, an impoverished German nobleman with a couple of debt-ridden castles. Howard McGrath attempts a corner on the stock market and is tightly squeezed. He realizes that a marriage between his nephew and the heiress will solve the trouble. Kenneth, though he secretly cares for Doris, is, at the same time, incensed at the idea of marrying any woman for money. He takes the latter course and his refusal to enter into the plan arouses the anger of his uncle, who decides upon other measures. Accordingly he sends one of his clerks with a letter to Mrs. Van Ness urging her to permit him to invest a sum of Doris' inheritance on his speculations, promising a big return. He signs Kenneth's name to the letter. Mrs. Van Ness persuades her daughter to sign a check for the, amount asked. Kenneth and Doris have, in the meantime, become interested in each other, Kenneth refraining, however, from showing his regard for the girl because of his uncle's proposition. The speculation fails and Doris loses a large portion of her fortune. Mrs. Van Ness accuses Kenneth of treachery and he, for the first time, learns of the investment. He is shown the letter with his forged signature and denies any knowledge of it. His uncle in turn accuses him of lying. Kenneth leaves the employ of McGrath and secures a position as reporter on a daily paper. Doris secretly believes in him. She is pressed to marry Baron Von Zeller, whose estates are heavily mortgaged, the elder McGrath promising to rehabilitate the fortunes of Doris on the consummation of the match. Doris urges Zeller to press his suit, promising him in turn his fortune will be rehabilitated by such a union, keeping the financial straits of Doris from him. McGrath's plan is to use the names of both of the contracting parties in the organizing of a new stock jobbing scheme, securing investments on the alleged backing of the supposedly wealthy pair. Kenneth is sent to interview his uncle and is refused admittance to the office. He calls on Mrs. Van Ness and is told that Doris will not see him. Angered at both his uncle and the girl, he threatens his uncle that he will write a complete exposure of the scheme. He gives him the alternative of dropping the scheme or being exposed as a fraud. The uncle gives in. Zeller learns from Howard McGrath that Doris is no longer an heiress and takes ship for his country. McGrath is forced to tell Doris the truth about the note urging her investment in the stock deal. Kenneth is thus reinstated in the good graces of the young woman and their marriage follows. His uncle is forced to quit his crooked dealings.