Publisher John Gillespie faces a financial crisis after his business partner skips town with all the firm's assets. Facing ruin, he reluctantly approaches a wealthy aunt for assistance but is met with a stony-faced refusal.
In the dry west, Louise MacLeod works as a secretary for Robert Powell, a lawyer defending businessman John Phelan, whom the ranchers accuse of monopolizing water rights. Louise's father, Gordon, is one of the ranchers, and so Louise keeps him informed of Robert's strategy, resulting in the ranchers winning their case.
Much-married and once successful writer Henry T. Aythecliff, now heavily in debt, summons his three ex-wives to his mansion, planning to extort a sizable amount of money from each. When he is discovered dead, clues indicate that each of his four wives had motive and opportunity to murder him, and a young detective must sift through some ingeniously devised evidence.
The secret formula for the world's most powerful explosive has been stolen from the U.S. government. William Brown, a clerk who aspires to be a detective, has just received his badge from some anonymous Midwestern agency, and manages to get himself embroiled in the intrigue.
A young woman fights to keep her Wyoming sheep ranch from being overrun and destroyed by cattle ranchers.
Cowboy Billy Fortune is in love with Hope Beecher, who prefers Billy's friend Ben Morgan, but resists his advances because of his fondness for drink. Hope's discontent is echoed by the town wives' public outcry against drink. To divert their interest, Billy is nominated to make love to their leader, widow Fay Bittinger, who has already disposed of four husbands....
Dave Collins is a young man who is bequeathed a ranch on the condition that he marry the late owner's granddaughter Lucille. But when he arrives at the ranch with young sidekick Spuds in tow, Dave finds that a distant relative of Lucille's, Ray Foster, has taken his place. Foster hires tough Bart Haywood to kill his rival, and soon our hero is hogtied to a handcar in the path of an approaching train.
Dean Randall is a hero of the Great War who comes home to his horse and his father's ranch. When back he saves a family in a wagon train -- a father, daughter Grace, and three orphan children.
Three outlaws fleeing a posse through the desert come upon a dying woman and her baby in a wagon. Before she passes away, she makes the men promise to take care of her baby and get it safely through the desert.
A man tries to burgle his own safe on the same night that a professional criminal attempts it.
Curley Smith, a lieutenant of the Texas Rangers, gets chased by a band of smugglers after getting caught spying on them and becomes injured. Anita, the daughter of the chief smuggler tends to him and the two of them fall in love. Dean, a member of the renegade, becomes jealous of their romance, and will do whatever he can to get rid of Curley - fair or foul.
Harold Armytage is disowned, then framed for murder by his conniving cousin, Clifford, to steal his inheritance. After escaping jail, Harold rescues his wife, Bess, and brings the true villains to justice.
Cal Roberts can ride anything with four legs. He enters the contests held at big rodeo. He wins all honors and meets a girl who races horses to help her father clear pressing debts. Complications follow, but Cal wins the girl.
Cal Stanley goes undercover as a beef buyer in order to catch the gang responsible for stealing the area's cattle.
A band of desperadoes employed as cow punchers take advantage of an ordinance prohibiting the carrying of firearms to hold up the owner and escape with the payroll. The new foreman Jack trails them and in a running fight unhorses them, one by one. He fights with the leader of the outlaws but subdues him and wins the girl.
Nancy Burton, niece of the sheriff, is in love with Deputy Tom Farrell, but she as an aversion to bloodshed. She overhears that he shot and killed an outlaw three years in the past. He swears to her that it never happened but she does not believe him. Later her uncle tells he that it was he who killed the outlaw, Trevis, in the line of duty. She also learns that the brother of Trevis, seeking revenge, is on his way to kill Farrell.
Martin, the heroine's father is falsely believed to be in league with fur thieves, but the real villain, not content with robbing the old man of his furs, also plots the theft of his fair daughter. He nearly succeeds, but the resourceful Martin blocks both games.
Just as the bead clerk and his assistants are closing up the jewelry store for the day, a package containing a very costly necklace arrives by special messenger. The large safe deposit vault has been closed for the night and the time clock set. The head clerk is fearful to leave the necklace in the store and so decides to take it home. His actions have been closely watched by one of the junior clerks, with sinister and stealthy glances.
Samuel Butters breaks his engagement with Belle Bright—a strict ranch owner—to marry Violet White after falling for her at a summer hotel. Despite Belle withholding his investment money and threatening foreclosure on his struggling, family-filled new home, the twins' charm changes her heart.
Ben Darby and Pancake, his father, are owners of a mining claim in Northwest Canada. Ben goes to war, leaving Pancake to run the mine. During Ben's absence three claim jumpers take possession of the mine: one of the men is the father of Beatrice, Ben's sweetheart; another, a rival suitor. Pancake is murdered when he and Ben plot to regain the claim. Ben kidnaps Beatrice, resolving to obtain revenge through her. Ben finds that she knew nothing of the stolen claim and that her father was innocent of Pancake's murder. Ben then resolves to find the culprit and bring them to justice.