Brother and sister - Felix Young and Baroness Eugenia Munster - for the first time in their lives come to their mother's homeland in America. They grew up in Europe, feel like Europeans and anxiously await a meeting with the Wentworth family - uncles, cousins ​​and cousins. Felix was the first to come to meet relatives, but only the younger cousin Gertrude was caught - everyone went to church, and she, despite the persuasion of the priest in love with her Brand and her older sister Charlotte, stayed home. Gertrude greets him kindly and asks about his family. The late mother of Felix and Eugenia converted to Catholicism and married a man who, although he was an American, had lived in Europe since birth. Relatives disliked her husband and broke off all relations with her. Eugenia married a German crown prince, but his family wants to terminate this morganatic marriage. Eugene has not yet given consent, so now the question is open. Gertrude’s head goes round and round from all the stories and events, and she, confused, represents Felix’s relatives returning from the church as Crown Prince Silberstadt-Shrekenstein.

Returning to his sister in the hotel, Felix enthusiastically talks about the affectionate welcome given by his relatives, and Eugene immediately realizes that he fell in love with Gertrude. Felix says that apart from Wentworth, he met their distant relative Acton, a wealthy, secular, witty gentleman who will surely like Eugenia. The next day, Eugene arrives at Wentworth with Felix. They welcome them cordially and invite Felix and Eugene to stay with them. They put at their disposal a separate house, where they settle. Wentworth accept them very well, but Americans are alien to all the habits of Europeans, alien to their cheerfulness, love of the new. Only Gertrude is drawn to them, only she is attracted to everything new, unknown. The Wentworths are wondering what brought Felix and Eugene to their land. Felix is ​​an amateur artist, he draws with enthusiasm, thanks to his cheerful sociable character he easily agrees with everyone and is very pleased with life. Felix offers Mr. Wentworth to paint his portrait, but he does not agree to pose, because posing is a kind of idleness, and Wentworth is the embodiment of Puritan morality. Felix begins to paint a portrait of Gertrude, entertaining her with stories of his adventures and travels. Brand blames her for spending too much time with Felix. This upsets the whole family: Wentworth and Charlotte, worried about Gertrude’s frivolity and oddities, really want her to marry Brand, who they think has a beneficial effect on her. Eugenia rearranges furniture in the house, goes to visit Wentworths, starts a Negro cook. She flirts with Acton, who is more secular and has a broader horizons than the rest, but in his heart he is also an exemplary Boston. Acton is trying to arouse Eugenia's interest and love for the nature of America, for its inhabitants. Eugene tells him the story of his marriage. Acton asks what she would do if her husband returned to her. She replies that she would say to him: “Now it is my turn. I am breaking with you, Your Grace! ” She tells Acton that she almost decided to send the paper, which she calls her abdication, and regain freedom.

Wentworth asks Felix if he is going to stay in America forever, but Felix has not decided yet. Knowing that Wentworth is depressing his son Clifford's addiction to drinking, Felix offers to bring him closer to Eugenia in the hope that his hobby will help the young man cope with the addiction to alcohol. To Wentworth, such a thought seems wild: what can a twenty-year-old boy have in common with a thirty-three-year-old married lady? But Eugene greets Clifford, and he increasingly visits her. Felix finishes the portrait of Gertrude, but they still spend a lot of time together. They often meet Charlotte and Brand, and Felix notices that young people love each other. He shares his observation with Gertrude, and she, having thought, agrees with him. Considering Brand to be her sister’s bridegroom, Charlotte suppresses her feelings, and Brand simply does not realize that she really loves not Gertrude, but Charlotte. Felix and Gertrude decide to help Brand and Charlotte sort out their feelings. Felix confesses to Gertrude in love. He dreams of marrying her, but the poor artist is not a couple for her, and he is afraid of failure.

Acton introduces Eugene to his mother, and this brings them together. He tries to figure out his feelings, but comes to the conclusion that he is not in love, and most importantly, what drives him is curiosity. Nevertheless, having gone away for a few days on business, he is in such a hurry to see Eugene that he comes to her at a late hour, which really surprises her. Seeing that she is bored, he invites her to travel together to Niagara. He asks if she sent her renunciation, she promises to answer on Niagara. Clifford suddenly appears, who supposedly looked at the drawings of Felix in his workshop. When Clifford leaves, Eugene says that he cured Clifford of drunkenness and for that he fell in love with her. As a romantic young man, he made it a rule to come to her at midnight. Acton tells Eugene that everyone considers Clifford to be his sister Lizzy's fiancé, and Eugene promises not to encourage his courtship. The next day, Clifford tells Acton that he was with Eugene when he heard the steps, and, fearing that it was his father, he hid in Felix's workshop. Unable to get out of there on the street, he entered the living room. To Acton's direct question whether he is in love with Eugene, Clifford replies that no.

Felix tells Eugenia that he has achieved Gertrude's reciprocity and that she is ready to go with him to Europe. Eugene says that Acton wants to marry her, but she has not yet decided what to do, because he would never agree to live in Europe. Felix persuades her to agree to this marriage. Acton does not go to Eugene for several days. Eugene makes a visit to mother Acton and reports that he is going to leave. Leaving her, she sees Acton lying on the lawn under a tree and announces to him about her imminent departure. Acton feels in love with her and tries to hold her back. Once again, he asks if she sent a paper to restore her freedom. She says yes. Acton asks himself, "Is this the lie he wanted to hear," but takes no decisive steps. Eugene invites Clifford to visit her in Europe, and visit her here before her departure, but Clifford is more interested in seeing off her father’s friends than talking with Eugenia. She is annoyed: is she really going away with nothing? Prose Americans do not show the fervor of feelings that she expects from them.

Felix opens Brand's eyes to the fact that Charlotte loves him, the Priest is stunned. Felix asks Wentworth for Gertrude’s hands, and Brand asks for permission to marry them, delighting everyone with his nobility. Clifford makes an offer to Lizzy Acton, and everyone asks Eugene to stay and attend weddings, but she is in a hurry to leave. Felix asks her sister about her relationship with Acton. Eugene says she refused him. She did not send her consent to divorce and returns to Germany. Acton upset her departure, but not for long. After the death of his mother, he marries a sweet and well-mannered girl. Felix and Gertrude live in Europe and visit their relatives only once: they come to the wedding of Brand and Charlotte.