The story follows the life of a young Englishman named Geoffrey Bingham, who travels to South Africa to make his fortune. While there, he falls in love with a beautiful young woman named Beatrice, who is the daughter of a wealthy diamond miner. However, Geoffrey's romantic aspirations are complicated by a number of factors, including the fact that Beatrice is already engaged to another man, as well as the challenges posed by the harsh African landscape and the difficult social and political climate of the region. Throughout the novel, Geoffrey must navigate a complex web of relationships and challenges, including his own conflicted feelings for Beatrice, the machinations of rival diamond miners, and the tension between the British colonial authorities and the indigenous African population.