Cecilia is a spunky Irish girl from a struggling family, faced with the imminent death of her mother.

Jeremiah Madden invents a new kind of brick, but his sick wife, whom Dr. McNeil has refused to treat due to Madden's lack of money, dies before the bricklayer can sell his invention. With the help of Father McGowan, Jeremiah's daughter Cecilia helps raise her brother Johnny and then, after Madden has made his fortune, is educated at a private finishing school. Cecilia and Harry Twombly, a young lawyer, fall in love, and when Johnny falls into the clutches of a woman blackmailer, Harry helps Cecilia effect his reform.—AFI