Story of the lovely Dora Swayle, her admirer Hugh MacNeil and their lives and adventures in the Victorian bush near Melbourne. Dora marries Robert Patrick, but he goes missing and she she relies on the assistance of the faithful Hugh. Robert is found after eighteen months away, but confusion ensues as Dora's friend, Grace Moffat, is convinced her lover, Ronald Patrick, has been unfaithful due to the discovery of an initialled handkerchief. When she discovers that Ronald has a brother with the same initials, she realises her mistake and they are reunited. Robert is of a sickly nature however, and later dies, leaving Dora and her child Grace alone. Hugh, however, has remained faithful to his love for Dora, and they eventually marry.
The menace and beauty of the Australian landscape is described in great detail.
