Florence Godfrey, a pious young woman who teaches Sunday School, lives just outside Manchester. Her father, who has worked in a manufacturing firm for many years, is despondent over the closure of one of their mills due to financial hardship. Florence's brother, Alf, goes to sea to seek his fortune and a parallel storyline relates his trials. Eventually the Godfreys move to Australia and settle in Glentown near Melbourne where Mr Godfrey develops a successful sheep station, and Florence teaches Sunday School to the wild Australian children. Mark Lisburne eventually comes to Australia to marry Florence, and they decide to adopt Australia as their own country.
