George Mason is a philanthropist and a major financier in his town. Unfortunately, he's also an extremely jealous man and married to an attractive woman, Stella.
When Carl Rainy, the boss at George's stable, flirts with Stella, George grows jealous and kills him. A half-breed, Charles Lopez, sees George do the deed. George pays Charles for his silence, since the half-breed has a baby on the way. However, George then turns the townspeople against Charles and suggests that they stage a fake-lynching to scare the truth out of the man. Unknown to the townspeople, George has Charles on a horse that Carl trained to run toward fire. George then lights a cigar, the horse runs, and Charles is "accidentally" hung.
The truth comes out when the Rangers send Hoby to investigate the incident. Hoby soon discovers the horse and its attraction to fire. The Ranger has no proof but confronts George and pressures him. George tries to kill Stella so that no other man can have her, and Hoby is forced to kill him.
