Long Livery Hall has been bought and rebuilt by Randolph Penrice, whose parents emigrated from Cornwall to California. Randolph made a fortune from the gold fields and has returned to England a very wealthy man. Now he wants to find a wife: a woman of noble birth who can bestow nobility upon his offspring. But 'Chuck' also believes in "trying before buying". Three women are keen to entice him into marriage by means of their bedtime skills, but which one will make a good mistress for the new Long Livery Hall?