In the story of The Outcasts of Poker Flat, four people, Mother Shipton, Uncle Billy, John Oakhurst and The Duchess were cast out of their homes and the town they lived in by the upstanding people of the town. They begin walking to a camp on the other side of the mountain when they meet up with Piney Woods and Tom Simson, a couple on their way to elope. The group stops halfway to their destination at a remote cabin. During the night, Uncle Billy absconds with the mules and horses and all the group’s supplies. Shortly after the character leaves, a blizzard comes, which consequently leaves the rest of the characters to perish in the blizzard. This group of vagabonds desperately need someone or something to save them. An invention developed