United states

A circus owner, Pop Blodgett, closely controls Hope's life and presents her as his prima ballerina. Pop has a plan to make Hope more money for him than just dancing.

A circus dancer named Babette is told by her mother and fortune teller Zaidee that her father is Ezra Butterworth, a respected businessman who left them to get married. Following the death of her mother, Babette decides to go and live with her father. Ezra fears for his reputation, he worries about town gossip about his past scum life and asks Babette to keep quiet. But people start to gossip and Ezra tells all to his wife, who pardons him. Sickened Babette goes back to the circus and his beloved Petey.

The drunk gentleman Mr. Pest goes to the music-hall. He has a hard time trying to find his seat, more than once mussing up already seated members of the audience as well the orchestra musicians. At the same time, M. Rowdy, another spectator who sat in the gallery, sometimes unintendedly disrupts the sequence of numbers performed on scene, among which a snake charmer, an Oriental dancer, a fire breather.

A canal boat captain disowns his daughter when she marries a circus artist. Years later, he meets his granddaughter for the very first time.

Two young girls and their cousin meet an acrobat that they see again later on as a member of a circus. The hazards and adventures of two young girls dying for a career in circus. As Fred Morris takes them under his wing, both will become famous trapezists.

A man goes out West to escape a forced marriage. There he meets a horsewoman.

Philip Lee lusts after his cousin Margaret’s inheritance. Margaret just married a circus artist, Bob Wilson. 4 years later, as they are back with their daughter Nell, Philip confronts Bob, driving him crazy. After Margaret dies in an accident, circus clown Prinsey takes care of Nell. Years later, Ned Tracy, in love with Nell now a circus star, tells her all the secrets about her family and marries her, also taking under his wing Nell’s circus friend Marie, who had secretly married Philip, as well as their child.

Mrs. Wiggs, a loving mother abandoned by her husband, raises her numerous children as best as she can, living in the hope that her husband will return. This family will be crushed by a brutal circus owner as well as many stories — murder attempts and false accusations — until they all eventually regain peace and their honor untouched.

Wrongly accused of Richard Jenison’s murder, his grandson David takes refuge in a circus pretending to be a clown. He is denounced by humpback Ernie, who resents the affection of the owners, Mrs Braddock and her daughter Christine, for David. Then Ernie’s brother finds out that Richard was killed by his own brother. David proposes to Christine, but he has to wait five years. After lots of setbacks, they will finally be back together.

The adventures of Buffalo Bill, shown riding a horse, bull riding and lassoing running horses.