Probationer Ethel Bennett nurses injured docker Thomas Hooley, whose leg wounds are not healing. She clashes with ward sister Ada Russell, who is overwhelmed by the strain of running the ward, and her true feelings for fiance Dr Walton.Leader of the Blind Beggar Gang, Nobby Clark, is hospitalised with cirrhosis of the liver, aged 15. Children are dying from an epidemic of diarrhoea and vomiting sweeping through the slums.Chairman Sydney Holland calls an emergency meeting when the hospital runs out of funds and faces closure. Lord Rothschild arrives with news that plans for a Jewish hospital are going ahead, denying the Royal London vital funding.