Jim Stafford, the owner of a Philippine plantation, has ruined his health with a lifetime of hard work. Selling his plantation, he departs from the Philippines with Ruth Haney, whom he has persuaded to marry him upon their arrival in New York, and his idealistic cousin, Bob Elliot, who disagrees bitterly with Stafford over the value of work and money. The steamer that carries the three catches fire, and they are stranded on a Pacific island populated by savage natives. The two men eventually battle for Stafford's satchel of money and the love of Ruth.