A young girl journeys to Africa to find her father, an explorer who vanished in the jungle.

Two prospectors, one the father of Skye "Lightning" Bryce and the other the father of Kate Arnold, find a large gold deposit belonging to an Indian tribe. They head for home but each sends a note to their respective off-springs advising them of their good fortune. One of the fathers conceives a plan of taking a dagger and wrapping a piece of string around the blade, after which he prints on the string with a lead pencil, the exact location of their find. If something happens to them, the string goes to the son and the knife to the daughter. That night an Indian approaches their camp and blows some mysterious wolf powder which causes a man to see wolves in place of human beings. Lightning's father see his partner as a wolf and stabs him to death; later he is brought into town in a dying condition but before dying, hands the knife and the string over to the sheriff with instructions to deliver to Lightning and Kate.

Two investigators for a stagecoach company are assigned to find out why the company's stages keep being ambushed. They discover that the culprits are white men disguised as Indians, and they set out to discover who is behind the plot.

During the latter stages of the Civil War, a gang of supposed Confederates, headed by Alex Morel (Lionel Atwill), raid all gold shipments destined for Washington from Oro Grande, California. In the first chapter, "Murder By Accident", Captain Steve Clark (Dennis Moore), is recognized as a Union Secret Service agent by Morel's accomplice Trina Dessard (Virginia Christine), and, with his friend Idaho Jones (Joe Sawyer), is ambushed in the baggage car and sent to almost certain death when the car is un-coupled and plunges down the mountainside. Leaping to safety, in order to be around for the next 12 chapters, Idaho and Steve report to Colonel Sewell (Addison Richards) in Oro Grande, and Idaho introduces himself as a Wells Fargo detective to Cathy Haines (Wanda McKay), the Oro Grande company agent. Steve and Idaho learn that the Morel raiders are only posing as Confederates, and their headquarters are at Morel's "Golden Eagle" saloon. In a raid on the hideout, Steve's brother Jim (Gene Garrick) is killed by the gang. The next victim is Confederate Army Captain Clay Randolph (Regis Toomey) who has discovered that Morel is connected with a group of Prussian spies and gives Steve a clue before he dies. The clue leads Steve to a San Francisco dive owned by Abel Rackerby (Charles Wagenheim), who, thinking he has Steve in his power, exposes the ring's activities and operation methods. Aided by the San Francisco Secret Service, Steve escapes and returns to Oro Grande, where in Chapter 13, "Golden Vengeance", he and Idaho round up the spies.

Beyond Hell's Gate Pass is territory controlled by a man who calls himself King Carter; he uses a variety of schemes to prevent the railroad from being built, for fear it will finish his control of (what he considers) his land.