Arthur Phelps, an ex-service man who suffered an eye injury in the war, falls in love with Rosa Duchêne, a French dancer who visited the military hospital and gave him a kiss. Returning to El Paso, Texas, to work in the oil fields near the Mexican border, Arthur cannot get Rosa out of his mind. One day, a woman named Poll Patchouli comes to his shack, seeking refuge. She is the star dancer at John Rodríguez’s cantina on the Mexican side of town, but she tried to save a young girl from a white slaver who frequents the dancehall, and now Rodríguez has threatened to kill her for ruining his business. Although Arthur is unhappy that Poll has invaded his sanctuary, she refuses to leave because she fears for her safety. Seeing his photographs of Rosa Duchêne and the sonnets he writes to her, Poll is moved by the purity of his emotions, as they contrast to the loveless circumstances of her own life as a cantina dancer. Staying in Arthur’s shack, Poll gets a job as a saleslady at the cigar counter of a hotel on the American side of town. Arthur learns that Rosa Duchêne and her dance troupe are coming to El Paso. When he arrives at the theater, he has a chance to speak to the dancer backstage, and she vaguely remembers him from the military hospital. Out in the lobby, Poll gives Arthur an exploding cigar as a joke, hoping it will snap him out of his trance, but as he lights it, the small flash of powder temporarily blinds him. Later, at the hotel, he hears Poll mimicking Rosa’s voice, and believing her to be his beloved, he tells her about the accident. Poll begs him to marry her, and Arthur consents, believing she is Rosa. Their life together seems blissful now that she is part of his “fool’s paradise,” until she learns that a famous eye surgeon will be in town for a day. Out of guilt, she arranges for the doctor to restore Arthur’s sight, but it reveals her deception. Arthur leaves her in search of Rosa. At last he finds her living with Prince Talaat-Noi in Siam, where she has gone to study Oriental dance. During a sacrifice of a lamb to a pit of alligators, Rosa throws her glove into the pit, promising to take the man who retrieves it as her husband. The prince is almost killed by the reptiles, but Arthur saves him. Realizing that Rosa loves only herself, Arthur rejects her and returns to Poll, but finds her engaged to John Rodríguez and working again at the cantina. In a quarrel, Rodríguez injures Poll with his knife, and Arthur carries her to safety. Following her recovery, they get married.