Strange Conquest

Acclaimed jungle disease expert Dr. Mary Palmer hopes to be selected by a prestigious committee for a research post in Sumatra, but is informed by the committee head, Dr. A. L. Graves, that they have decided to select the young, inexperienced William Sommers, whose wealthy family supports the project, instead. Bill's wife Virginia asks to accompany her husband, but he convinces her of the impracticality of that and continues alone to Sumatra and the jungle laboratory of Dr. Paul Harris and his assistant, Bert Morrow. Both men are let down by Bill's arrival, as they were expecting his renowned uncle. Sensing Paul's disappointment, Bill struggles to win his respect, but after a few weeks of continual arguments with the younger man, Paul informs Bill he is sending him back to the States as the lab is in serious need of an experienced bacteriologist. After Bill reveals his family connections in supporting the lab, Paul offers to resign, but Bill has an immediate change of heart and agrees to depart. While cleaning up the lab, however, Bill discovers a slide with blood on it that was accidentally smeared by the lab's pet monkey, Junior, and notices it shows no sign of the rampant black grass disease. Believing that the blood has been purged of the disease, Bill determines to set up his own lab nearby and challenge Paul's research. Bill takes and treats several monkeys infected with the fever and discovers that after two generations they are disease free. Making a serum from that apparently healthy blood, he injects several infected monkeys, but they soon collapse and appear near death. Defeated, Bill returns to Paul's lab, where the doctor believes he too has developed a successful serum. On impulse, Bill injects himself with the disease to try out Paul's serum but even after he is given the serum, he grows gravely ill. Just before Bill slips into coma, lab assistant Molugi rushes in to report that the monkeys from Bill's lab have all recovered and appear healthy. Bill dies knowing his serum is a success. Distraught at his earlier treatment of Bill, Paul gathers Bill's notes with the intention of resuming his research under his name, to insure he receives proper credit for his work. When Paul vaguely requests another scientist for the lab, the committee sends Mary. Upon meeting Mary, Paul introduces himself as Bill. Although puzzled by the myserious disappearance of the eminent Dr. Harris, Mary takes up the work with enthusiasm while also gradually falling in love with "Bill." Back in the States, Virginia grows concerned over the length of time that has passed since she has heard from Bill. When she gets little information from Dr. Graves and the committee, Virginia travels to Sumatra in search of her husband. At the camp, she introduces herself to Mary as Bill's wife, but before Mary can respond, Paul immediately confesses to assuming Bill's identity with the best of intentions. Virginia, who has several of Bill's letters describing the animosity between him and Paul, disbelieves the doctor, however, and is convinced that Paul used Bill as an unwilling test subject for his own serum and did not report his death out of fear that the committee would cut off his funding. Just then the lab bursts into flames, because Junior has accidentally tipped over a bunsen burner. Paul fears all of Bill's and his own notes are lost. Determined to prove to Virginia that Paul only continued Bill's work, Mary injects herself with the black grass fever and promptly falls ill. The intrepid Junior, meanwhile, has saved Bill's notebook from the fire and when Virginia reads his medical notes, she realizes Paul was telling the truth. She helps Paul nurse Mary, who recovers after receiving Bill's serum.