Cletus Abernathy, a profiteering, washed-up, sheriff must call upon his past training as a deputy in order to face a man named Crenshaw later in the morning.
The division superintendent of the Montana Idaho R.R. finds it necessary to buy the property of an old settler in order to clear the right of way. The old man, with his daughter, has occupied the same cabin for years, and refuses to sell his holdings. The superintendent wires the general manager, who sends Broncho Billy, his assistant, with orders to get possession of the land at any cost. Broncho offers the old man an enormous amount, but is flatly refused. The daughter then leads Broncho into the yard, where he is shown the grave in which her mother has been laid to rest several years before. This is their reason for refusing to sell.
Slippery Slim and Sophie are deeply in love. Slim incurs the enmity of Hiram Clutts, Sophie's father, and Mustang Pete. They swear vengeance. Mustang writes a note to Slim, signing Sophie's name, asking him to meet her in a cemetery. Slim finds a band of men waiting clad in sheets. He flees and asks Sophie to save him.
The city girl decides to turn over a new leaf and go west where she can start life anew. Several years later finds her the wife of a minister in a small western town and extremely happy. One day she and her husband find Broncho Billy, an outlaw, lying in the road suffering from a wound. They take him to their home, and while the minister hastens for a doctor, his wife dresses the wound. She steps into an adjoining room, where she is confronted by the man who had been so cruel to her years before. He threatens to expose her if she refuses to give him money.
Colonel Emmett's daughter is captured by an outlaw who blindfolds her just before taking her to his hut, so, in case she escaped, she would be unable to lead anybody to his rendezvous. She is told by one of his accomplices that he intends forcing her into marriage, so she feigns illness. While the outlaw goes for a doctor, she writes a note saying that she is not ill, and is being held for ransom. The outlaw arrives with Broncho Billy, the doctor, whom he has also blindfolded. The girl slips him the note and he pretends to be attending her. Before being blindfolded again for the return journey he fills his pocket with white pills, which he drops at intervals, marking the trail.
The entire town is terrorized. Broncho Billy has again been drinking and is shooting at everything in sight. After "shooting up" a saloon and grocery store Broncho goes to his cabin where he falls asleep. The sheriff and his men arrive, and after a fierce struggle overpower him. The man stationed outside suddenly rushes in and informs them that Broncho's mother has arrived to pay him a visit. The news quickly sobers Broncho, and the sheriff seeing his distress, pins his star on him, and himself dons the handcuffs. When his mother enters she thinks Broncho is the sheriff, and takes pity on the prisoner.
Sophie, who boasts the most perfect figure in the world, attracts the attention of every man in town when she arrives in Snakeville to demonstrate corsets.
Having refused to accompany either Broncho Billy or the mail carrier to a dance at the town hall, Broncho's sweetheart accepts the invitation of his best pal. Broncho takes the defeat gracefully and decides to leave the country, while the mail carrier tries to force her to go with him. She pulls a gun on him. He snatches it away from her, then leaves a note telling that he will turn the "plaything" over to her sweetheart if he calls for it at the saloon. Her sweetheart is afraid to do this, but tells Broncho of the affair and he immediately goes to the saloon, where he overpowers the mail carrier, taking the gun away from him. He then departs.
Broncho Billy, the town good-for-nothing, makes his headquarters at the saloon, where he makes a few cents each day by sweeping out the place. One morning the hotel proprietor, the general store keeper and the chairman of the town board, upon going to their places of business, find that they have been robbed.
Mustang Pete receives a letter from his daughter, Sophie, who is away at boarding school, asking permission to bring some girls home with her to spend their vacation. Mustang flatly refuses. That afternoon he and Slippery Slim have a fight over a checker game, and to get "square" Slim advertises the fact that he will pay his ranch hands double the salary that Mustang will pay. As a result Slim gets all of Mustang's helpers. Mustang then writes to Sophie and tells her to bring home the girls if she cares to. The girls arrive the following day and Mustang has an abundance of help, all of Slim's helpers deserting him.
Broncho and his wife arrive in a new country and settle. They are treated with all kindness by a man who later turns out to be a moonshiner, and Broncho, not having any special occupation, is induced to help the outlaw in his work. One day while Broncho is at work, the moonshiner goes to his helper's home and forces his affections upon his wife.
Broncho Billy shoots an outlaw for making a disrespectful remark about his sweetheart. After the shooting he hastens to her home and tells her he has shot a man, but does not know who he is. Shortly after the remainder of the gang of outlaws arrive and, to learn the direction Broncho went, tell her it was her father who was shot.
Slippery Slim uses his position as postmaster in order to hold back all the invitations to Sophie's birthday party, except, of course, his own and that of the parson.
The hotel proprietor is a grouchy piece of humanity, and when his daughter receives attentions from young men he becomes very irate. To cap the climax, his daughter falls in love and becomes engaged to a fine-looking young chap. When the father discovers this, he rushes out and shoots his daughter's sweetheart.
The doctor, who owns the only store in town, is called away, and leaves his daughter in charge. A bandit has been menacing the vicinity and a reward is offered for his capture. There is quite a sum of money in the store, and when Broncho Billy, a stranger, knocks at the door, the girl thinks he must be the outlaw and forces him into a room at the point of a gun
Broncho, the vagabond, is thrown out of the gambler's place because he has no money. He is light-hearted, nevertheless, and while strolling through the woods, runs upon a little girl trying to chop some wood. His heart is touched and he helps her. She leads him to the shack she calls home and Broncho is filled with pity when he sees her father sick