Victor McLaglen plays Frank Wilson, who early in the film is lost at sea. Declared legally dead, Wilson nonetheless returns to his home port after many years. He discovers that his "widow" Norah (Gertrude McCoy) has married a wealthy merchant in order to provide a father for her physically challenged child. Rather than impede Norah's present and future happiness, Wilson takes drastic action to remove himself from the picture. Heartstrings was based on A Manchester Marriage, a novel by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi