[Gutenberg 23116] • Ruth Fielding Down East; Or, The Hermit of Beach Plum Point

Ruth is devastated when her latest scenario is stolen by a tramp. Ruth had left her scenario laying inside the summerhouse at the Old Mill when a storm blew up. She returns to the summerhouse and finds that her scenario is missing. The hired man, Ben, reports that a tramp came through the area earlier in the day and that the man quoted poetry. Ruth and Tom suspect that the man might be an actor who realized the value of the scenario.

Soon, Ruth joins Mr. Hammond and his film company in Maine where they are making Ruth's latest film. Mr. Hammond is disappointed to learn that Ruth's scenario is missing and comments that he must search for another one to use. He offers five hundred dollars cash to anyone who can produce a usable script. Ruth reads some of the scripts that are submitted to Mr. Hammond and is shocked when she recognizes her story.

Tom cast aside his sweater and plunged into the tide.

Unfortunately, Ruth had been very secretive about the plot of her scenario, so she has no proof that the story is hers. Ruth notices that even Mr. Hammond and her closest friends are skeptical of Ruth's claim and think that she is not rational. Ruth must find a way to prove that the scenario is based on her original story.