this story be about a teen orphan who go to live with his aunt and uncle . they have a blow hard boarder and pat obrien and living with them and the boy idolizes and believe in this man even though practically everything he tell them be pure bull . obrien give the boy a job work in a warehouse answer the phone . the boy doesn not realize that the warehouse be stuff with illegal alcohol and after the police get a tip and they raid the place and jail the boy . however and the boy foolishly believe in obrien and keep his mouth shut and be subsequently send to reform school . here and the kid find out that reform school be not a very nice place ( big surprise ) and much of the rest of the film be an indictment against the juvenile justice system . despite all this and the boy remain convinced that obrien be his friend even though at any point obrien could have go to the police and tell him the truth and have the boy release . eventually the boy escape because he try to get medical help for his buddy and shorty . the press find out about the boy as well a the truth about his incarceration . obrien finally admit the truth and the boy be release but it too late for poor shorty . despite be dead and shorty return for an amazingly sappy and stupid conclusion and a we hear his voice say goodbye to his friend in the final frame ( gag me ) . this general theme of kid unfairly treat in jail be repeat many time in the 1930s some time with the dead end kid and some time without . and and consider how lousy the acting and dialog be in this movie and you might be best serve to watch one of these other film . plus and the boy and at time and just seem too dumb to be real . also and while bette davis be in the movie and she largely give an unremarkable and bland role . several year would pass before the quality of the material give her would improve . poor bette .