Living alone in the hills with her cripple brother, Harry, Jane Edwards finds life pretty hard. An unkempt stranger showing marks of a hard life, receiving food at their door is not satisfied, but attempts to insult the girl. Her brother, trying to drive him off, is knocked down and abused, when the timely arrival of a young prospector, who is driving in the hills, drives off the renegade. On the hillside the prospector is attacked from behind and thrown over a cliff. The prospector, stunned and landing on a projection not far from the top, is seen by the girl, who goes to his rescue. He starts to climb up; in his ascent he discovers traces of gold. To get his claim in working shape he must suspend himself with a rope fastened at the top of the cliff. Looking over he sees the prospector at work. Harry, the cripple, sees the renegade stoop to cut the rope and shoots, while the prospector is surprised to head the shot and on ascending finds the dead man. A sheriff with a few deputies is scouring the hills for the renegade for whom a large reward has been offered. Harry is thanked by the prospector as the sheriff arrives, who hands the prospector a notice offering a reward for an escape outlaw, dead or alive. With a smile on his face the prospector hands it to Harry, who, recognizing the picture, leads the sheriff away to the body while the prospector and Jane decide to join hands as life partners.