- In a prologue, the relationship between capital and labor throughout history is shown in caveman days, Biblical times, and the feudal period. In the main story John Stoddard, a construction chief building a gigantic bridge for capitalist Courtlandt Van Nest, sympathizes with the workers' dissatisfaction with low salaries and subsistence conditions. When his attempts to negotiate with Van Nest fail, the workers, led by agitator Lavinsky, prepare to strike. Van Nest's daughter Janet, who is engaged to a militia captain, visits the site and is appalled by the squalor. Despite their differences, Janet and Stoddard fall in love. When the strike breaks, Van Nest sends in the militia. As they prepare to fire, Stoddard sees Lavinsky about to throw dynamite, and wrestles it away. He then agrees to Van Nest's demand for settling the strike that he refrain from seeing Janet. After Janet leaves home to help poor families, Van Nest looks for her at Stoddard's house where Stoddard demonstrates that because of their similar ancestry, he and Van Nest are not very different. When Stoddard's sister Edith allows Van Nest to witness the surprise reunion of a worker and his wife from Europe, to whom Janet had sent transportation money, Van Nest softens and agrees to Janet's marriage to Stoddard. An epilogue follows showing blindfolded Justice saying to fat Capital and burly Labor, "Why quarrel? You are worthless without the other."—Pamela Short
- John Stoddard is hired by Courtlandt Van Nest, a capitalist, to supervise the construction of a gigantic iron bridge. Stoddard encounters trouble with the men, whose minds are inflamed by Lavinsky, an agitator. The men ask for higher wages. At Van Nest's suggestion Stoddard goes to New York to attend a meeting of the Board of Directors of the company owning the bridge. At the meeting Stoddard advocates a compromise in the way of a small increase in pay, but the directors will make no concessions to the men. Stoddard meets Janet Van Nest, who, with her Aunt Sarah, is a typical product of the circle which believes in class aristocracy. Janet is engaged to Kenneth Stuyvesant, an idle, rich young fellow, a captain in the militia. Janet and her aunt visit the militia encampment, staying at the hotel in Weyburn, N.Y., about a mile from where the bridge is being built. Stoddard shows Janet over the bridge. Janet feels that she has met a man who is a worker, who does things, and feels attracted to him, despite her aunt's words forbidding her to associate with him. Stoddard shows Janet through the poor section of the village, showing her the utter destitution of the working people. Janet writes a letter for Sevic, a rough working man, to his wife in the old country and sends her transportation. The men working on the bridge strike. Van Nest first calls in strike breakers, then the militia. As the militia are ready to fire Lavinsky prepares to hurl dynamite at them. Stoddard takes the dynamite away from him after a hand-to-hand fight. Stoddard turns the dynamite over to Kenneth, who has one of his men take it to the rear. Stoddard and Janet go to Van Nest and say they will do anything to have justice done the men. Van Nest takes them up and stipulates that they give each other up. Reluctantly they consent. Janet goes to help the poor of the village. On her way she meets Kenneth. Kenneth is angry at her associations with the masses and. going to her home, blames her aunt for driving the girl out. Missing Janet, Van Nest goes to Stoddard and demands the return of his daughter. Stoddard says he has kept his promise and not seen Janet, but seizes on the opportunity to point out to Van Nest the great American procession of workers and the fact that the difference in the stations of himself and Van Nest is due to the fact that their father's path diverged earlier in the procession. Van Nest is plainly impressed. Meanwhile Edith Stoddard is busy fixing things up for Sevic's wife and children who have arrived from the old country. Van Nest meets Edith. She shows him the children and how true happiness is obtained through labor. He becomes reconciled to the idea of Janet marrying Stoddard. The opening scenes show the relations of capital and labor starting with the cave man days, then in Biblical times, then in the feudal period and then today. The closing scenes are an allegory with Justice saying to Capital and Labor, "Why quarrel? You are each useless without the other."—Moving Picture World synopsis
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