Hugo Ballin Productions

Coming to the U.S. from his native land to study Western civilization and continue work for his government young Chinaman Tsing Yu-Ch'ing attends an American university, then launches a Chinese newspaper in New York City. He also falls in love with the lovely Kathleen Levinsky who is blind. The daughter of a Jewish father and an Irish mother. Kathleen's life is barren of love, and she gladly accepts his attentions. When Dr. Hardwick, a classmate from college, calls on Tsing and meets Kathleen, he offers to cure her blindness through surgery. The operation is a success, but the newly sighted Kathleen is visibly upset by Tsing's appearance. After saving Kathleen from a killer known as the Hatchetman, Tsing returns to China and commits suicide, believing he will find eternal love with her in the afterlife.

Starring director Ballin's wife Mabel as Becky Sharp and Hobart Bosworth as the Marquis of Steyne, this filmed version of the Thackeray novel included one sequence filmed in color by Prizmacolor.