 Phoebe is the practical sister, interested in helping the family and refusing a marriage proposal as she does not feel the necessary affection for her suitor.Nancy, on the other hand, marries a well-to-do man twenty years her senior while her lover, Kirkham, is prospecting for gold in Western Australia.Kirkham strikes it rich in WA and upon returning to Victoria and finding Nancy no longer available, turns his affections towards Phoebe.