Synopsis

A millionaire's little son, while out walking with his nurse, slipped away and mysteriously disappeared. Detectives scoured the country far and wide, but without result. Finally the conclusion was regretfully reached that the little chap must be dead, for the handsome rewards offered for his recovery would have tempted any one who knew of his whereabouts. An unscrupulous woman, who lived by her wits, read an account of the affair, and was amazed by the startling resemblance the missing boy bore to her own son. She decided to take advantage of the likeness, and presented herself at the wealthy widower's home with her son. The child was at once accepted as the missing heir. The millionaire offered her employment as nurse to his "son," and the woman and her child seemed assured of comfort and luxury as long as they lived. The millionaire's child had not died. When he ran away from his nurse he hid in a freight car, intending to frighten her, but the Joke became serious when the train started and he was unable to get off. A surly brakeman put him off the train many miles from his home. Later the little fellow was injured in an accident and was cared for by a kindly farmer's family. He was unconscious for weeks, and when he recovered he found that no one would credit his assertion that he was a millionaire's son. His clothes were ragged and shabby now, and he looked like a beggar boy. But the boy had a good deal of pluck, and he finally got home, although he had to walk a good part of the way. The scheming woman realized that he was the rightful heir and tried to bar him from his home, but he forced his way in and the puzzled father had to choose between two boys who were alike as two peas. But the youngster's pet dog recognized his little master at once, and hurled himself upon him with yelps of joy, and the boy soon convinced his father that he had been the victim of a deception. "The Changeling" was a very surly boy, quite different from the cheery temperament of his real son, and the father had often grieved over his boy's changed disposition. The adventuress and her son left the home which they had grown to look upon as their own and were never heard from again. -- Moving Picture World synopsis