Fireman Bill Carey and police officer Tom Gerrity are rivals for the hand of Nan Clark. Each hopes to marry Nan so that her father, Councilman Clark, the city finance commissioner, will award their respective departments huge appropriations for new equipment. Bill really loves Nan, but she insists that her baby daughter Sandy select the man she marries. Both Fire Chief Galvin and Police Chief O'Hara support the courtships of their employees and collect money to buy a birthday gift for Sandy. Bill takes Sandy to the store to select her gift, but when she wanders away and ends up at the police station, he becomes the object of ridicule. This prompts Junior and Bagshaw, firemen friends of Bill, who have a bet that Bill will win Nan's hand, to persuade Bill to try caveman tactics on Nan. Their advice backfires, however, when Nan becomes infuriated with Bill's behavior and agrees to marry Tom.