 During the 1920s, itinerant American beachcomber Mr. Morgan (Gary Cooper) is deposited on the island of Matareva in the South Pacific.When he decides to stay he is confronted by Pastor Cobbett (Barry Jones), who lost both his father and his wife as a young missionary on the island.Cobbett rules Matareva as a Puritanical despot, using local bullies as "wardens" to enforce his rules.