A young rancher by the name of Byrne is in love with Jessie Long. A city chap named Harvey is also courting her. Jessie has consented to become engaged to Byrne. Byrne has a weakness for cards, and on his way from town with his engagement ring he gets into a game. In his excitement he gambles away the ring, and overindulges in liquor. On his arrival at Jessie's, her disappointment in him is so keen, that she turns to Harvey. While she still loves Byrne, in her exasperation, she marries Harvey. Byrne loses his self-respect for a short time, and gambles away his little ranch. Growing disgusted with himself, he determines to seek the company of real men and brace up. So he enlists in the Mounted Police. Harvey, after his marriage with Jessie, degenerates into a good-for-nothing and drifts to the outskirts of a saw mill settlement, where he sets up a still and makes liquor illicitly. The Mounted Police learn of the place, and Byrne is assigned to the duty of investigating. He discovers Jessie and her child in misery and squalor. But duty is first, and he proceeds to attempt the arrest of Harvey. This is no easy matter, and there is a chase of many days through the forest, during which the fugitive is slowly starving to death. But the Mounted Police never give up, and Byrne plods on until be finds the dead body of his quarry. In the meantime Jessie, deserted, has taken her child and moved into the saw mill settlement, where she secures work as a waitress. Byrne, returning from his long quest, stops at this boarding house to get a meal, and encounters Jessie. He gives her news of Harvey's death, and she realizes then that she is better off without him. Byrne takes her in his arms, and she is at last happy.