- When the brokerage firm of Blatch, Markham and Driggs dissolves, Markham steals company records and the option of a valuable mine. Meanwhile, Blatch, who wants the option to expire so he can then purchase it at a low price, hires attorney Burley Hadden to convince Driggs that he is trying to recover it. Hadden sees John Craig, a bungling construction contractor who needs $800 for his payroll, running nervously from the pop of a paper bag, and offers the supposed "dub" $1,000 to retrieve the papers, thinking he will fail. After Markham tries to dupe John, he meets Enid Drayton, Markham's ward, who is being held a virtual prisoner in Markham's mansion. With the help of a friendly burglar, they retrieve the option and other papers which prove that Markham and Blatch had been cheating Driggs for years. After Driggs rewards John and informs Enid that she owns a million dollar estate, she and John embrace.—AFI
- A brokerage firm run by three men, Blatch, Markham, and Driggs, dissolve their partnership. Markham removes some of the business records from the company's safe and discovers that Blatch and Driggs were involved in a mining claim worth a fortune. Driggs demands that Markham return the papers, but Markham threatens to burn the papers if Blatch and Driggs go forward with the claim. The pair hire an unscrupulous lawyer named Burley Hadden to get the papers back. Meanwhile, Blatch is planning to double-cross Driggs and lets Hadden in on it. Hadden goes to a park to think up a plan.
There, he observes John Craig, who runs a small construction company. Craig needs eight hundred dollars to overcome some financial difficulties. Craig suddenly recalls that he left a box of dynamite on his office desk, and fears that if someone knocks the box off his desk, the office will explode. At that same instant, a little boy explodes a paper bag behind Craig, startling the man, and he runs away, bumping into Hadden. Hadden concludes that Craig is a "dub," and decides to use him in his plan. He offers one thousand dollars to Craig for a simple and quick job. Hadden's plan is to send Craig to Markham's home to retrieve the papers. He believes Craig will be tossed out of the house, and then Hadden can tell Driggs there is no chance of retrieving the papers. Craig goes to Markham's house, where he meets Enid Drayton, Markham's ward. Markham appears with two servants and they toss Craig onto the street. At midnight, Craig sneaks into the basement, goes up to the library, and again meets Enid. Enid tells Craig that she is essentially a prisoner, and that Markham is controlling her finances. She shows Craig a bag of Markham's papers. Craig throws the bag out a window.
Markham appears and offers to give the mining paper to Craig. When Craig opens the sealed envelope outside the home, he finds it contains useless paperwork. Meanwhile, Markham has discovered his bag of papers is missing, and drives to the city. Craig sees him leaving, but collides with a burglar named Bill. Craig induces Bill to help him get back into Markham's house, where they capture the two servants and tie them up. Markham meets up with Blatch and Hadden and they realize that the bag of papers also contains records of crooked deals involving Markham and Blatch. Craig and Bill crack Markham's safe, and find the mining paper.
Craig takes Enid to the city to find Blatch. They meet Driggs and turn over the paper to him, along with the documents incriminating Markham and Blatch. Blatch and Markham head for Mexico. Driggs informs Enid that she is a millionaire, and gives Craig the thousand dollars that Hadden had promised him.
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