Frank Burdon (Sir Rex Harrison) is a new reporter on a small-town Scottish paper. He's told to interview local politician William Gow (Cecil Parker), then left in charge of the paper overnight. He sees Gow being high-handed to a woman who can't afford to license her dog, and decides to run that story instead of the expected puff piece. Both are decent men, but a little too proud to back down, and the battle escalates into a criminal case. But at the same time, Burdon and Gow's daughter Victoria (Vivien Leigh) are falling in love.