Ben Royce prides himself on being a self-made man who has become the most powerful cattle baron in the West. He rules his family and his ranch with an iron hand, and there are many clashes between him and his foreman Jace Farrow. After a particularly bitter quarrel, Jace tells Royce that he is quitting to go into the cattle business on his own. Believing that Jace will fail on his own, Royce makes no attempt to stop him. As Jace prepares to leave, he asks Marcy Royce, Ben's daughter to go with him.