John Lane is a prosperous businessman, a widower, who lives in a large house with his seven-year-old daughter Betty. Lane has an enemy, one Ben Hartley, who, by the aid of some forged papers, threatens to expose Lane and put him in prison. The night of the story opens with Lane receiving a letter from Hartley, who demands $10,000, to be paid at midnight, that night. Lane has not that much ready money in the house, and no way to get it. He thinks it all out and decides to commit suicide. He stands before a mirror and is about to pull the trigger, when Bill, the burglar, steps into the room, stopping him.
Maurice Costello
as Bill - a Providential Thief
Van Dyke Brooke
as Ben Hartley - a Blackmailer
Dolores Costello
as Betty Lane - John's Daughter
Robert Gaillard
as John Lane
