Professor Toscani, an instructor of music, has as one of his pupils Miss Grace Roberts, a very wealthy heiress. He plots to get some of her money and writes to an Italian friend of his to come to his home. There they play that the professor shall introduce Tony as an Italian count and have him win Grace’s heart and money, dividing the spoils between them. The plan works out and the handsome Italian engages himself to Grace. Some time later Grace receives a letter that a new will of her uncle has been found, in which she has been disinherited and leaving his entire estate to a missionary fund. The poor girl is nearly heartbroken over the loss of her home and property. She seeks comfort in the professor. He tells Tony and Tony compels the professor to give him money. He goes away. The professor writes a note, purporting to come from Tony telling Grace that he has been compelled to go back to Italy and promising to return for her. The poor girl goes to town and seeks and finds employment. She rooms at a boarding house. There she meets Fred Keen, a detective. Fred falls in love with her and proposes marriage to her. She tells him she is engaged to another man. One day, a package is left for Grace in Fred’s room. He takes it up to her but she is not there. He notices the picture of the bogus count and recognizes in him a crook for whom he has been looking. Grace returns and informs Fred that the original of the photograph he is looking at is the man she is engaged to. Fred decides to look him up. Tony, meanwhile has sought his old haunts, and during an altercation at cards, shoots a man. Fred, hearing the shot, rushes to the saloon from whence the noise emanated and finds Tony struggling to get away. Fred arrests him. He is taking him to the station house when they meet Grace on the street. She confronts him and he admits that he is an old time crook and that his pretensions of royalty and protestations of love were sham. He is dragged off to jail. Later, Fred renews his suit, and Grace, awakening to the depths of his pure, true love, after experiencing the shock of her affair with the bogus count, accepts him.