The year is 1902. The love affair between a young aristocrat and the seventeen-year old daughter of his tutor ends in sorrow disgrace and grief humiliation. He is sent away to Europe to forget while his lover, pregnant and ruined, is left behind. She bears a child, Harry, who is fostered by the Pritchetts, a humble and caring family. Harry grows up in idyllic surroundings with Alice, his foster-sister, sometimes going up to the big house to play with the beautiful but spoilt Madeline. Though secure at the Pritchetts', nothing can prepare Harry for the revelation of his father's true identity. Years later the truth finally does emerge, and he is claimed by his father's relatives. But Harry finds he cannot forget the care of those who had brought him up - especially Alice with her deep and enduring love.