In 1937 the Depression deepened as economic gains were wiped out by aid projeects failures. In New york City a young merchant sailor is struck by a truck at a city intersection. Crippled for life his only hope of paying his medical bils is to win a lawsuit against the trucking company He loses the suit because of the false testimony of the driver and several bribed witnesses. Revenge becomes his chief motivator. He finds a way to steal from insurance companies with the help of a con artist. .