Summary
From the precipice of utter destitution, a nameless derelict's life is irrevocably altered by a fleeting act of bourgeois compassion. A near-collision with Miss Otis's automobile, followed by her unsolicited monetary offering and a pithy admonition to 'clean up and keep clean,' ignites within him a nascent, yet fierce, ambition. This initial spark, however, quickly plunges him into a shadowy underworld when he encounters Esther, a fervent anarchist. She ensnares him in a convoluted scheme to extort a prominent banker, a plot that takes a cruel twist of fate when he discovers his target is none other than Miss Otis's father. Faced with this stark moral conundrum, the derelict makes a momentary, noble gesture, tearing up the ill-gotten check, only to be summarily arrested and confined to an asylum for his troubles. Esther, whose radical convictions belie a deep, unrequited affection, orchestrates his audacious escape. Liberated, but now consumed by a burning desire for societal vindication, he embarks on a relentless quest for wealth and influence. Years later, having meticulously amassed a fortune, he coldly repudiates Esther's enduring devotion, her revolutionary ideals now an inconvenient relic of his past, and instead, with an almost transactional precision, proposes marriage to the very woman who, unknowingly, set him on his path to a hollow triumph: Miss Otis.
Synopsis
Miss Otis nearly hits a derelict with her car, and out of sympathy she gives him some money and advises him to "clean up and keep clean." Soon after, the derelict meets Esther, an anarchist who involves him in a plot to blackmail a banker. When he realizes that Miss Otis is the banker's daughter, the derelict tears up the banker's check but is arrested and committed to an asylum. Esther, who is in love with the derelict, helps him escape, and he resolves to attain a position of wealth and importance. After he earns his fortune, he rejects Esther's affections and asks Miss Otis to marry him.
Director
