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Against the backdrop of the events leading up to the American Revolution, 12-year-old Matt Howard (Dickie Jones) loses his father, a poor, struggling Virginia farmer, and his uncle Reuben when they are enticed by the prospect of 1000 acres of free fertile Ohio land to join the disastrous 1755 Braddock Expedition and are killed in battle against the French. The youngster is consoled by his schoolmate and friend Tom Jefferson (Richard Carlson).
When Matt (now played by Cary Grant) grows to manhood, he sells the family farm, determined to settle Ohio, but a chance encounter with Tom changes his plans. Tom introduces him to his wealthy friends, passing him off as a gentleman down on his luck, and gets him a job as a surveyor for the aristocratic Fleetwood Peyton (Cedric Hardwicke). He and Fleetwood's sister Jane (Martha Scott) fall in love, but when she finds out that he is no gentleman, she is outraged. Matt, however, purchases a thousand acres in the Shenandoah Valley and persuades her to marry him. He builds a fine plantation, Albemarle, only to see their marriage crumble under the strain of events and differences in their upbringing.
Who consoles Matt Howard after his family members are killed?
his schoolmate and friend Tom Jefferson