Union Depot

Chic Miller and Scrap Iron Scratch reach the Union Depot with the idea of leaving town by train. The bustling depot provides the backdrop for a series of chance encounters that will push Chic toward a temporary elevation of status. Their casual optimism on the platform sets up the journey ahead.

Chic finds a suitcase left by a drunken passenger in a public washroom. Inside is a neat double-breasted suit and cash tucked in a pocket, prompting him to change clothing. He uses the money to buy a much-needed meal at the depot diner, fueling his next moves.

Chic meets Ruth Collins on a bench in the terminal and learns she is an out-of-work chorus girl desperate to raise $64 for a train to Salt Lake City. She reveals a job offer awaiting her and admits a mysterious doctor named Bernardi is following her. Ruth fears the doctor and the strange attention he brings.

Moved by Ruth's desperation, Chic promises to provide the needed money without any conditions. He chooses to aid a stranger rather than continue his own aim of leaving town. Ruth begins to trust him as a potential ally against her pursuer.

A crook named Bushy Sloan impersonates a German musician and carries a violin case full of counterfeit cash. He checks the case into the station's baggage area, setting up a tangle of deceit around fake money. A pickpocket steals Bushy's wallet, which contains the baggage-claim ticket.

Scrap Iron finds the wallet with the baggage ticket and passes it to Chic. Chic reclaims the violin case and is stunned to realize it contains counterfeit cash. He hides the case and most of the bogus money in a coal bin near the depot and assigns Scrap Iron to guard it.

While Chic is away, Ruth is given counterfeit cash by Chic to buy new clothes at a shop in the station. She is unaware that the money is not genuine, which will soon bring trouble down on both of them. The fake funds link Ruth to the wider crime scheme.

Dr. Bernardi sends Ruth a passenger ticket and a message to meet him in the train's designated compartment. Believing the ticket is from Chic, Ruth hurries to the compartment and begins screaming when she sees Bernardi. Chic learns of the ticket and rushes to the train to intervene.

Chic boards the rail car and breaks through the door when Ruth screams at the sight of Bernardi. The doctor escapes as Chic lunges to protect Ruth, setting off a tense pursuit along the car and into the train corridor. The danger escalates quickly as the chase continues.

In a desperate move, Chic runs across an adjacent railroad track amid the confusion. A passing train complicates the pursuit and raises the stakes for everyone involved. The chaotic sequence intensifies the showdown between the lovers and the criminals.

Back at the station, the dress shop clerk who sold Ruth her clothes grows suspicious of the cash she used and reports it to the station master. Government agents arrive to investigate the counterfeit money and start linking Ruth and Chic to the wider criminal plot. The tension shifts toward potential arrests.

To clear Ruth, Chic agrees to help retrieve the hidden violin case with an agent. They are pursued by Bushy, who shoots the agent and flees with the case. Chic gives chase and eventually corners the crook, paving the way for resolution and Ruth's bittersweet send-off.

Ruth boards the train to Utah, stepping into a new chapter of her life. Chic and Scrap Iron walk away along the railroad tracks, returning to their life as hobos but perhaps with a new sense of purpose and camaraderie after the ordeal. The film closes on a note of cautious optimism and unresolved longing.