Sándor Solymossy

Tóth Manci, a milliner turned dancer, meets Pali, a handsome banker, and falls madly in love. But she waits in vain for a word of encouragement from him, because he loves Lili, the belladonna. So Manci, in her grief, goes to Russia. By the time Pali realizes that he loves Manci too and wants to follow her, war breaks out, and he can only follow her as a soldier.

Mr. Polgár is a provincial paper dealer. His sons, Viktor and Feri, are managers in a big factory in the capital, spending their money lavishly, living their lives in a careless, irresponsible way. Viktor is to marry a baroness and feels rather too uneasy about his father's small business. He persuades his old man into selling the business he had so long cherished and to move to their place in Pest.

Marika is adopted by Orbán Sándor after his wife dies. However, when she reaches the age of 19, he discovers she is more attractive than any of the women he knows. There are a few complications before Marika realizes that her foster father, Orbán, will make a better husband than any of the young men that are courting her.

The story follows the life of a bright and sensitive schoolboy growing up in an old, established boarding school in the city of Debrecen in eastern Hungary.