Alice, an orphan cruelly treated by her aunt, is made briefly happy by the advent of the beautiful Clari as a summer neighbour in the English town where she lives. Clari is married very unhappily to a rich old man but after several years runs off with her lover, prompting Alice to run away from her aunt. After a period travelling with a small acting troupe she is looked after by a German nobleman and marries happily. (PB)