David Balfour, a lad of seventeen, left home after the death of his parents. He carried with him a letter of introduction from his father to his uncle, Ebenezer Balfour, who turned out to be a mean and wicked man wishing to deprive his nephew his rightful share in the family property. He therefore got young David kidnapped and taken abroad a ship bound for the Carolinas. Fortunately, the ship was wrecked and David returned after a series of hair-raising adventures to claim his share of the property.