Mark Russell, captain of a ship sailing from the South Seas to San Francisco, is an innocent victim of a pearl-smuggling scheme by Harry Gibson, and when the pearls are discovered by customs inspectors, Russell takes the blame because of his love for Gibson's sister Eve and to shield her of being disgraced.

The Patent Leather Kid is a 1927 silent film which tells the story of a boxer who scoffs at fighting outside the ring... particularly for the United States once it enters World War I. Eventually, he is drafted, is shipped overseas, and performs a heroic act, which results in his being severely wounded.