The town's lumber mill is in dire financial straights and the owner dies after being confronted by a disgruntled employee. When the mill owner's son, John Archer, takes over, he struggles to make the business viable and fails to bond with the employees who feel over worked and exploited. As they are required to work longer hours for very little pay, the employees threaten to resign. Only winning a major contract, supplying lumber for the state railroad, will prevent the business from going bankrupt.