Rufe Dorsey, the brutal, unscrupulous boss of Santee, covets homesteader Donald McLane's oil-rich lands as well as his pretty sweetheart, Julia Wharton. To get him out of the way, Dorsey and his henchmen frame Donald for murder and imprison him. While Julia's brothers smuggle Donald out of prison and into hiding on the Wharton ranch, Julia writes to the state governor for help, and soon a stranger appears and begins to question the local homesteaders about the case. Dorsey discovers Donald's whereabouts, and he and his men ride to the ranch and open fire. The stranger, who believes that Donald is innocent, wires the state militia for reinforcements and then joins forces with the Whartons to defend the ranch. The stranger reveals to Dorsey that he is the governor of the state, and in desperation, the outlaw tries to kill him. At that moment the state militia arrives and Dorsey is finally defeated.