Summary
In this biting satirical vignette of the 1920s, the narrative trajectory follows Ned and Brown, a pair of itinerant box-car denizens whose transition from the liberating lawlessness of the rails to the stifling expectations of domesticity precipitates a series of calamitous misunderstandings. Prompted by Brown’s misplaced evangelical zeal for the institution of marriage, Ned attempts to navigate the treacherous waters of social interaction by performing the role of the 'masher.' This ill-advised flirtation with a perceived stranger results in a swift judicial reprimand, only for the irony to deepen when the object of his attention is revealed as Brown's own spouse. The film operates as a Sisyphean loop of incarceration and fiscal penalty, where the protagonist's attempts to adhere to 'civilized' behavior only serve to reinforce his status as a perpetual outsider, trapped within a cycle of bourgeois indignation and legal entrapment.
Synopsis
Ned and Brown are former box-car buddies. Brown persuades Ned of the advisability of marriage and suggests that he flirt with the first good-looker he sees. Ned does so and is pinched, his fine being paid by Brown. The latter invites Ned to his house and Mrs. Brown recognizes Ned as the masher. She screams and Ned is again arrested and fined. A third arrest follows with the same result.
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