Mrs. Dane's Defense

Felicia Hindemarsh accompanies Mrs. Trent from England to Canada, where she becomes involved in an affair with the woman's husband. Mrs. Trent learns of her husband's unfaithfulness and commits suicide, while Felicia bears a child whom she places in the care of her own childhood nurse. Following the death of her cousin Mrs. Dane, who has left her a substantial inheritance, Felicia returns to England, determined to establish herself in society. Borrowing her deceased cousin's name, she begins a new life and soon falls in love with Lionel Carteret, the son of a prominent lawyer, Sir Daniel Carteret. Lionel abandons Lady Eastney's niece Janet for "Mrs. Dane," but the engagement is broken off when a visitor from Canada reveals Felicia's past to Sir Daniel. Defeated, Felicia returns to her child in Canada, and Lionel returns to the patient Janet.