Sisters Josephine and Rose De Beaurepaire have so successfully hidden the family's dire financial situation from their mother that when Colonel Raynal arrives to take possession of their estate, the Baroness is considerably shocked. Raynal, taking pity on the family and feeling an attraction towards Josephine, suggests that their marriage would offer a happy solution. Josephine is in love with a young soldier, Lieut. Camille Du Jordin, but upon reading that her sweetheart has acted as a traitor, she accepts Raynal's proposal. After the ceremony, Raynal leaves immediately for the front and soon is reported killed. Camille then returns, decorated for bravery, and with his name cleared, Josephine consents to secretly marry him, giving birth to a child the next year. Subsequently, Raynal reappears and demands to know the baby's parentage. Rose, to protect her sister, claims the child, causing an estrangement with her own sweetheart, Edouard Riviere.