Plot

Crooked banker Peter V. Wilkinson intentionally drives his own company into bankruptcy and puts the bank's deposits into a secret account he has set up using his daughter Leslie's name. A series of events occurs in which Leslie finds out what her father has done and sets out to get him to return all the money he has stolen.—frankfob2@yahoo.com

Peter V. Wilkinson, New York Napoleon of Finance, deliberately wrecks the Tri-State Trust Company and claims to be bankrupt, but unknown to the world and even to his daughter Leslie, secretes his ill-gotten gains in assets standing in his daughter's name. She is innocent and believes her father to be so. He is indicted but believes he can buy judges and juries. Illingsworth, an old and innocent vice-president of one of the companies, ruined by the wreckage, beside himself, forces himself into Wilkinson's mansion and tries to shoot him. Leslie calms him, but he breaks out again. Wilkinson is intimate with Madeline. Illingsworth's revolver is found, and Illingsworth is charged with the crime and ultimately convicted. Eliot Beekman, a young lawyer, is in love with Leslie, and Beekman also believes in the innocence of Leslie's father. Leslie, stung by the disgrace of her father's conviction, refuses to marry Eliot because she feels she is tainted with this dishonor. Wilkinson commands her to marry Eliot. She refuses. Eliot pleads, but she is adamant. Wilkinson's case goes through the courts, and he finds, much to his chagrin, that he cannot buy judges and juries and courts of appeals as he thought he could, and his ten years' sentence is finally confirmed. He still has his hold on politics. He selects Eliot Beekman as the future Governor of New York and elects him. Before young Governor Beekman come two pardon cases: one, Wilkinson's appeal from his 10-year sentence; another, Illingsworth's petition for clemency from his capital sentence. The Governor pardons the latter because he establishes to his own satisfaction that Illingsworth was with him at the time the murder was said to have been committed, and not at the place of the murder. He reviews Wilkinson's case, and although he formerly believed Wilkinson innocent, he now sees that he is a rascal; he refuses the pardon. Leslie, beside herself, denounces him. Wilkinson, still under sentence, disappears and is reported by the newspapers as a suicide, but District-Attorney Leech does not place any reliance in the suicide report and starts a quiet search for him. Later, Wilkinson is discovered in disguise in a café, and is brought home by the detectives. Leslie and Beekman accidentally overhear a conversation between her father and the District-Attorney which shows her his true character. She also discovers that his stocks and bonds stand in her name, although she did not know this. They confront Wilkinson and together force him to make restitution of the stolen millions.—Moving Picture World synopsis